Standards Based Writing
Teaching writers, not pieces….
Activities to help you get there.
Presented by Myssi Turner using information
learned from Sylvia Abel
The Writing Process
Review
Prewriting
• Talking (sharing ideas, discussion of topic and
their views, role-playing, persuasion, etc.)
• Reading and analyzing models (backmapping,
analysis of format and development, etc.)
• Brainstorming
– Mapping
– Planning
– Webbing
– Story boarding, etc.
• Creating a writer’s plan, which considers audience,
purpose, format, and ideas
• Researching
Drafting
• Modeling
– Use
• Other students’ writing
• Professional writing
• Your writing
• Provide ample time and space to write
• Provide tools to make drafting more fun and easier
(post it notes, gel pens, tape, scissors, etc.)
• Conference with students throughout
• Remind students of the importance of treating
drafting as a step separate from editing
Revising
• Help students to learn to try a new approach if
the one they’ve tried isn’t working.
• Make sure all the anticipated needs of the
audience are met for the particular purpose/
text.
• Model each revision strategy using your own work;
then send students back to revise their own.
• Have revision conferences in which students come
to you with a question
• Use sentence combining to build complex
sentences
• Use ARMS to help writers understand what
“revision” means
ARMS
• Add – (details, snapshots, dialogue,
examples, etc.)
• Remove – (distractors, unnecessary
dialogue, details that don’t fit, weak ideas)
• Move – (words, phrases, sentences,
paragraphs)
• Substitute – (more powerful words,
stronger verbs for adverbs)
Editing
• Model and practice editing together
• Use students’ own work as good models or as drill
for sentence error correction
• Teach editing skills throughout the year
• Give students self-editing checklists
• Set up editing groups, with an “expert” in charge
of each main focus (Capitalization, punctuation,
etc.)
• Use sentence combining exercises for editing as
well as revising skills.
• Have editing conferences, focusing on only one
correctness issue at a time
• Use CUPS
CUPS
•
•
•
•
Capitalization
Usage
Punctuation
Spelling
Publishing
“If you give
writers
only one
thing, give
them an
audience.”
Peter
Elbow
• Technology and the internet
(Blogs, webcasts, web pages,
etc.)
• Exchange writing with other
classes and students
• Read to principal
• Display on community or school
bulletin board
• Author’s chair
• Mail or e-mail
• Newsletters
• Media center
• Pop-up or blank books for the
school library
• Pen pals
• Gifts
Activity
• Compare writing process to
something else.
• Metaphor or Analogy
Example: The writing process is like a house….
Planning what the house will look like and the amount of rooms is like
brainstorming.
Pouring the foundation and putting up the walls is like drafting.
Deciding if you prefer more rooms or need to take away a closet
space is like revising.
Having the inspector walkthrough checking for mistakes is like
editing.
Having a housewarming party after you have decorated is like
publishing…you are ready to show everyone your good work!
Cline Teacher Examples
made during our training
My teachers’ examples
Teacher example
Three Purposes for Writing
Informative
Narrative
Standard 2
Write informative/explanatory
texts to examine a topic and convey
ideas, concepts, and information
through text selection, organization
and analysis of relevant concept.
a. Introduce a topic; organize
ideas, concepts, and
information, using strategies
such as definitions,
classification,
comparison/contrast, and
cause/effect; include
formatting, graphics.
b. Develop the topic with relevant
facts, definitions, concrete
details, quotations, or other
information, and examples.
c. Use appropriate transitions to
clarify the relationships among
ideas and concepts.
d. Use precise language and
domain specific vocabulary to
inform about or explain about
the topic.
e. Establish and maintain a formal
style.
f. Provide a concluding statement
or section that follows from
Standard
Argument/
Opinion
Standard: Write arguments to
support claims with clear
reasons and relevant evidence.
a. Introduce claims, and
organize the reasons and
evidence clearly.
b. Support claims with clear
reasons and relevant
evidence, using credible
sources and demonstrating
an understanding of the
topic or text.
c. Use words, phrases, and
clauses to clarify the
relationships among claims
and reasons.
d. Establish and maintain a
formal style.
e. Provide a concluding
statement or section that
follows from the argument
presented.
