Parent Overview of the 5 th Grade Writing Test Appling County Elementary School Title 1 - Lunch and Learn January 2014
WHO? All 5 th grade students in the state
WHAT Students are given a prompt to write about. They are allowed 120 minutes to write their essay. The test must be given in one day. A make-up session will be given the following day.
WHEN?
WHERE? Tests will be given in your child’s homeroom class.
HOW? Students’ writing will be scored in the following areas: Ideas (40%) Organization (20%) Style (20%) Conventions (20%)
WHY Writing is important because it: Teaches students to express their thoughts and ideas clearly to others. (life skill) Improves academic progress in school. Improves self-reliance.
What will they write about? Narrative Tells a story Informational Gives facts, explains ideas, directions, or terms Persuasive Tries to convince the reader to support an opinion
Narrative As you wake up, you realize that today is going to be different. You look in the mirror and see that you are 20 years older. Write a story about what happens the day you wake up 20 years older.
Informational You have been chosen to plan a field trip for your class. Think about one place that your class would like to visit. Where would you go and what would you do while you were there? In a letter to your class, describe the field trip you have planned.
Persuasive Some students want to have drink and snack machines at your school. Many parents, however think those foods are not healthy for students. What do you think about having drink and snack machines in school? Write a letter to convince the principal that drink and snack machines should or should not be allowed at your school.
What about descriptive writing? Students are expected to be descriptive in their writing regardless of the type of writing they are given. “Show” don’t “Tell” The dog ran across the street. The fluffy white dog ran nervously across the busy street.
Writing this essay will be a process. Pre- Writing Drafting Revising & Editing Publishing
Pre-Writing “Dissect” the writing prompt. Brainstorm ideas Map out/create an outline for the essay Plan for writing Not graded 15 minutes (suggestion)
Drafting Put the pre-writing plan into action! Write ideas in complete sentences. Organize sentences into paragraphs. Don’t worry about getting it “just right”. Not graded 45 minutes (suggestion)
Revising and Editing Re-read it slowly and carefully. Read it again! Does it make sense? Did I stay on the topic? Are my sentences and paragraphs in the right order? Could I have used “stronger” words? Can I add or take away anything to make it better? Check spelling. 20 minutes (suggestion)
Publishing Rewrite the essay neatly and make any needed changes. Reread the essay again. This is the only part that is graded. 40 minutes (suggestion)
Then what? Writing samples are sent to the GA Department of Education. Scored by a trained evaluator. Evaluated in 4 areas: ideas, organization, style, conventions Given a label of: – Did not meet: ( ) – Meets: ( ) – Exceeds: (250 and above)
What has my child been doing to prepare? Writing in all subject areas Learned about the types of writing Learned about traits of good writing Taken practice writing tests
What can I do to help? Ask your child about the writing that he/she does in school. Practice writing at home. – Persuade me to… – What do you think about… – Explain how you… – What if… Point out examples of good writing. Check out online resources. Visit the Discovery Place. Ask your child’s teacher.
What can I do to help? Make sure your child: -Gets enough sleep the night before. -Eats a good breakfast. -Wears comfortable clothes. -Feels confident. Encourage your child to stay calm and just do his or her best!
Online Resources urriculum-Instruction-and- Assessment/Assessment/P ages/WA-Grade-5- Resources.aspx