Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Notes The purpose of this unit is to help you a) know and practice what is expected in an expository essay and b) know and practice specific tips for the STAAR test. This packet is meant to guide your thinking through a process. This packet is meant to be delivered through interaction with the teacher and classmates, as well as some individual practice. Expository writing explains your thinking in a clear and complete way. Expository = Explain Break down the word: Expository comes from expose. To expose something means to show it. Expository writing means to show your thinking. Keys to Good Expository Writing: 1. Good paragraph organization 2. Thorough (complete) development of ideas 3. Control of language usage Tip: For basic expository writing, you can be undecided about a topic, but you must explain both or all sides of your thinking. You cannot explain one side and then say that you are not sure. If you are not sure about the topic, explain both sides. Persuasive writing takes a stand on one side. Expository writing does not have to. Lesson 1: Understanding the Prompt Tips for reading (and understanding) the prompt: 1. Read the “Write” portion of the prompt first. The prompt will be presented with a “Read” part first, a “Think” part second and a “Write” part third, but you can choose to read the “Write” part first. Don’t forget to read the other parts, but it might help you understand more if you start with the “Write” part and focus on the assignment. 2. Highlight the words in the “Write” part so that you know exactly what to do. 3. Ask for the prompt to be read aloud. 4. Use a dictionary to help you understand words. 5. Ask for clarification of the prompt, if possible. Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 1 of 20 Let’s look at an example prompt from a real STAAR-EOC test: Example STAAR-EOC English 1 Expository Prompt READ the information in the box below. In 1955 medical researcher Jonas Salk introduced an effective polio vaccine. At the time polio was considered the biggest threat to public health, yet Salk refused to profit by patenting the vaccine because he was more concerned with preventing disease than with personal gain. Although many people work to benefit themselves, some people choose to put others first. Think carefully about this statement. Write an essay explaining whether people should be more concerned about others than about themselves. Be sure to— clearly state your thesis organize and develop your ideas effectively choose your words carefully edit your writing for grammar, mechanics, and sentences Turn and Talk: Why do you think the state created the prompts this way? Does a Read-Think-Write prompt help you? How or how not? Turn and Talk: Why does the state give you the reminders of “Be sure to…”? Turn and Talk: What could you write about that would fit this prompt? Note: Student groups could put their answers to these questions on a poster paper and present to the class, if so desired. Lesson 2: Scoring STAAR Essays STAAR Scoring: Your essay will be read by two test readers who will grade it with a number between 1 and 4. The two numbers will be added together and that is your essay score. For example, if two test graders both give you a 2, then your score is Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 2 of 20 a 4. If one test grader gives you a 2 and one test grader gives you a 3, then your score is 5. This is for essays only. Short answers/OERs are graded differently. So what is the top possible score of both graders together? Example Essays Let’s see some example essays that were written by Texas students and graded by STAAR graders. These essays were written to the prompt you just read. We will refer to these essays for the next several lessons. Example Essay A: Thinking about others before you is a nice thing to think of, but if you think of yourself first it makes you feel isolated. Caring about others before you isn’t a bad thing, but thinking about yourself isn’t bad either. To me I think of others before me. Some people have the good life, others don’t. I’ll rather put myself in danger than others being in danger as well. I’m only one person but risking myself could save more than one life. When your in a room where there seems to be a fire some people will think of themselves while others think of the rest. The doctor could risk himself of getting polio but he could save hundreds of lifes that currently have polio. To me people that think of themselves before others are selfish and maybe greedy, but others that think of others are kind people. Handwritten version 25 lines. What would you score this essay? Remember, you can give it a 1, 2, 3 or 4. I score this essay with a _______. What parts of the essay affected your decision? Why did you score it that way? I scored it this way because ______________________________________ _____________________________________________________________. Example Essay B: Humanity has a funny way of contradicting itself sometimes. All children are taught to share and put Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 3 of 20 others’ needs before our own. Somewhere down the line we realize that the very people who preach these things to us don’t follow their own rules. It is very important in society today to remember the bigger picture, which often includes doing things to help others with no benefit to yourself. People use each other for personal gain all the time. A glorified outlook on this way of life is all around us. In media people are more concerned with which Hollywood star is going out with which millionaire rather than the thousands of people dying of hunger in third world countries. As