•
•
Inform/Explanatory
Informational/explanatory writing conveys information accurately. This kind of
writing serves one or more closely related purposes: to increase readers’ knowledge of
a subject, to help readers better understand a procedure or process, or to provide
readers with an enhanced comprehension of a concept. Informational/explanatory
writing addresses matters such as types (What are the different types of poetry?)
and components (What are the parts of a motor?); size, function, or behavior (How big
is the United States? What is an X-ray used for? How do penguins find food?); how
things work (How does the legislative branch of government function?); and why
things happen (Why do some authors blend genres?). To produce this kind of writing,
students draw from what they already know and from primary and secondary sources.
With practice, students become better able to develop a controlling idea and a
coherent focus on a topic and more skilled at selecting and incorporating relevant
examples, facts, and details into their writing. They are also able to use a variety of
techniques to convey information, such as naming, defining, describing, or
differentiating different types or parts; comparing or contrasting ideas or concepts;
and citing an anecdote or a scenario to illustrate a point. Informational/explanatory
writing includes a wide array of genres, including academic genres such as literary
analyses, scientific and historical reports, summaries, and precise writing as well as
forms of workplace and functional writing such as instructions, manuals, memos,
reports, applications, and resumes. As students advance through the grades, they
expand their repertoire of informational/explanatory genres and use them effectively
in a variety of disciplines and domains.
Informative/
Explanatory
•
Although information is provided in both arguments and explanations, the
two types of writing have different aims. Arguments seek to make people
believe that something is true or to persuade people to change their
beliefs or behavior. Explanations, on the other hand, start with the
assumption of truthfulness and answer questions about why or how. Their
aim is to make the reader understand rather than to persuade him or her
to accept a certain point of view. In short, arguments are used for
persuasion and explanations for clarification.
•
Like arguments, explanations provide information about causes, contexts,
and consequences of processes, phenomena, states of affairs, objects,
terminology, and so on. However, in an argument, the writer not only gives
information but also presents a case with the “pros” (supporting ideas) and
“cons” (opposing ideas) on a debatable issue. Because an argument deals
with whether the main claim is true, it demands empirical descriptive
evidence, statistics, or definitions for support. When writing an argument,
the writer supports his or her claim(s) with sound reasoning and relevant
and sufficient evidence.
Example: W.CCR.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas and information clearly
and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
W.K.2
Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to compose informative/explanatory texts in which they name what they are writing about and supply some information about the topic
W.1.2
Write informative/explanatory texts in which they name a topic, supply some facts about the topic, and provide some sense of closure.
W.2.2
Write informative/explanatory texts in which they introduce a topic, use facts and definitions to develop points, and provide a concluding statement or section.
informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.
W.3. Write
a. Introduce a topic and group related information together; include illustrations when useful to aiding
comprehension.
2
b. Develop the topic with facts, definitions, and details.
c. Use linking words and phrases (e.g., also, another, and, more, but) to connect ideas within categories of
information.
d. Provide a concluding statement or section.
W.4. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.
2
a. Introduce a topic clearly and group related information in paragraphs and sections; include formatting (e.g.,
headings), illustrations, and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.
b. Develop the topic with facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples
related to the topic.
c. Link ideas within categories of information using words and phrases (e.g., another, for example, also, because).
d. Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or explain the topic. Provide a
concluding statement or section related to the information or explanation presented.
W.5. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.
2
a. Introduce a topic clearly, provide a general observation and focus, and group related information logically;
include formatting (e.g., headings), illustrations, and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.
b. Develop the topic with facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples
related to the topic.
c. Link ideas within and across categories of information using words, phrases, and clauses (e.g., in contrast,
especially).
d. Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or explain the topic.
e. Provide a concluding statement or section related to the information or explanation presented
Model Topic: Tattoos
• Ask questions that you what to know
about this topic for me to write on
poster board.
Pick one question to research- this is
your umbrella question.
Think of three smaller questions that
would help answer the bigger
question.
Activity to teach (Expository)
Informational Writing
• Topic: Black Bears
1. Your team needs to come up with four questions that you want to know
about black bears.
