Students write about intense, complex issues—poverty, violence, systemic inequality, climate change—and then conclude with something like:
The conclusion is definitely the paragraph teachers dread reading the most...
Summarize your main points.
Restate the thesis.
End on a positive note.
In the real world, solutions aren't simple. They require:
You've seen it...
'The solution is simply to...'
Now, in their defense, your writers aren't being lazy...
They genuinely think solutions should be simple—a polite exit. The standard advice they've been given, being:
They don't know how to end their essay because they've never really been taught how to end their essay.
If we want students to propose meaningful solutions in their conclusions, we have to give them experience wrestling with what that actually takes...
Understanding the stakes—and the stakeholders
Anticipating consequences
Weighing trade-offs
Acknowledging what you don't know
Building something that could *actually* work
When we give students meaningful opportunities to ,
their rises to meet them.
writing
think
Understanding the stakes—and the stakeholders
Anticipating consequences
Weighing trade-offs
Acknowledging what you don't know
Building something that could *actually* work
Students don't struggle with summarizing what they've said...
new
already
They struggle with doing something
with what they've built.
This activity...
Pulls students out of "school writing mode":
They're no longer writing for a rubric—they're designing for a real need.
Forces nuanced thinking:
Students can't get away with "the solution is simply to..." because they have to defend their ideas against real-world complexity.
Gives solution-focused thinking the spotlight it deserves:
Students see that proposing a path forward isn't about having all the answers—it's about thinking through possibilities with intellectual honesty.
Mirrors the thinking moves of real-world problem-solvers:
Researchers, policymakers, innovators, designers—they all end by proposing what could happen next, not by pretending there's one simple fix.
As students analyze problems, weigh trade-offs, test assumptions, and develop their solution proposals, they are rehearsing the mental work that sits beneath clear, mature, evidence-based writing.
Best part?
The Innovator's Challenge helps students develop the intellectual courage, flexibility, and they need for the world they’re entering—and those same skills naturally the quality of their academic .
writing
elevate
problem-solving mindset
Instead of "I my claim"...
conversation
Your students will be able to say:
I joined the .
(And isn't that really what it's all about?!)
Instead of:
"I my claim."
restated
Your writers will be able to say:
"I joined the
."
Two options...
Single resource
The innovator's challenge
$12
Complete PDF Resource
(84 pages)
Includes step-by-step strategy, student-friendly materials, and standards alignment!
workshop bundle
The Anti-Essay Strategy Pack
$47
Full Video Workshop Series
(Anti-Essay Strategy)
Includes the Innovator's Challenge resource PLUS FOUR MORE, stellar resources just like it!
(Compass Method, Start Smart Intro Strategy, Photo Essay Strategy, Tree of Reasoning)