consumers we see this life and wish to be like that. Doing something for monitary gain is just like money itself: easily expendable and transient. But doing something to help others leads to emotional or moral gain. The memmories and feelings you get from helping others won’t ever go away. It’s worth something to you. Worth more than money ever could be. Handwritten version 22 lines. What would you score this essay? Remember, you can give it a 1, 2, 3 or 4. I score this essay with a _______. What parts of the essay affected your decision? Why did you score it that way? I scored it this way because ______________________________________ _____________________________________________________________. Analysis Questions: Turn and Talk Which essay used better paragraph organization? Explain. Which essay more completely developed an idea? Explain. Which essay showed a greater control and knowledge of language? Explain. Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 4 of 20 State Results The state grader gave Example Essay A a score of 2. The state grader gave Example Essay B a score of 4. Turn and Talk: Do these scores surprise you? Why or why not? Lesson 3: My Expository Essay Writing What makes good paragraph organization? An essay will usually have at least 3 paragraphs: an Introduction, a Body, and a Conclusion. The introduction will include the overall thesis. The body paragraph(s) will have a topic sentence that connects to the thesis and the development of the ideas. The conclusion paragraph will summarize or explain an overall importance. That’s a lot. Let’s break it down! Essays always have an Introduction, Body and Conclusion. Good so far? You already know thesis from OER/Short Answer practice. An essay is like an extended or longer version. The thesis is the overall point you are trying to make about the prompt or question. Look at the following 2 sentences from Example Essay B. Which one is the thesis? Humanity has a funny way of contradicting itself sometimes. It is very important in society today to remember the bigger picture, which often includes doing things to help others with no benefit to yourself. Which one makes a point that relates to the prompt? That one is the thesis. It tells us what the overall essay will be about. Remember: there are many ways to write a thesis that answers the question or connects to the prompt. Turn and Talk: Tell a neighbor why a thesis is important in an essay. A thesis is important in an essay because ___________________________. Ready for more? Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 5 of 20 In a STAAR essay, your introduction may be only your thesis statement. In most essays, an introduction would have more information, but STAAR limits your space and your time, so you need to get to your point quickly. Why would I add more in my introduction? If you have a neat idea to quickly hook your reader’s attention, then you may want to start with that and then give your thesis. A good attention grabber shows your creativity, analysis, and control of language. If done poorly, it wastes space and time. Practice a few hooks for each essay, and then choose whether it helps you. Example Essay B begins with an ironic statement about humanity. It catches the reader’s attention. Example Essay A tries to state a thesis but when it adds more sentences, it ends up being confusing. Turn and Talk: Explain which essay’s introduction helped more and why. Moving on to the Body The body needs development. Just like you work out to stay healthy and develop muscles, your essay body paragraph needs to be healthy and have muscles too. How do I give a paragraph muscles? Let’s think about OERs/Short Answers again. With those, you give evidence and analysis to explain yourself. This is one way of developing a body paragraph. But I am not writing about a text this time—where do I find evidence? There are many ways to develop a body paragraph and you may choose to combine several ways together. You can develop a body paragraph of an expository essay with examples from real life. You can add definitions of complex ideas. You can make comparisons and contrasts—that means explain situations that are the same or are different. These are just a few ways. Let’s review: Some ways to develop a body paragraph: Examples from real life situations Definitions of complex ideas Comparisons Contrasts Combination of all the above How did Example Essay A develop its body paragraph? How did Example Essay B develop its body paragraph? Turn and Talk: Which Example Essay had better development and why? Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 6 of 20 Ready for it all to be over? Conclusions end the essay by giving a sense of importance and completeness to the idea. Look at the conclusions of each Example Essay. In Example Essay A, could the writer go on writing another paragraph? Or does it feel finished? In Example Essay B, could the writer go on writing another paragraph? Or does it feel finished? You want to finish, not just end or run out of lines. A good conclusion makes the essay and your thoughts feel complete. Which conclusion better shows the importance or completeness of the topic? Turn and Talk: Which conclusion is better? Why? So does spelling count? What about grammar? Yes, your control of language counts, but remember it is part of the overall message. If you make errors and they do not take away from the overall message you are communicating, you can still receive a high rating. The idea is that your language choices and use should add to the overall essay meaning and presentation. • • • Good word choice – Clear and specific – Fits purpose and tone – Contributes to overall quality Sentences – Purposeful, controlled, varied Good spelling, capitalization, grammar, usage and sentence boundaries Turn and Talk: Why is language control important? Lesson 4: Practice and Application In the next few lessons, the teacher will model good thinking and good writing and then students will practice. The “teacher” prompt and the “student” prompt will be different, but the strategies will be the same. Step One: Understanding the Prompt Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 7 of 20 Let’s look at a new prompt and break it down. Remember, I’m sharing my thinking for this one, but then you will do the next one on your own. TEACHER PROMPT: Read the information in the box below. Jane Austen (1775-1817) and Franz Kafka (1883-1924) are considered great writers. Their books continue to sell, and they are widely read and studied in schools everywhere. Neither of them, however, received much recognition while they were alive. Should people do things only to be recognized? Think carefully about this question. Write an essay explaining whether a person must always be acknowledged in order to have accomplished something. TEACHER THINK-ALOUD: Understanding the Prompt Ok, I’ll use my Tips. Tip: Highlight what you have to write about. Tip: Use the think to help you understand the write: what word in the think statement would probably help you understand the word acknowledged as used in the write assignment? Tip: Use the read part to help you think deeper. The read part will usually be an example of some sort. Still confused? Let’s look in the dictionary. Stop! Remember, this is my prompt: I did it for you. Definition of ACKNOWLEDGED: generally recognized, accepted, or admitted What does that mean in this prompt though? If someone is acknowledged, then they are famous. While in the dictionary, let’s be sure about accomplished too. Definition of ACCOMPLISHED: a : proficient as the result of practice or training <an accomplished dancer>; also : skillfully done or produced <an accomplished film> b : having many social accomplishments Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 8 of 20 Tip: Restate the writing assignment so you understand it. As is: Write an essay explaining whether a person must always be acknowledged in order to have accomplished something. My Rewrite: Write an essay explaining whether a person must always be recognized or accepted or famous in order to have skillfully done something. Does this help you understand? If you are still confused, talk to your teacher and neighbors in class. During the real STAAR test, you won’t have the opportunity to talk to a classmate, but all students may ask for the monitor to read the prompt aloud. That sometimes can help. Students new to this country can also ask for clarification of the prompt. Truth: As you learn English, you may come across a prompt that you do not fully understand. It is frustrating. Do not give up though. You may feel unsure, but write about what you think the prompt is asking. If you can make sure, then do so. But if you cannot, just do your best to write about what you think the prompt is asking. Now look at your practice prompt. Use your tips and do the exercises. STUDENT PRACTICE PROMPT READ the information in the box below. For centuries scientists have used animals to test medical procedures and medicines that they hope might be used to help people fight disease. Now many companies also test their cosmetic and household cleaning products on animals to study the effects of the products. Though humans now have many health and household products because of testing on animals, many animals suffered and died because of this testing. Think carefully about this statement. Write an essay explaining whether human benefit should overrule any damage or destruction to animals. What tips can you use to understand the prompt? Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 9 of 20 TEACHER MODEL: Pre-writing: Planning my ideas Lists are great ways to come up with ideas. Lists help us figure out what we already know about a topic. Let’s make lists to help us plan. 1. List different ways people can be recognized or acknowledged Paycheck Awards Newspapers Other people saying thanks, good job 2. List different things people can skillfully do. (List activities that require skill.) Writing books (it says so in the read section) Playing an instrument or singing Playing sports Just doing your job Talking with and listening to others Always review the writing assignment: Must you be acknowledged in order to be accomplished? Think: Should people do things only to be recognized? What would be another reason to do something other than recognition? List possible other reasons for doing something. Health It feels good It helps someone It helps the person doing it It’s just the right thing to do Turn and Talk: Why is it helpful to think about what you already know about a topic? How does it help you write a better essay? Note to share during THINK ALOUD: lists would not always be this neat and orderly. These lists are neat so they can be shared. The important thing is to think—and hold onto your thinking so you don’t forget an important idea! STUDENT PRACTICE PROMPT: What lists can you make to help you think? (List Ideas: products tested, animals used for testing, health problems that might be helped) Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 10 of 20 Step Two: Plan your development TEACHER THINK ALOUD: Let’s review: Some ways to develop a body paragraph: Examples from real life situations Definitions of complex ideas Comparisons Contrasts Combination of all the above Here are some of the questions I asked myself: Who are some people who do skillful things? Do they do them for