2. Your team needs to pick one of the questions as your broad/umbrella
question.
3. Your team then decides what three smaller questions can help answer the
bigger umbrella question.
4. Write your umbrella question on all three of your envelopes and write your
smaller questions (one per strip of paper) to put inside each of the
envelopes.
5. You cannot add anything in the envelope that isn’t part of the question.
6. Read the article then place it upside down before writing your answer.
Informative Writing
Start broadly to engage
your reader. End with
the point, the focused
purpose of your
informative piece. This
is the big question
you’re going to answer
in the piece.
Break the piece down
into subheadings that
help to answer your big
question. Include facts,
definitions, contrasts,
concrete details, and
other relevant
development to examine
your topic and convey
necessary information
Beginning with the
point of the piece and
the question you
have answered,
broaden out and
conclude your piece
of writing. Be sure to
give credit to your
sources, if necessary.
Writing Plan: Informative
What topic am I writing about?
What is my focus, the big question I’m going to
answer?
What is my format?
To whom am I writing?
Audience
What my audience already knows
What are some reasons, parts, points, divisions, or sub-topics that I’m going to cover?
Sub-heading
Idea Development: What my audience needs to know
After reading through the narrative copies I passed
out, you are to answer the questions: What is a
narrative? What does it look like? What
commonalities did you see among the pieces?
Primary: After reading a narrative trade book, use a
BME (beginning, middle, ending) template to explain
the BME of your trade book to hang in your room.
NARRATIVE
Narrative writing conveys experience, either real or imaginary, and uses time
as its deep structure. It can be used for many purposes, such as to inform,
instruct, persuade, or entertain. In English language arts, students produce
narratives that take the form of creative fictional stories, memoirs,
anecdotes, and autobiographies. Over time, they learn to provide visual details
of scenes, objects, or people; to depict specific actions (for example,
movements, gestures, postures, and expressions); to use dialogue and interior
monologue that provide insight into the narrator’s and characters’
personalities and motives; and to manipulate pace to highlight the significance
of events and create tension and suspense. In history/social studies, students
write narrative accounts about individuals. They also construct event models
of what happened, selecting from their sources only the most relevant
information. In science, students write narrative descriptions of the step-bystep procedures they follow in their investigations so that others can replicate
their procedures and (perhaps) reach the same res results. With practice,
students expand their repertoire and control of different narrative
strategies.
BUILD IT WRITE
B
M
E
Bring your reader in by
beginning with
a question
an interesting fact or number
a story, etc.
Be sure you have included
the point you want to
make!
Messages are very
important, and here’s
where you get your
message to your reader.
Make your reader
understand what you
want to say by including
facts
descriptions
quotes
examples and stories
Every piece needs a good
ending so your reader
will know you have
finished.
End with your point, then
a challenge or
question
a summary
a final story or quote, etc.
Sometimes we need to stand in a pair of oversize shoes
and tug on our highwaters
By Mike Allen, columnist, Hardin County Independent
Somebody once said: “Certain things
among the shadows of a man’s life do not
have to be remembered – they remember
themselves.”
Georgie Hartman was an outcast. He
was an obese fourth-grader with greasy
hair and dirty fingernails. He had already
failed two grades and according to my
grandmother, he got his clothes from the
Salvation Army. Georgie’s mother had
never been married. She’d raised him in
a little two-room shack just beyond the
old shoe factory. Her education was slim,
so she took in washing and got a check
every month from Aid to Dependent
Children.
Sometimes during recess, the boys in
our class would play freeze-tag or red
rover. Once in a blue moon, we’d even
ask the girls to join us, but never Georgie.
He was the butt of our jokes. Like I said,
Georgie was an outcast.
He stood alone, watching from a
distance, shuffling his oversized shoes
and tugging on his highwaters, pretending
not to care. He was the fat kid who sat in
the back of the room. The one who could
barely read and got so nervous when the
teacher called his name, he’d sometimes
wet his pants. In all the years I’d been in
school with Georgie, I bet he hadn’t
uttered more than two words to anybody.
