100+ Ways to Use Writing Jamboard Templates in Your Classroom
Spice up your writing mini-lesson, create anchor charts that save wall space, and increase student accountability with writing Jamboards.
First, what is Google Jamboard and who is using it?
Jamboard is a collaborative Google tool that is making it easier to collaborate whether students are in the classroom or learning at home.
Groups of students or your entire class can work together in the same Jamboard space to share ideas, ask questions, and be held accountable.
With Jamboard, students use digital sticky notes and type their ideas and add them to a collaborative space. They can also insert images and draw on it, making it an incredible visual tool that’s really engaging.
Let me tell you, students LOVE Jamboard!
But it’s not just fun for students. It’s also an amazing tool for teachers to use during whole-class discussions, mini-lessons, and small groups to keep your students accountable and make your lessons more interactive.
How can Jamboard templates be used during writing?
There are endless ways to use Jamboard templates for writing whether you need a template for the entire class, small group, or an individual student.
Jamboards can be used for so much more than just a discussion space.
You can use them to help with character traits, setting, story elements, brainstorming ideas, descriptive language, editing celebrating student writing, displaying writing partners, and so much more!
Here are 12 of my favorite ways to use Jamboard for writing:
1. Brainstorm seed story ideas after a mini-lesson
How many times have your students left the carpet after your writing mini-lesson, only to get to their desk, and sit there unsure what to write about?
Try this idea:
After a mini-lesson about writing a seed story, have students add a sticky note with their idea on the Jamboard.
If some students don’t have an idea, they might be inspired by their classmates’ ideas that are already on the Jamboard.
Using Jamboard to share ideas is also a lot quicker than than having everyone share out loud.
When students head back to their desks, they’ve got their idea in the head and won’t be able to say “I don’t know what to write about!” You’re welcome, haha.
Plus you can reference this list anytime students need to start a piece of writing if they need it.
You can use this idea for any type of writing, it doesn’t have to just be personal narratives. You can use it for opinion pieces, biographies, informational writing, and more.
2. Help students come up with their topic sentence or introduction after your mini-lesson
Jamboards can also be used during your mini-lessons.
During a mini-lesson about topic sentences, have students respond with an example of a topic sentence in the text you’re using for an example. This could be a Time for Kids or Scholastic even.
You can also have students get up and take 3 minutes to find an example of a topic sentence in a nonfiction text they’re reading a their desks.
They’ll type one of the sentence examples on a sticky note on the Jamboard so you know they’re grasping the concept.
Another idea is to have students share their own topic sentence or introduction that they’re going to use in their writing piece.
After your lesson about the different types of introductions, students will add a sticky note underneath the introduction they’re going to use in their writing before going off to do it.
They can even write the actual introduction on the sticky note so they know exactly what they’ll write on their paper when they get back to their seat.
3. Help students improve their word choice
An easy and interactive way to get students to use more descriptive language, is to have them help co-create word charts using Jamboard.
You can easily type any word onto a Jamboard and have students give more descriptive synonyms.
For example, ask your students to add a sticky note with a word that can be used instead of the word “Happy”.
You can also do this with said is dead, a commonly used phrase, or even as a place for students to list the lingo for a specific topic.
The great thing is, you can project this anchor chart during writing time instead of having to find space in your classroom to hang a piece of chart paper.
Plus when you project a Jamboard on your screen, it’s a lot easier for students to see and they’re more likely to use it.
5. Create an effective anchor chart for students
One of the things that always was a little irritating to me was finding places in the classroom to hang my anchor charts.
Managing giant pieces of chart paper – aghhh. Can you relate?
I’d want them all in the perfect spot for students to see when they needed them, but how do you hang ALL your anchor charts in the same spots?
Plus there was always a table that couldn’t see the chart.
Additionally, I was trying to find a place to hang a giant piece of chart paper for about 1 hour a day that students would actually use it.
I finally solved this problem by using digital anchor charts like this Arms and Cups chart above.
During writing, I could project the chart nice and large for everyone to see.
Even better, I could easily print out these Jamboard anchor charts so each student has their own copy at their seats! Hello mini personal anchor charts!
7. Help your students to write an opinion essay
A great way to introduce opinion writing is to have students write their opinion about a topic on a sticky note.
You can also use the same format to have students practice giving reasons and examples for an opinion, just like they would do in their writing.
During your opinion unit, have students use a sticky note to show a reason for their opinion.
This is also a great tool when you’re teaching persuasive writing. You can use Jamboard to have students debate a topic.
6. Brainstorm facts for an all about topic
A Jamboard is a great space for a brain dump where students can add anything they know about a topic.
You can also use it as a way for students to brainstorm facts about a nonfiction topic to get ready for a informational piece of writing.
From the list of facts, you can move the stickies around and group them to represent the different sections that will be included in their piece of writing. For example, location, bodies, babies, prey, etc.
Using the text or writing feature, add the section headings to each group of sticky notes.
7. Explore figurative language examples
There’s a few different ways you can use Jamboard to teach about figurative language as well.
You can use a figurative language Jamboard for students to sort similes, metaphors, and hyperboles for example.
Type out examples onto sticky notes and have students come up and drag the sticky note into the correct category.
Additionally, during your mini-lesson, have students come up with their own examples and type them onto a sticky note.
My favorite way to use this Jamboard is to ask students to add a sticky note with a sentence from their actual writing where they tried a simile, metaphor, etc.
Watch other students be encouraged to incorporate figurative language into their piece so they can share, too!
8. Help students learn to capitalize proper nouns with examples
Ahhhh how many times do we need this chart!?