recognition or money? Would they do them anyway? Did Jane Austen write books for recognition or money? It says in the read section that she did not receive much recognition while she was alive. Would Oprah do things even if she did not get recognition or money? Would my teacher(s) do things even if not recognized or given money? Would I do something even if no one knew? Some people won’t do anything unless they think they are getting something out of it. Sometimes it seems like the wrong people get the attention. Some people would do things regardless, but if someone does something nice, they should be recognized. It helps us all in a way. The idea that intrigues me is the fairness of it all—how some people do great things with little or no acknowledgement while others do hardly anything and get a lot. STUDENT PRACTICE PROMPT What are some facts, examples and details you can use to show your thinking? TEACHER THINK ALOUD Tip: Restate the prompt as a question. Your answer to the question is your thesis. Must a person always be recognized in order to have accomplished something? My Thesis: A person does not have to be acknowledged in order to accomplish something, but it is sometimes good to do so. Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 11 of 20 What if I’m still not sure? That’s ok. Remember: You can explain both sides if you want. You do not have to take a side, but you must explain yourself completely. STUDENT PRACTICE PROMPT Restate student prompt as a question: __________________________________________________________________ Student Thesis: ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ Step Three: Drafting/Getting Started TEACHER THINK ALOUD: Earlier, we said an introduction could be just my thesis. For my drafting, I am going to go with that…and then if I have time, I can try to improve it later. Now I start my body…for this, let’s write at the same time. You start with your thesis—if you have a great introduction idea, jot it down, otherwise, go into your body. We’ll write and then I’ll show you a few revision tips. STUDENTS DRAFT on their own practice paper. Teacher Model Rough Draft: A person does not have to be acknowledged in order to accomplish something, but it is sometimes good to do so. Take Black History month when we learn about and acknowledge people who invented things, people who ran their own businesses and people who taught others, among a lot of other people. None of these people for the most part got the acknowledgement they deserve. We should acknowledge them so we can see that our society is better because of them. This acknowledgement is for them and us. By acknowledging them, we are inspired, encouraged, and lifted up. We know we live in a better world—a world where people do act to benefit others. Because we know what others have done, we are more able to believe in ourselves. But their accomplishments were great regardless of the potential benefits of acknowledgment. Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 12 of 20 Some people only do things to be famous. Sometimes, they get acknowledgement without doing anything at all. I’m glad one of my favorite singers won the Grammy award, but really, what did she do? She didn’t mop floors everyday at a school to afford to send her son to medical school so that he could cure cancer. Who really accomplished something? Who really deserves acknowledgement? I know it is hard to write a song, but it is even harder to mop floors everyday for your whole life. It’s ok to cheer for our singers, but we also need to cheer for our mothers, and other “unsung” heroes. I don’t know if we’ll ever be fair about it in this country—there’s too much money, too much fame, too much celebrity mixed up in really meaningless accomplishments. To start with, we need to separate the ideas of acknowledgement and accomplishment. It would be great if acknowledgement could always match the accomplishment, but they don’t always work together like they should. This is my draft, written on my practice pages—thoughts? What is good about it? It addresses the writing task. It has good paragraph organization. It uses examples and details to develop ideas. What needs work? It It It It could have higher level vocabulary is sometimes repetitive. could use paragraph transitions. is too long—309 words. If students have not already finished their draft, this is the time to do so. Step Four: Revision Tip: Write your first draft with words you know well. Then look for places you can increase the level of vocabulary. Sometimes reworking the sentence in a more complex way can also improve the overall impression. Again, worry about this in revision, if you have time—don’t let it complicate your drafting. Let those ideas flow! Where could I add more sophisticated vocabulary or sentence structure? Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 13 of 20 Tip: Try to write 10-12 words per line. If you use 26 lines with 10 words per line, that gives you 260 words to explain your thoughts. It is not necessary to fill every line, but it is necessary to completely develop your thinking. How can I cut my length? Tip: Use transitions to help ideas flow. Transitions can be of 2 types: 1) Transition words or phrases that introduce new ideas or 2) Synonyms or phrases that rename an idea in order to take it deeper into development. Where could I employ better transition to help flow and decrease repetition? TEACHER THINK ALOUD: Check out my draft and revision ideas: A person does not have to be acknowledged in order to accomplish something, but it is sometimes good to do so. Take Black History month when we learn about and acknowledge people who invented things, people who ran their own businesses and