Introduction

This introductory chapter examines three concepts related to this book: (1) the best practices of high school grammar instruction; (2) this book's approach; and (3) what to expect in this book. It explains that the lesson plans in this book incorporate the research-based best practices of grammar instruction and apply those practices to the teaching and learning of grammar in Grades 9–12. The chapter explains that the goal of the book is to provide high school English teachers with concrete, user-friendly lesson plans that present grammatical concepts in the context of effective writing through the use of mentor texts. The book contains 15 detailed mentor text-based lesson plans, each of which provides readers with a clear and informative explanation of its focal grammatical concept, published mentor texts that exemplify that concept, and instructional steps to use when helping high school students understand the features of a grammatical concept, comprehend its importance, and connect it to their writing.