Each spring our school would take a
field trip to a place called Serpent
Mound. We’d carry sack lunches and
visit this park where archaeologists long
ago discovered an ancient Indian burial
ground formed in the shape of a mounded
serpent – a serpent whose length is 1,330
feet long.
Of course, the only way you can
properly appreciate this serpent, is to
scale a high, winding tower that sits at the
base of the serpent’s mouth. Every year
children in fourth-grade or higher were
expected to climb this tower. That way
they could become appreciators and go
back home telling of the wonderful thing
they saw.
For that reason, I had dreaded this field
trip all year long. I hated heights. I even
got dizzy in the top of tobacco barns.
The closer we came to the tower, the
tighter my chest became. Already,
students were being escorted to the top of
the winding tower by their teachers. As
they trudged upward toward the sky, they
looked smaller and smaller. Any minute
I expected them to disappear behind a
bank of clouds. My palms began to sweat
and my pulse pounded against my
temples. I could almost feel the serpent’s
venom shooting through my body. My
knees weakened and my legs felt like
jelly.
Finally, at the base of the steps, I
balked. I could absolutely go no farther.
My hand tightened against the rail and I
froze. My breathing grew short and
choppy, and someone near the back of the
line shouted, “Hey! What’s the holdup?”
My teacher, Mrs. Cox, urged me to go
on, but I couldn’t. I just stood there,
trembling.
“What’s wrong, Allen?” Kids were
passing me. “You gone chicken?” I
didn’t answer. Instead, I stared at the
ground. Finally, Mrs. Cox asked me to
go stand by a tree until the class returned.
“Look at the big baby!” Another kid
shouted, from the tower. There were
pointing at me and giggling, even the
girls. I stood there, shuffling my feet and
pretending not to hear. I was a coward,
an outcast.
It was then I heard a voice behind me.
“Don’t pay any attention to them,” it said
softly. “Nothing wrong with liking solid
ground.”
I turned and there beside me stood
Georgie Hartman. He laid his puffy hand
on my shoulder and smiled. “Some
people just don’t like heights, that’s all.”
“I…I suppose you’re right,” I
stammered. “Are you scared of the tower
too?”
Georgie smiled. “Not really. I even
went up it last year.” He took his hand
from my shoulder. “I just figured you
might need some help. You do look kind
of green, you know?”
“Thanks,” I whispered.
“You been to the gift shop yet?” he
asked, taking out a sack from his pocket.
“Not yet,” I answered.
He pulled a tiny pen knife from the
sack. Across the knife in bold silver
letters were emblazoned the words:
“Serpent Mound.” Georgie’s grin spread
from ear to ear. “Saved my lunch money
for this thing. Didn’t have enough last
year, but this year, she’s the first one
sold.”
“Looks really nice,” I told him. He
opened the tiny blade and ran his finger
down it. “Sharp as a tack. Better close
her up before I cut myself.
I smiled. The class was descending the
tower now, and their giggling and catcalls
became louder and louder. Georgie
touched my shoulder again. “They don’t
mean nothing by it,” he whispered.
“Most folks wouldn’t do it, if they
knowed it hurt your feelings. At least
that’s what my mama says.”
I nodded, and wondered how many
times over, Georgie’s mama had to tell
him that. Unthinking and unfeeling, we’d
been cruel. And, yet, he’d done nothing
to us. For the first time in my life, I knew
how he felt. I’d had my chance to stand
in his oversize shoes and hitch up my
highwaters.
The only difference is us was that I
didn’t have to stand alone at that tower,
and from that day on, I made sure
Georgie would never stand alone on the
playground, either.
You’ll Grow Soon, Alex
By Andrea Shavick and Russell Ayto
Alex was a small boy. He was so small the other children at school called
him “Shorty.” He was so small his big sister’s friends were always patting him on
the head and saying, “Aaahh, isn’t he sweet?”
Alex didn’t like being small. It made him very unhappy. How he wished
he was tall.
I wish I
was tall.
I wish I
was tall.
I wish I
was tall.
He couldn’t stop thinking about it. He even dreamed about it.
“Mom, how can I grow taller?” asked Alex.