people who taught others, among a lot of other people. None of these people for the most part got the acknowledgement they deserve. We should acknowledge them so we can see that our society is better because of them. This acknowledgement is for them and us. By acknowledging them, we are inspired, encouraged, and lifted up. We know we live in a better world—a world where people do act to benefit others. Because we know what others have done, we are more able to believe in ourselves. But their accomplishments were great regardless of the potential benefits of acknowledgment. Comment [a1]: I could rewrite my thesis and/or my introduction—I could use benefit instead of good and I could put in something about fairness— since that is what interests me about the topic Comment [a2]: In this case, learn about means acknowledge—I can just take it out. Comment [a3]: I could cut all this and just say: inventors, businesspeople, educators, etc. Comment [a4]: I can combine this idea with the previous sentence. Comment [a5]: I could use a creative phrase like: shine the light on Comment [a6]: I can emphasize this point by doing a “not only…but also” construction showing greater control of the language Comment [a7]: Recognizing or making them known Comment [a8]: All these really mean the same thing—sometimes there is a point to repeat and sometimes there is not—I need the space so I’ll just use inspired Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 14 of 20 So from here, I have the following revisions: There are benefits from and reasons to acknowledge each other’s accomplishments, but some people do things only to get that acknowledgement while other people don’t get recognition they deserve: the problem arises with fairness. Take Black History month when we learn about inventors, businessmen, educators, etc., who for the most part were not given the acknowledgement they deserve. It is right to shine the light on them so all can see how our society is better because of them. This acknowledgement is not only for them, but also for us. By making their contributions known, we are inspired. We know we live in a better world—a world where people do act to benefit others. Because we know what others have done, we are more able to believe in ourselves. But their accomplishments were great regardless of the potential benefits of acknowledgment. Teacher continues: Some people only do things to be famous. Sometimes, they get acknowledgement without doing anything at all. I’m glad one of my favorite singers won the Grammy award, but really, what did she do? She didn’t mop floors everyday at a school to afford to send her son to medical school so that he could cure cancer. Who really accomplished something? Who really deserves acknowledgement? I know it is hard to write a song, but it is even harder to mop floors everyday for your whole life. It’s ok to cheer for our singers, but we also need to cheer for our mothers, and other “unsung” heroes. I don’t know if we’ll ever be fair about it in this country—there’s too much money, too much fame, too much celebrity mixed up in really meaningless accomplishments. To start with, we need to separate the ideas of acknowledgement and accomplishment. It would be great if acknowledgement could always match the accomplishment, but they don’t always work together like they should. Comment [a10]: I can cut this sentence—the idea is explained elsewhere—it saves me space. Comment [a11]: I could get rid of this for space—I like it but the idea has been expressed. Comment [a12]: If I get rid of the details in the last sentence, then I can combine sentences to show greater control of the language. Comment [a13]: Now I need to reword this part… So here is how the rest ended up: In contrast, some people only do things to be famous. Sometimes, they get acknowledgement without doing anything at all. I’m glad one of my favorite singers won the Grammy award, but really, what did she do? She didn’t mop floors everyday at a school to afford to send her son to medical school so that he could cure cancer. Who really accomplished something? Who really deserves acknowledgement? It’s ok to cheer for our singers, but we also need to cheer for our mothers, and other “unsung” heroes. I don’t know if we’ll ever be fair about it in this country, but to start with, we need to separate the ideas of acknowledgement and accomplishment. They’re great together, but they don’t always work together like they should. Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Comment [a9]: I need a transition phrase: am I continuing an idea, adding another or giving an opposite idea? I’m giving an opposite—so I will use: In contrast… Page 15 of 20 STUDENTS REVISE THEIR DRAFTS. After students have had time to revise their drafts, they can share their revision ideas with others at their table, or do a similar think aloud with the large group. TEACHER THINK ALOUD: Here is the final draft of the essay: There are benefits from and reasons to acknowledge each other’s accomplishments, but some people do things only to get that acknowledgement while other people don’t get recognition they deserve: the problem arises with fairness. Take Black History month when we learn about inventors, businessmen, educators, etc., who for the most part were not given the acknowledgement they deserve. It is right to shine the light on them so all can see how our society is better because of them. This acknowledgement is for them, but also for us. By making their contributions known, we are inspired. We know we live in a better world—a world where people do act to benefit others. Because we know what others have done, we are more able to believe in ourselves. But their accomplishments were