1. Structure with Flexibility
AXES
Structure with Flexibility

2. What does AXES stand for?
Assertion
X –
eXample
E –
Explanation
S –
Significance

3. A= Assertion
Your claim, somewhat like a topic sentence only you have something to prove.
This statement will direct your paragraph.
Usually 1-2 sentences responding to the prompt, either directly or indirectly. In a single paragraph response this should address the whole prompt. In an essay this might address the part of the prompt you will focus on in that particular paragraph.
IT IS WHAT YOU BELIEVE TO BE TRUE!
Can you support it?

4. Prompt: What story does this picture reveal
Prompt: What story does this picture reveal? Write an assertion (claim) that can be proven by the evidence or clues in the picture.
Assertion: The man in the painting is struggling between the life he knows as a gangster and the religion that will save him.

5. Organize Your Thoughts
EXAMPLES
FACTS
Evidence
It is what you SEE
EXPLANATIONS
OPINIONS
Commentary
It is what you THINK about what you see
SIGNIFICANCE
IMPORTANT
What do I understand now?
It is what you FEEL about what you think and see

6. Prompt: What story does this picture reveal
Prompt: What story does this picture reveal? Write an assertion (claim) that can be proven by the evidence or clues in the picture.
Assertion: The man in the painting is struggling between the life he knows as a gangster and the religion that will save him.

7. A= Assertion Your claim Usually 1-2 sentences
This statement will direct your paragraph and respond to the prompt
IT IS WHAT YOU BELIEVE TO BE TRUE!
Can you support it?

8. X = eXample FACTS & Evidence Your support for what you claim
CONCRETE DETAILS-Details and descriptions from the text quoted or paraphrased, statistics, examples from real life.

9. Write down EXAMPLES (things you see) that may help you understand this picture.
Example: His tattoos of San Anto, evil and hate, and the red bandana contrast with the Holy Bible and rosary beads he is clutching in his hands.

10. E = Explanation OPINIONS & EXPLANATION
Do not repeat your example, rather elaborate on how your example supports your claim
EXPLAIN WHAT YOU SEE using your background knowledge and REASONING!

11. Write down an EXPLANATION for each of your examples showing HOW they help you understand something about the picture.
Explanation: The tattoos reveal the darker side of his life and are connected to something we would see from an ex convict. The spiritual symbols are being held tightly as if he is grasping for salvation.

12. S = Significance
Why is it important? How does it relate to the reader? How does this relate to the other points you made in your essay
Make connections with your life, community, culture, world
What should I have learned?

13. What is the significance of this picture
What is the significance of this picture? What would the photographer want us to learn from it? Why?
This painting is symbolic of the two lives a Latino man may feel tied to due to his cultural and social expectations in life.

14. Put It All Together!
1. Write your Assertion. 2.Write down one of your eXamples that supports your assertion. 3. Write down the Explanation of your example. 4. Write down one more example and explanation to support your assertion. 5. Write down your Significance- So what? 6. Your paragraph should be 8 sentences long.

15. AXES Paragraph: Assertion
“Two Kinds” by Amy Tan is a story about a mother and daughter who struggle to find a middle ground with each other. The mother wants the best for her daughter, Jing-mei, but Jing-mei is fighting her. Jing-mei’s mother has the internal conflict of wanting the best for her daughter. She also has the external conflict of Jing-mei not being motivated enough to become a prodigy. Jing-mei’s mother is right to push her daughter. In ‘Two Kinds,” one example would be: “America was where all my mother’s hopes and dreams lay. She had come here in after losing everything in China…” (Tan, 99). From this quote you can conclude she does not want her daughter to suffer like she did. Over the years, I have learned it is not uncommon for parents to want the best for their children. No parent would ever want to see their child struggle in the real world and if they can help it, parents will stop at nothing to achieve that goal.

16. AXES Paragraph: Assertion
“Two Kinds” by Amy Tan is a story about a mother and daughter who struggle to find a middle ground with each other. The mother wants the best for her daughter, Jing-mei, but Jing-mei is fighting her. Jing-mei’s mother has the internal conflict of wanting the best for her daughter. She also has the external conflict of Jing-mei not being motivated enough to become a prodigy. Jing-mei’s mother is right to push her daughter. In ‘Two Kinds,” one example would be: “America was where all my mother’s hopes and dreams lay. She had come here in after losing everything in China…” (Tan, 99). From this quote you can conclude she does not want her daughter to suffer like she did. Over the years, I have learned it is not uncommon for parents to want the best for their children. No parent would ever want to see their child struggle in the real world and if they can help it, parents will stop at nothing to achieve that goal.

17. AXES Paragraph: eXample
“Two Kinds” by Amy Tan is a story about a mother and daughter who struggle to find a middle ground with each other. The mother wants the best for her daughter, Jing-mei, but Jing-mei is fighting her. Jing-mei’s mother has the internal conflict of wanting the best for her daughter. She also has the external conflict of Jing-mei not being motivated enough to become a prodigy. Jing-mei’s mother is right to push her daughter. In ‘Two Kinds,” one example would be: “America was where all my mother’s hopes and dreams lay. She had come here in after losing everything in China…” (Tan, 99). From this quote you can conclude she does not want her daughter to suffer like she did. Over the years, I have learned it is not uncommon for parents to want the best for their children. No parent would ever want to see their child struggle in the real world and if they can help it, parents will stop at nothing to achieve that goal.

18. AXES Paragraph: Explanation
“Two Kinds” by Amy Tan is a story about a mother and daughter who struggle to find a middle ground with each other. The mother wants the best for her daughter, Jing-mei, but Jing-mei is fighting her. Jing-mei’s mother has the internal conflict of wanting the best for her daughter. She also has the external conflict of Jing-mei not being motivated enough to become a prodigy. Jing-mei’s mother is right to push her daughter. In ‘Two Kinds,” one example would be: “America was where all my mother’s hopes and dreams lay. She had come here in after losing everything in China…” (Tan, 99). From this quote you can conclude she does not want her daughter to suffer like she did. Over the years, I have learned it is not uncommon for parents to want the best for their children. No parent would ever want to see their child struggle in the real world and if they can help it, parents will stop at nothing to achieve that goal.

19. AXES Paragraph: Significance
“Two Kinds” by Amy Tan is a story about a mother and daughter who struggle to find a middle ground with each other. The mother wants the best for her daughter, Jing-mei, but Jing-mei is fighting her. Jing-mei’s mother has the internal conflict of wanting the best for her daughter. She also has the external conflict of Jing-mei not being motivated enough to become a prodigy. Jing-mei’s mother is right to push her daughter. In ‘Two Kinds,” one example would be: “America was where all my mother’s hopes and dreams lay. She had come here in after losing everything in China…” (Tan, 99). From this quote you can conclude she does not want her daughter to suffer like she did. Over the years, I have learned it is not uncommon for parents to want the best for their children. No parent would ever want to see their child struggle in the real world and if they can help it, parents will stop at nothing to achieve that goal.

20. Works Cited
"Migrant Mother" by Dorothea Lange. Taken February or March of 1936 in Nipomo, California. AXES California State University San Marcos axes.htm