“Protein,” said Mom. “It’s about time you had a healthy meal. Then you’ll
grow soon, Alex.”
So for three whole weeks Alex ate fish and eggs and chicken and cheese
and baked beans. And he drank eight glasses of milk per day with Mom’s added
Protein Mixture in it.
But it didn’t work. He wasn’t any taller.
“Dad, how can I grow taller?” asked Alex.
“Exercise, “ said Dad. “Lots of exercise and stretching. That should do it.
Then you’ll grow soon, Alex.”
So for three whole weeks Alex ran around the garden every day, and
skipped and jumped. And Dad made him a special stretching machine and Alex
used it every morning before he went to school.
But it didn’t work. He wasn’t any taller.
“Emma, how can I grow taller?” Alex asked his big sister.
“Sleep,” she said. “Lots and lots of sleep. Then you’ll grow soon, Alex.”
So for three whole weeks, whenever it was time for bed, Alex went right away
without complaining at all.
Writing Plan: Narrative
The one event I want to write about is
The most important way that I or the main character changed
during this event was
The minor event(s), details, characters, or descriptions I need
to show the change is/ are
How was the situation before the
change?
What are some details I need to
include to show this?
What happened to change the
character (or me)? (This will be the
event, the big story you’re telling!)
What are some details I need to
include to show the reader what
happened?
How did the character (or I) think/
behave differently after the event?
What are some details I need to
include to evidence the change?
Argument/Persuade
•
Arguments are used for many purposes—to change the reader’s point of
view, to bring about some action on the reader’s part, or to ask the reader
to accept the writer’s explanation or evaluation of a concept, issue, or
problem. An argument is a reasoned, logical way of demonstrating that the
writer’s position, belief, or conclusion is valid. In English language arts,
students make claims about the worth or meaning of a literary work or
works. They defend their interpretations or judgments with evidence from
the text(s) they are writing about. In history/social studies, students
analyze evidence from multiple primary and secondary sources to advance a
claim that is best supported by the evidence, and they argue for a
historically or empirically situated interpretation. In science, students
make claims in the form of statements or conclusions that answer
questions or address problems. Using data in a scientifically acceptable
form, students marshal evidence and draw on their understanding of
scientific concepts to argue in support of their claims. Although young
children are not able to produce fully developed logical arguments, they
develop a variety of methods to extend and elaborate their work by
providing examples, offering reasons for their assertions, and explaining
cause and effect. These kinds of expository structures are steps on the
road to argument. In grades K–5, the term “opinion” is used to refer to this
developing form of argument.
www.maine.gov/education/lres/ela/documents/06-argument_and_persuasion.pdf - 2010-10-07
Persuasion:

Emotion and morals with a bit of reason

Try to convince the reader to take action
Argument:

Logic and Reasoning with a bit of emotion

Try to convince the reader that your position on the issue is the most reasonable

Most academic writing is Argument rather than Persuasion
www.sci.edu/faculty/amylakin_files/Argumentation_lecture.ppt
Opinion Line: Where do you stand on school uniforms? Make a line with pro on one end and con on the other end. The
first two people in the line discuss their reasons to persuade others for & the last two people plan reasons to persuade
their side. You have two minutes to plan and 45 seconds to see if you can shift the middle ground people to your side.
Writing Plan: Argument
What am I writing about? What do I believe?
To whom am I writing? Why would they be interested in this right now?
What specifically do I want my audience to know, feel, do, or understand?
Why do I really believe this or why should they?
Reason
Support or evidence
Reason
Support or evidence
Antithesis
My counter argument
Example of
opinion/argument line
My Writing Plan: Opinion
What do I want or what do I believe?
Whom am I writing to?
Why do I really want/ believe this?
Reason
Support or evidence
Why my audience might say, “No.”
Reason
Support or evidence
Why my audience might say, “No.”
Reason
Support or evidence
Why my audience might say, “No.”