I’m always reminding my students to capitalize proper nouns.
It’s always wild how they even forget to capitalize names!
I say you can never have too many activities to reinforce this one.
You can put whatever categories at the top of this chart that you’d like.
During your mini-lesson, have students list a word under the category that needs a capital.
You can also have students look at each other’s writing and find a word in their writing that needs a capital. They’ll add that word to this list anchor chart.
Project this anchor chart during writing time or print off min-charts and give each of your students a copy for their writing tools.
9. Use as a check-in to monitor student progress
Wondering where all of your students are with finishing their pieces? Use the Check-In Jamboards to see exactly where students are to help with your planning and make sure they’re getting support if they need it.
It’s sometimes easy to lose track of students and how they’re progressing during a piece of writing especially if you’re spending a lot of time helping a certain group of students.
Post this Jamboard and have students tell you where they are so you can help to keep them on track or know which students need to take home work to finish.
10. Celebrate with a student writing celebration
Don’t forget about a writing celebration!
Have each of your students put their name on a “Friendly Feedback” or “Round of Applause” Jamboard frame.
Give all your students access to the Jamboard and have them go through and add positive comments or suggestions on each of their classmates’ frames after they share their writing.
Make a list of all your students so you know which ones have been in the spotlight and who still needs a turn.
11. Teach with Show vs Telling examples
You can also use a Show vs. Tell Jamboard to help your students expand on their writing to make it more descriptive.
I like to take a sentence from a piece of student writing that TELLS the reader how a character is feeling. A sentence that can be more descriptive.
Then I have students each use a sticky note to write a better sentence that SHOWS how the character is feeling.
All of the students get to see their classmates’ examples.
Another idea…
After a mini-lesson about show vs. tell, have students go to their seats and pull out their writing. Have them look for a sentence they can fix to become more descriptive.
Then ask them to use Jamboard to show their two sentences. Use a yellow sticky for the “before sentence” and use a pink sticky for the “after sentence.”
You can even let students add to this Jamboard throughout independent writing time or after to encourage them to continue to make improvements in their writing!
12. Use Jamboard to help your students with spelling
Jamboard is great to help students with spelling, too.
You can use Jamboard to create an anchor chart with strategies students can use to spell words. You can type their ideas on sticky notes, or have them add a sticky note with their go-to strategies.
Another idea is to create a Jamboard with stickies to show “No Excuse Words”. You can project this list during writing time to help students stay accountable.
Additionally, you could create a Jamboard with words students might use frequently for their piece of writing.
If they’re writing about animals, add words like predator, prey, habitat, and life cycle so they can spell them correctly in their writing.
If you’re working on opinion writing, list transition words like first, next, additionally, etc. to support their spelling.
Jamboards automatically save, so you can pull up these word lists anytime during writer’s workshop. You can also give students a printed copy for their writing tools!
Over 100+ Jamboard Activities to Use During Writer's Workshop
These are just a few of the MANY ways you can use Jamboard for writer’s workshop. Hopefully this list has given you some new ideas of how you can use Jamboard beyond discussions. (Spoiler, you can also use Jamboard for math and reading!)
If you want even more ideas for writing Jamboards, I’ve created over 100 ready-to-go writing Jamboard templates for every type of writing you teach whether it’s narratives, opinion, how-to, informational, or biography. Plus all the above Jamboards are included!
I’ve even organized all 104 Jamboards with a clickable table of contents, so it’s really easy to grab the Jamboard you need last minute, even right in the middle of your lesson (because let’s be honest, sometimes that’s how things go).
Take a look at all the writing topics I've created Jamboard templates for:
- What’s your seed story?
- Watermelon vs. seed story
- What’s your small moment/personal narrative topic?
- Story Elements: characters, setting, problem, solution
- Story Elements: characters, setting, beginning, middle, end
- Story Elements: characters, setting, conflict, main events, resolution
- Beginning, middle, end
- What’s your setting?
- Who is your main character?
- Describe your main character
- Character Traits: thoughts, feelings, dialogue, actions
- What’s the problem in your story?
- What’s the solution in your story?
- Problem/Solution
- What’s your story’s theme?
- Share your intro/hook
- Which intro/hook will you use?
- Share your conclusion/ending
- Which conclusion/ending will you use?
- Which side are you on?
- What’s your opinion?
- What do you think?
- Pros/Cons
- For/Against
- Opinion, reasons, examples, details
- Claim, reasons, examples, details
- Opinion, reasons, examples, details, counter arguments
- OREO
- What’s your topic?
- What’s your idea?
- All About
- What’s your topic sentence?
- What’s your main idea?
- Main idea/details
- Venn Diagram
- Compare/Contrast
- Sequencing
- How do you spell___?
- {Insert Category} Words
- No excuse words
- What needs a capital letter?
- Transition Words
- Bold words I’ve used
- Other words for ______
- Synonyms for _______
- Said is Dead
- Figurative Language in my writing
- 5 senses in writing
- Let’s talk titles
- Show vs. Tell
- How can we make this better?
- Improve this sentence…
- Revise/Editing Checklists
- Cups/Arms
- Check in: Where are you?
- What are you working on?
- I need some help with…
- What part of your piece needs work?
- I’m a little confused
- What part of your piece are you most proud of?
- Friendly Feedback
- Writing Celebration
- Round of Applause
- Glows and Grows
- To-Do List
- Before Tomorrow
- Writing Reminders
Ready to engage your students and spice up your writer’s workshop with Jamboards? Click below!
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Very easy to assign using google classroom and well laid out and engaging lessons for distance learning, also use them for group work during google meets.
