You can Raise Your Score! Writing Assessment Strategies

You will be given a prompt (a subject on which to write). You will write your response in an answer booklet.

Are the students penalized if they write off mode? No, they just need to demonstrate a clear awareness of audience and purpose. expository persuasive narrative descriptive

Are “off mode” and “off topic” the same thing? No. “Off mode” means writing, for example, narrative when the prompt seems to be eliciting a persuasive response. (No penalty for that…) “Off topic” means not addressing the prompt (the topic) at all.

A writing sample is considered “off topic” when there is no evidence that the student has made an attempt to somehow connect the writing with the topic. Such a response receives no composite score.

Tips for the Writing Test: Read the writing task carefully and be sure to write “on topic.” Plan what you want to say. You can use scratch paper for planning. Leave time to revise and edit your paper. Use the “Writer’s Checklist” to remind you what to look for as you revise and edit your paper.

What are the scorers looking for when they evaluate students’ writing? Address the prompt; Develop ideas thoroughly; Organize ideas; Stay focused on the purpose for writing; Make writing thoughtful and interesting; and Use correct spelling, capitalization, punctuation, grammar, usage, and sentence structure. 85% of the Score

Writer’s Checklist *I planned my paper before writing it. *I revised my paper to be sure that the central idea or topic of my paper is clear. *The central idea of my paper is elaborated. *Everything in my paper talks about my topic/central idea. *My paper is logically organized so readers will understand my message. *My words and information make my paper interesting to readers. *My sentences make sense, sound like me, and read smoothly. *My beginning and ending are connected so my paper has a good conclusion. Are the details I included directly related to my topic? Have I arranged my writing so that the reader will clearly understand? Continued… Don’t forget… The Writer's Checklist

*I edited my paper to be sure that: ___ I used good grammar: ___ I used capital letters and punctuation marks correctly ___ I made my spelling correct; ___ I let my readers know where I started new paragraphs. ___ I checked my paper to make sure that it is the way that I want readers to read it.

Do we ever know ahead of time which mode of writing the prompt will be? No. The mode can be narrative, descriptive, expository, or persuasive.

Well, I wish I could see some actual student papers! You can; there’s a link on the DOE website with actual student papers. Look for NCS Mentor and the keyword is Virginia.

5 TH GRADE SAMPLE PROMPT Write about a happy memory you have. Tell what that that memory is and why it is important to you. I remember… It’s important to me because…

I got a score of 1! Did you… read the prompt and respond to it or did you bird walk around it?

Composing 1

I got a score of 2! Did you… write more than one paragraph?

Composing 2

I got a score of 3! Did you… write more than one paragraph? Did you elaborate on one detail in each paragraph? The elaborated point only has to be reasonable.

Composing 3

I got a score of 4! Did you use interesting adverbs or action describing words?

Did you use interesting adjectives or describing words?

Did you use similes, metaphors, onomatopoeia?

Did you use transitional words?

Composing 4

Four Square Model

Prepare the graphic organizer. Now fold your paper into 4 squares.

I will never forget my sixth birthday. Fold the paper into four squares. Begin with one well written topic sentence placed in a box in the center. This will become the topic sentence. Topic Sentence

I will never forget my sixth birthday. Fold the paper into four squares. Begin with one well written topic sentence placed in a box in the center. This will become the topic sentence. Topic Sentence

I will never forget my sixth birthday. Add three supporting sentences (one in each box). The fourth box should be a feeling sentence that sums up the other three. All sentences should support the main topic in the center. My grandmother threw me a surprise party. My parents gave me a wonderful gift. My friends and I went to the zoo. It was the best birthday ever.

I will never forget my sixth birthday. Add a detail in each box to tell more about the supporting sentence. My grandmother threw me a surprise party. My parents gave me a wonderful gift. My friends and I went to the zoo. It was the best birthday ever. She baked my favorite chocolate fudge cake. They surprised me with a golden retriever puppy. We rode the elephants.

I will never forget my sixth birthday. Now add three details in each box to tell more about the supporting sentence. My grandmother threw me a surprise party. My parents gave me a wonderful gift. My friends and I went to the zoo. It was the best birthday ever. favorite cake tons of presents exciting games golden retriever named Goldie best friend elephant ride walked for miles rode train

I will never forget my sixth birthday. My grandmother threw me a surprise party. My parents gave me a wonderful gift. My friends and I went to the zoo. It was the best birthday ever. favorite cake tons of presents exciting games golden retriever named Goldie best friend elephant ride walked for miles rode train Early in the day,After lunch, Later, Indeed, Adding a transition word to each box will help the text to flow.

I will never forget my sixth birthday. Early in the day, my grandmother threw me a surprise party. She baked my favorite chocolate fudge cake. I got tons of presents. We had such fun playing exciting games. After lunch, my parents gave me a wonderful gift. They surprised me with a golden retriever puppy. I named her Goldie. She is my best friend today. Later, my friends and I went to the zoo. We rode the elephants. The zoo was so large we walked for miles. Finally we gave up and rode the train. Indeed, It was the best birthday ever.

You can Raise Your Score! Writing Assessment Strategies