It’s Over, Debbie
(an article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, 1988)
The call came in the middle of the night. As a gynecology resident rotating through a large, private
hospital, I had come to detest telephone calls, because invariably, I would be up for several hours and would not
feel good the next day. However, duty called, so I answered the phone. A nurse informed me that a patient was
having difficulty getting rest, could I please see her. She was on 3 North. That was the gynecologic-oncology
unit, not my usual duty station. As I trudged along, bumping sleepily against walls and corners and not believing I
was up again, I tried to imagine what I might find at the end of my walk. Maybe an elderly woman with an anxiety
reaction, or perhaps something particularly horrible.
I grabbed the chart from the nurses’ station on my way to the patient’s room, and the nurse gave
me some hurried details: a 20-year-old girl named Debbie was dying of ovarian cancer. She was having
unrelenting vomiting apparently as the result of an alcohol drip administered for sedation. Hmmm, I thought.
Very sad. As I approached the room, I could hear loud, labored breathing. I entered and saw an emaciated,
dark-haired woman who appeared much older than 20. She was receiving nasal oxygen, had an IV, and was sitting
in bed suffering from what was obviously severe air hunger. The chart noted her weight at 80 pounds. A second
woman, also dark-haired but of middle age, stood at her right, holding her hand. Both looked up as I entered.
The room seemed filled with the patient’s desperate effort to survive. Her eyes were hollow, and she had
suprasternal and intercostals retractions with her rapid inspirations. She had not eaten or slept in two days.
She had not responded to chemotherapy and was being given supportive care only. It was a gallows scene, a cruel
mockery of her youth and unfulfilled potential. Her only words to me were, “Let’s get this over with.”
I retreated with my thoughts to the nurses’ station. The patient was tired and needed rest. I
could not give her health, but I could give her rest. I asked the nurse to draw 20 mg of morphine sulfate into a
syringe. Enough, I thought, to give Debbie something that would let her rest and to say good-bye. Debbie looked
at the syringe, then laid her head on the pillow with her eyes open, watching what was left of the world. I
injected the morphine intravenously and watched to see if my calculations on its effects would be correct.
Within seconds her breathing slowed to a normal rate, her eyes closed, and her features softened as she seemed
restful at last. The older woman stroked the hair of the new-sleeping patient. I waited for the inevitable next
effect of depressing the respiratory drive. With clocklike certainty, within four minutes, the breathing rate
slowed even more, then became irregular, then ceased. The dark-haired woman stood erect and seemed relieved.
It’s over, Debbie.
Read the response…
Reading and Writing Effective Arguments- Model and
Teach Students the FAVES. In your class, you would
teach one at a time- F, A, V, E, S on different days.
Use FAVES for the next article which is in response to Debbie
When writing arguments, opinions, or persuasion, good writers have their favorite
techniques – their FAVES:
F – Facts (definitions, statistics, laws, real event, etc.)
A – Analogies and comparisons (comparison, contrasts, similes, metaphors, etc.)
V – Voices (expert opinions, quotes)
E – Examples
S – Stories (factual anecdotes or extended true examples)
Facts
Analogies/
Comparisons
Voices
Examples
Stories
Response to It’s Over, Debbie
(JAMA, 1988)
To the Editor,
The story entitled “It’s Over, Debbie” raised profoundly troubling ethical issues – the more so because
its sentimental surface masks a dark and worrisome underside.
On the surface of the story, a hassled but resolutely caring resident physician ends the hollow-eyed
suffering of a young woman named Debbie by putting a stop to the cruel, “gallows”-like technology that mocks her
youth and former vitality.
Just beneath the surface of these heartwarming themes lies the real point of the story – that in cases
like this, it is ethical for physicians to kill patients. Unfortunately, “It’s Over, Debbie” only disguises and distorts the
debate and clarification that are necessary for a moral assessment of mercy killing. First, the story’s rhetoric (which
is equated with the way the physician thinks) masks the act of killing Debbie with such euphemisms as doing one’s
“job,” giving Debbie the “rest” she needs, and enabling her “to say goodbye.” Second, the physician’s premeditated
manslaughter is associated only with such positive themes as heroically resisting a blind technological imperative
within medicine or displaying unique empathy for this cancer patient’s plight. Debbie’s physician never struggles with
opposing moral issues, such as whether this action could be generalized or whether killing constitutes a betrayal of
ones’ promises to self and peers or what would happen if the term “physician” is also associated with putting persons
to death. In fact, the resident kills Debbie with no moral qualms whatsoever.