great regardless of the potential benefits of acknowledgment. In contrast, some people only do things to be famous. Sometimes, they get acknowledgement without doing anything at all. I’m glad one of my favorite singers won the Grammy award, but really, what did she do? She didn’t mop floors everyday at a school to afford to send her son to medical school so that he could cure cancer. Who really accomplished something? Who really deserves acknowledgement? It’s ok to cheer for our singers, but we also need to cheer for our mothers, and other “unsung” heroes. I don’t know if we’ll ever be fair about it in this country, but to start with, we need to separate the ideas of acknowledgement and accomplishment. They’re great together, but they don’t always work together like they should. Length: 266 words—I can write small and fit it in the 26 lines (in fact, 24). Repetition and Transitions: Everything flows, meaning is clear, nothing unnecessary Language Control: My vocabulary and sentence structure indicate high levels of language knowledge and control. Special Note: Do you ever feel discouraged when you see a teacher’s essay? If you do, consider this…the teacher went through school, went through college and has taught many students over many years—shouldn’t he or she write well? There are two important things to remember: 1) Many years ago, he or she started in the same place as you, and 2) He or she has practiced A LOT! So do not be discouraged that a teacher (or another classmate) can write well. Instead, be encouraged that with practice and good strategies, you too can write well. Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 16 of 20 Editing Tip: Check your work for capital letters, punctuation, spelling and grammar/usage. Check subject-verb agreement, pronouns, plurals and word order—these are often the areas that show control or no control. Editing vs. Revising • • • Revising improves the ideas – Reorganizes, adds, deletes, rewords Editing improves the mechanics – CUPS (Capitalization, usage, punctuation, spelling) They can both add clarity to your essay Editing Change: – The problem was with fairness. • (wrong verb tense) – The problem are with fairness. • (wrong subject-verb agreement) – The problem is with fairness. (correct!) Revising Change: – The problem is with fairness. (“is” is boring) – The problem arises with fairness. (better!) Students share their drafts. Sharing Idea: Begin with 1 to 1 sharing. They pick the better of the two that they want to work with. They meet with another pair. The pairs share and give further feedback, and pick one they want to move on with. The group of four exchanges with another group of four and gives feedback. They pick the one they nominate for a class essay. This should be from 3-7 essays overall nominated for class essay. Post on the wall and do a gallery walk with sticky note feedback from groups of four (or do a stay and stray—one member of the nominating group will tell the new group why they nominated the essay and then move on leaving one “new” person behind to explain to the next group). Then have a final voting on the class essay. Everyone should be able to explain what makes it good. Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 17 of 20 Here is my essay on the 26-line page: Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 18 of 20 STAAR-EOC Test Realities Writing the STAAR Expository Essay: 1. In your ANSWER DOCUMENT, you have 26 lines to write on for each essay. You must write your essay on the correct page of lines so that it is graded. 2. In your TESTING BOOKLET, you have 2 ½ pages for practice and drafting space. You can work there, but the essay needs to be written in your answer document before your test is picked up for the day. Suggestions for Writing the STAAR Expository Essay: 1. To show good paragraph organization, indent your new paragraphs. To indent means you start the new paragraph about ¼ to ½ inch (about 1cm to 1.5 cm) inside the edge of the paper. 2. Do not skip lines. Start on the top line and use all the lines until you are done. Remember to show when you have begun a new paragraph. 3. Try to write 10-12 words per line. If you use 26 lines with 10 words per line, that gives you 260 words to explain your thoughts. It is not necessary to fill every line, but it is necessary to completely develop your thinking. STAAR Timing Tips: You have four hours to write 3 compositions and answer 20 multiple choice questions (10 for editing and 10 for revising). How can you break down your time? The following are suggestions—make a plan that works for you! Write your time plan in your test book and keep checking the clock to make sure you are within your plan. Save an hour for the multiple choice; this leaves 3 hours—roughly 1 hour for each composition (English I will have narrative and expository writing prompts—2 of one of them and 1 of the other kind—you won’t know till the day of the test). Students new to the country will have more time, but should still make a plan to use their time wisely. Within the hour for each composition—take 10-15 minutes to plan your work, 20-25 minutes to draft, 10 to revise and 15 to copy a final draft onto the answer document. If you plan, then drafting will be easier and faster. If you don’t plan, drafting will be harder and take longer. Plan! During planning time: make sure you understand the prompt and plan what you will or can say about it—figure out what you already know and how it connects to the prompt. Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 19 of 20 During revising time: make sure you focus on the big points—organization, development, language control. Writing the Expository Essay: Teacher Handout Page 20 of 20