Support your students in writing persuasive texts with this fun and engaging Best Pet Persuasive Writing & Craft Activity! With four popular animal choices—dog, cat, fish, or rabbit—this resource helps students choose their favourite pet and plan a convincing piece of writing to explain why it's the best.

Check out this video below to see this resource in action.

Each student selects one animal and uses the corresponding planning sheet to organise their ideas. They are encouraged to think critically about what makes that animal a great pet—considering factors such as care, companionship, and lifestyle. Once planning is complete, students use the matching writing page to compose their persuasive text, building skills in structure, vocabulary and reasoning.

To make their work stand out, students can then complete a craft version of their chosen pet using the included templates. This is a fantastic way to bring writing and creativity together, and the final pieces make for a colourful and compelling classroom display. With four animal options and differentiated pages, the resource can be adapted to suit different ability levels and interests.

Key Learning Outcomes:

• ✅ Use persuasive writing to express and support a personal opinion
• ✅ Plan ideas using structured prompts and frameworks
• ✅ Apply reasoning and vocabulary suited to a persuasive text
• ✅ Combine writing and craft to reinforce communication and creativity
• ✅ Reflect on different points of view in a fun and meaningful context

What’s Included:

• Four animal options: dog, cat, fish, and rabbit
• Planning sheets tailored to each animal
• Matching writing pages for final drafts
• Craft templates for each pet to create a display

Materials Needed:

• Printed planning and writing pages (choose per student)
• Craft materials: scissors, glue, colouring tools
• Display space for finished writing and pet crafts

Ideas for Classroom Use:

• 💡 Use as part of a persuasive writing unit with a focus on opinion writing
• 💡 Create a “Best Pet” gallery wall combining writing and artwork
• 💡 Encourage oral presentations where students pitch their chosen pet
• 💡 Conduct a class vote after all pieces are displayed

Top Teacher Tips:

• 💛 Allow students to work in pairs or small groups to brainstorm persuasive points
• 💛 Model writing using a shared example before students begin
• 💛 Display sentence starters and persuasive vocabulary on a writing wall
• 💛 Laminate craft pieces for a long-lasting display or bulletin board feature

Best Pet Persuasive Writing & Craft Activity is a fun, flexible and purposeful way to teach opinion writing while tapping into student interests and creativity—perfect for writing, display and discussion.

To extend this lesson, check out our Best Pet graphing activity.