Box It!!
Your ticket to passing the OAA—and to
answering any short or extended
response question.
By Joe Fabian / Parma City Schools
Modified by Joshua Thornsberry / Lakewood City Schools
1. They tear apart the question
2. They organize their response
3. They double check their work
Step One:
How do I know what to do?
1. Read the question.
Really read the question—the
whole thing! Twice! And then……
 2 Points = I need to provide 2
answers.
 4 Points = I need to provide 4
answers.
 Knowing the points will help us
pick the correct box.
 Action words are the words in the
question that tell us what action we
need to perform.
 Either 1 or 2.
 They also help us to determine
which box to pick by determining
parts to the question.
Action Words
 You must know what the action words
mean.
 If you define instead of describe you
will lose credit!
Find the Action Words!!
 Describe
 Explain
 Evaluate
 Determine
 Contrast
 Compare
 Support
 Justify
 Give reasons
 Analyze
 Show
 Draw
 Give examples
 Simplify
 Demonstrate
 Compute
 Construct
 State
 Identify
The charts show some differences in the amount of electricity produced by
different methods in the United States and in Ohio. Various constraints, such as
geographic, social or economic factors, influence the method used for electricity
production in a region.
In your Answer Document, choose one method of electricity production used
in Ohio.
Give two reasons or factors that support using this method in Ohio, and give
two reasons or factors that can be used to argue against using this method
in Ohio. (4 points)
Tearing it Apart Review
 Students now have read the question
twice.
 Students now have identified how many
points/answers they need to provide.
 Students now have identified and
comprehend the action words or what
they need to do with question.
This is so easy…..What’s Next?
 Now that we have successfully torn apart the
question, we can move on to part 2.
 Part 2 involves organizing our thoughts to
respond to the question.
 We use boxes to accomplish this task.
We have 4 Boxes to Chose From
4. Pick the Right Box
 Use the points you circled to determine if it
is a 2 point or a 4 point question.
 Use the # of action words you underlined to
determine if it is a 1 part or a 2 part question.
 1 action word = 1 part
 2 actions words = 2 parts
5. Label your boxes.
Top = Verb or Verbs
Predict
Support
On the basis of Helen Keller’s experiences by the end of the
passage, predict her attitude toward her future lessons.
Support your answer with specific details.
Write your answer in the Answer Document. (2 points)
5. Label your boxes.
Side = 90% = Generic Number
Predict
Support
On the basis of Helen Keller’s experiences by the end of the
passage, predict her attitude toward her future lessons.
Support your answer with specific details.
Write your answer in the Answer Document. (2 points)
5. Label your boxes.
Side = 10% = Specific
Identify
Identify 2 causes of the Civil War, one political and one
economic. (2 points)
If the question gives you specific directions, you must use
specific labels.
This way the grader knows which answer is which.
6. Write an answer summary in the box.
 Not a whole sentence, but enough to get
credit.
 Think of the box as an outline.
 Action word determines length:
 Identify = short
 Analyze = long
 Make sure your have each box filled in.
6. Fill in Box Example.
Identify
Identify 2 causes of the Civil War, one political and one
economic. (2 points)
 Students have chosen a box to fit the question based
on points and action words.
 Students have labeled the box, thus organizing their
thoughts/response to the question thus making
answer very grader friendly.
 Students have outlined their answer within the box.
Double Checking Our Work.
 2 Point = 3 Sentences.
 4 Point = 5 Sentences.
 Topic Sentence + 1 Sentence for each box.
 Topic Sentence = restate the question.
 Sentences should be separated and labeled….not in a
big paragraph.
 This makes it easier for grader to find answers.
 The topic sentence is just a rephrasing of the question.
 Sentences should go in order of boxes; that’s what the
grader is expecting to see.
 It should sound simple like Third Grade writing.
 It is not a writing test.
 Beautiful Poetry will only bury our answers.
 Do NOT combine boxes.
7. Sentence Box Example.
Identify
Identify 2 causes of the Civil War, one political and one
economic. (2 points)
TS = The Civil War had many causes.
P = A political cause was sectionalism.
E = An economic cause was tariffs.
 This ensures that students go back and double
check their work.
 No lost points for forgetting one part of the
question.
8. Check Mark Box Example.
Identify
Identify 2 causes of the Civil War; one political and one
economic. (2 points)
TS = The Civil War had many causes.
P = A political cause was sectionalism.
E = An economic cause was tariffs.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Read question twice.
Circle Points.
Underline Action Word of Words.
Pick Correct Box.
Label top and left side of box.
Write your answers summary in box.
Write correct number of sentences.
Check off your boxes after writing you sentences.