Writing Worksheet · Grades 5–7
Problem-Solution Essay Worksheet
A 3-page worksheet for grades 5-7 on the problem-solution essay. Students label sentences as problem, solution, or result, then plan their own essay about a real issue at school or in town. Includes a worked reference and a sample-answer key.
Subject
Writing
Grades
Grades 5–7
Skill Focus
Problem-Solution Essay, writing skills
Lesson Length
30 minutes
Lesson Overview
About this worksheet
A problem-solution essay does three things: it names a real problem, proposes a workable solution, and predicts the result. Students often blur these moves, leaving a solution with no clear problem or a problem with no follow-through. This worksheet separates the three moves so students can build each one deliberately.
Page 1 opens with a reference box that names the three moves – problem, solution, result – and shows a worked example about a crowded school hallway. Section A then lists six sentences from two scenarios (a littered town park and forgotten library books) and asks students to label each as a problem, a solution, or a result.
Page 2 is the planning task. Section B asks students to name a real problem at their school or in their town, propose one clear solution, and predict the result – the backbone of a problem-solution essay before drafting.
Page 3 is the answer key. Section A lists the label for each of the six sentences. Section B gives a sample plan; student topics will vary, and any plan with a distinct problem, solution, and result is acceptable.
How to Use This Lesson
Read the reference box aloud and trace the worked example – point to the problem, the solution, and the predicted result.
Do Section A item 1 together (Problem) and let students label items 2-6 independently.
Stress that the solution must be realistic and the result must follow from the solution.
Allow 12-15 minutes for Section B; circulate and check that the three moves are distinct and connected.
Have partners read each other’s Section B plan and ask: would this solution really cause that result?
Optional extension: students expand their Section B plan into a full problem-solution paragraph next session.
Printable Resource
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Problem-Solution Essay Worksheet
A 3-page worksheet for grades 5-7 on the problem-solution essay. Students label sentences as problem, solution, or result, then plan their own essay about a real issue at school or in town. Includes a worked reference and a sample-answer key.
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