Even more problematic than the morality of premeditated manslaughter per se, however, are the terribly
murky grounds for killing in this instance. The physician’s database on this new patient was gathered entirely while
walking toward the patient’s room (when the chart was scanned and as the nurse was talking), followed by a single visit
to the patient. The one sentence uttered by the patient at the time, “Let’s get this over with,” was taken to be a firm
request for a painless death from a fully competent adult. There are no consultations, no further conversations with
anyone, no sophistication regarding pain relief as a beginning point, and no worries that Debbie’s intentions may well
have been misread and that the physician may be committing murder in the second degree. The story ends with the
physician observing that the “older woman” standing next to the patient the whole time “seemed relieved” when the
morphine overdose (quickly supplied by the nurse) ended Debbie’s life. Anything but relieved. I believe “It’s Over,
Debbie” needs a sequel entitled “It’s Not Over, Doctor.
Harold Y. Vanderpool, PhD
University of Texas Medical Branch
Bringing it all together
with:
The Perfect Paragraph
3.8 Paragraph is a paragraph that breaks a topic down into three points that illustrate
exactly what the topic means. It gets its name from the three points and eight
sentences that become its framework.
*One clear idea, expressed in a topic sentence.
*Three reasons, points, or details which support that one idea
*An example for EACH reason, point, or detail
*A conclusion which summarizes or somehow ends the paragraph
Look at the difference:
Some students like wearing uniforms
to school. But it’s also not air to make
everyone dress the same. It would be
boring to wear the same thing to school
every day. I don’t think kids at our
school should have to wear a uniform to
school, I like my own clothes. I don’t like
uniforms. Everyone shouldn’t have to
wear the same thing to school because
we would all look the same and people
might get mixed up. Some uniforms are
ugly, others look okay.
The main reason students need
uniforms is that uniforms make life easier
for everyone. First of all, if children and
teens wore uniforms, they would be on
time for school. Picking out clothes for
school would be a snap since they wouldn’t
have to make decisions about what to
wear. Uniforms would make things easier
for parents too. If all kids wore khakis
and button down shirts, parents wouldn’t
have to buy them so many different kinds
of clothes, Finally, uniforms would make
things easier for teachers. IF students
wore uniforms to school, there wouldn’t
be so many fights on the playground
because everyone would have the same
clothes and no one would get teased
because of what he or she wore. So you
see, if students wore uniforms to school,
it would be easier on everyone.
2.6 Paragraph
Has two points, six sentences. The two points are reasons or ideas focused on
the main idea of the topic sentence. It will have:
• A topic sentence that tells what the paragraph is about,
• A sentence that tells a reason why or a point about the topic sentence,
• A sentence that gives a specific example of the reason or point,
• A sentence that gives another reason or point
• A sentence that gives an example of the second reason
• A conclusion
One reason a dog is a great pet for a kid is that taking care of it will
teach me to be responsible. Dogs need to be fed on a regular schedule.
Making sure I put food and water in his bowls will help me learn to be
responsible because I know he will get hungry or thirsty if I neglect my
duties. Dogs also need to be exercised. I will have to learn responsibility
because I’ll have to set a regular time to take him out every day to play
catch with him, to walk him, or to run with him in the park. Dogs are great
for many reason, but one of the biggest ones is that they teach
responsibility.
1.4 has one point, four
sentences. It will have…
• A topic sentence that tells what the paragraph is
about,
• A sentence that tells a reason why or a point
about the topic sentence,
• A sentence that gives a specific example of the
reason or point,
• And a conclusion
A rabbit would be the best classroom pet to have. One reason
is that rabbits are so easy to take care of. We would have to feed
them rabbit food or green vegetables only once a day and they
never make the messes a dog or a cat would. So, if you want a
classroom pet, pick a rabbit.
Thanks for your
attention!
1- Thing you have a question about.
2- Things you can take back to the
classroom immediately.
Complete: I thought____________,
now I think___________________.