Thoroughly read the Program Guidelines or other funding instructions.
Find a district or similar awardee that has won grants for which you want to apply and ask to see their successful past grant application. Use it as a guide. DON'T copy it verbatim. That's plagiarism. We fail students for that.
Create clearly focused and/or innovative ideas that address the funder's goal.
Locate and pull together data that illustrates the problem being addressed and its severity.
Based on the data found, fully develop your idea for addressing the problem.
Make sure to gain active buy-in from those you have included in grant implementation, this includes gaining approval from district or ESC administration who should vet the proposal to make certain the grant implementation will not add expense to the district or ESC budget and that it fits within the overall vision and mission of the district.
Initially, don't grope for the right word or phrase. If you struggle to come up with the words you want, write simple words and even repeat them if necessary to get your thoughts down in writing. If words escape you, insert asterisks (***) then go back at a later date and insert the best word or phrase you can come up with, even using a thesaurus if necessary.
Build an outline by copying and pasting questions or guidance from the grant narrative to your word document, then simply answer each question in writing. Color code so you distinguish the guidance verbiage from your writing.
Give yourself plenty of time to write the narrative. Don't try to write it in one fell swoop.
After your have created a draft, let it percolate. Give it 24 hours, then go back and revise your draft.
Concentrate on and write a small piece of the entire grant narrative at a time.
Find an English or journalism teacher who aspires to someday serve in administration.
Recruit them to help you write the narrative OR
Ask them to read over the grant guidance then read through your draft and suggest edits.
If you do not want to task them with the entire writing responsibility, ask them to write portions of the narrative you find especially troublesome to draft.
Consider employing "Track Changes" or Google sharing the draft as a way for multiple individuals to work on a single document.
Have others not involved in the writing of the grant read your draft to look for:
clear communication with no gaps in understanding
active language (verbs that explain an action; avoiding "to be" verbs)
whether or not the writer fully answered all questions/requirements in the grant instructions
whether or not the writer tied the answer back to the purpose of the grant
Then revise and repeat the process until you have a draft everyone believes best and most fully addresses the problem seeking a solution in the grant application.
An easy way to change a sentence from passive to active, make the object of the sentence the subject and the subject the object by placing an active verb between the two. (ex. Instead of "Bullet-proof glass is the best solution to meet our need," try "The best solution to meet our need involves acquiring bullet-proof glass." "Bullet-proof glass" becomes the object and "solution" the subject. Instead of the "to be" verb "is" we use the active verb "acquiring".
Instead of one long sentence, consider breaking that sentence into two or more shorter sentences.
To combat repetition, avoid multiple uses of the same word or phrase in your narrative.
Use transitional words and phrases to connect ideas and provide interesting prose. (Ex. likewise, furthermore, however, despite, etc.)
Do not use acronyms without first spelling them out. (Ex. “Texas Education Agency (TEA)”).
Properly use homonyms (to, too; led, lead; their, there and they’re, etc.)
Unless inappropriate, write in past tense. Use present and future tense only when called for, such as when discussing future plans or explaining what happened today.
Statement of Work
Detailed Budget
Budget Justification
Subaward documents:
Letter of Commitment (signed by sub entity authorized representative)
Statement of Work
Budget
Budget Justification
Cost Share Recap Form
Third party cost share commitment letters
Consultant letters of commitment
For smaller grants, plan on submitting all required/information/documents at least five (5) business days before the grant submission deadline. Check with the district or ESC personnel for larger grants. The sooner larger grants can be addressed the better.
Request for Proposals (RFPs), Letters of Intent (LOI's) and other applicable grant proposal documentation will provide approximate or real dates when award recipients will be announced. Check with your district or ESC anytime after that date for updates on Notification of Grant Award (NOGA) announcements.
Each grant application will request a point of contact for the grant. Generally, that contact will be a district administrative personnel and/or someone from your business office. At the ESC level, that point of contact will be the CFO and the Director or other ESC administration to whom you report. On occasion and usually with Foundation grants, the grant writer will be the point of contact. Often funders preliminarily announce potential grant award recipients and either require a grant negotiation or a full proposal if the funder shows interest in funding based on the submission of Letters of Intent (LOIs). If approved for funding, TEA often accepts Letters of Intent as the actual grant application. Designated district or ESC personnel will officially receive the Notification of Grant Award (NOGA) once funds have officially been awarded and can be drawn down for spending. If the date to announce awards has passed and you have not heard from the funder, contact appropriate district or ESC personnel.