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Writing About What Happened

A 35-minute Kindergarten lesson on narrating events in the order they happened and saying how you felt about them.

Writing About What Happened is a free 35-minute Kindergarten English lesson plan for Common Core standard W.K.3 — draw and write about something that happened, in the order it happened. It is timed across 5 sections, gives the exact wording to use where the wording carries the meaning, names 3 misconceptions with the teaching move that addresses each, and ends with an exit ticket and a printable worksheet with its answer key.

Grade:
Kindergarten
Length:
35 minutes
Standard:
W.K.3

Kindergarten · Writing

W.K.3

Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to narrate a single event or several loosely linked events, tell about the events in the order in which they occurred, and provide a reaction to what happened.

Objective

Students will be able to write about two events in the order they happened and give a reaction, by drawing, dictating and writing.

Students are successful when they can

  • Writes two events in order: "First I put on my boots. Then I jumped in a puddle."
  • Starts the sentences with First and Then.
  • Adds a feeling: "I felt happy."

What you need

  • Two large word cards: FIRST and THEN
  • A drawing-and-writing frame with two boxes, numbered 1 and 2, and lines under each
  • A feelings word bank with faces: happy, sad, scared, excited, cross, surprised
  • The printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan

The lesson

Warm-up — this morning

5 min
  1. Say: "This morning, first I had breakfast. Then I came to school." Hold up FIRST, then THEN, as you say each part.
  2. Ask two children to tell their morning the same way while you hold the cards.
  3. Swap the order: "First I came to school. Then I had breakfast." Ask: "Does that sound right?" Fish for "no, you have breakfast at home before school."

Teach — two boxes, two moments

11 min
  1. Tell your story aloud: "On Saturday it rained. First I put on my red boots. Then I jumped in a big puddle. Splash! I felt happy."
  2. Draw box one: you pulling on red boots. Draw box two: you mid-jump in a puddle with water flying.
  3. Write under box one, saying each word: "First I put on my boots." Under box two: "Then I jumped in a puddle."
  4. Point to the feelings bank. Add under box two: "I felt happy." Ask: "How did I feel? How else could you tell?" Fish for "you are smiling in the picture."
  5. Cut the boxes apart and swap them. Read: "First I jumped in a puddle. Then I put on my boots." Ask: "What is wrong?" Fish for "your feet would get wet, the boots go on first."
  6. Put them back in order and read the whole piece together.
“First box, first thing. Second box, next thing. Then tell me how you felt.”

Guided practice — tell it before you draw it

9 min
  1. Children think of something small that really happened to them: playing a game, a party, baking, a trip to the store.
  2. They tell a partner using two fingers: "First... Then..." and finish with "I felt..."
  3. Partners check two things: "Is it in the right order? Did they say how they felt?"
  4. Children draw their two boxes. Remind them: box 1 is the first thing.
“Tell your partner: first, then, and how you felt. Two fingers, then a feeling.”

Independent practice

8 min
  1. Children write or dictate a sentence under each box, starting with First and Then. Accept invented spelling: "Then I jumpt."
  2. On the printable, read each time-word frame aloud ("First I ___.", "Then I ___.", "I felt ___.") and children finish them.
  3. Scribe for children who have the story in speech but not yet in letters.

Close

2 min
  1. Two children read their boxes aloud. The class says how the writer felt and how they knew.

What goes wrong, and why

Each of these is a reasoning error rather than carelessness. The fix addresses the reasoning.

Writes events out of order: "Then I went home. First I played on the slide."

Why: The most exciting or most recent part comes first in memory, and the child writes in the order they remember rather than the order it happened.

Fix: Act it out with them: "Can you play on the slide after you go home?" Draw and number the boxes before writing any words.

Writes "I went to the park." and stops: one event, no feeling.

Why: One sentence feels like a whole story to a child who has worked hard on writing it.

Fix: Point to the empty second box: "What happened next?" Then point to the feelings bank: "How did you feel?" The frame shows what is missing.

Writes "and then and then and then" with six events.

Why: They are excited to tell everything and do not yet know that a writer chooses.

Fix: Limit the frame to two boxes. Ask: "Which two parts matter most?" Celebrate the rest as talk, not writing.

If they are not there yet

  • Draw both boxes first, then dictate the sentences.
  • Use a frame: "First I ___. Then I ___. I felt ___."
  • Point to the feelings faces to choose a feeling.

If they finish early

  • Add a third box starting "At the end."
  • Add a sound word to one box: "Splash!" "Crash!"
  • Say why they felt that way: "I felt happy because the water went everywhere."

Exit ticket

Tell me two things that happened at recess, using first and then. How did you feel?

What to look for: Two events in order with first, then, and a feeling. Wrong order: act it out and number the boxes. One event only: point to the second box. Six events: limit to two and ask which matter most.

Printable practice for W.K.3

Free to print and copy, answer key included. Each sheet can generate a fresh set of problems for a retake.

Questions about Writing About What Happened

How long does the Writing About What Happened lesson take?

35 minutes, split across 5 timed sections: warm-up 5 min, teach 11 min, guided practice 9 min, independent practice 8 min, close 2 min. The minutes are stated per section and add up to the stated length, so the plan can be cut or extended at a section boundary rather than abandoned halfway.

Which standard does Writing About What Happened teach?

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.K.3 — W.K.3, Writing for Kindergarten: “Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to narrate a single event or several loosely linked events, tell about the events in the order in which they occurred, and provide a reaction to what happened.” In plain terms, draw and write about something that happened, in the order it happened.

What do I need to teach this lesson?

Two large word cards: FIRST and THEN, a drawing-and-writing frame with two boxes, numbered 1 and 2, and lines under each, a feelings word bank with faces: happy, sad, scared, excited, cross, surprised and the printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan. Everything listed is either ordinary classroom equipment or a free printable from this site — there is nothing to buy and nothing to prepare beyond photocopying.

What mistakes should I expect in this lesson?

Three, each a reasoning error rather than carelessness: writes events out of order: "Then I went home. First I played on the slide."; writes "I went to the park." and stops: one event, no feeling and writes "and then and then and then" with six events. The plan gives the thinking behind each one and the teaching move that addresses the thinking rather than the symptom.

How do I know whether the lesson worked?

The exit ticket asks: “Tell me two things that happened at recess, using first and then. How did you feel?.” Two events in order with first, then, and a feeling. Wrong order: act it out and number the boxes. One event only: point to the second box. Six events: limit to two and ask which matter most. That tells you whether the class needs a reteach or a thirty-second conversation before you plan tomorrow.

Is there a worksheet to go with Writing About What Happened?

Yes — 1 printable W.K.3 worksheet, linked at the end of the plan and free like the rest of the site. Each one comes with an answer key and 25 versions, so the practice after the lesson can be a different paper on every desk.

Is Writing About What Happened free to use?

Yes. The plan, its printables and their answer keys are free to read, print and photocopy for your own class, with no account and no email capture. It was last reviewed on October 8, 2026. Please do not resell it or republish it as your own.

Last reviewed 2026-10-08. Aligned to W.K.3 of the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.