AIMS Writing Prep
Created by Ms. Dimler
10 days !!! Buckle Up Team!!!
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1. RAFTS
2. Graphic Organizers
3. Ideas and Content
4. Organization
5. Voice
6. Word Choice
7. Sentence Fluency
8. Conventions
9. Real Deal Rehearsal
10. Real Deal Rehearsal
1. RAFTS
What do you want me to
write exactly?
RAFTS Refresher
• R = role
• A = audience
• F = format
• T = topic
• S = sentence
RAFTS example 1
Prompt: March 8th is “Working Women’s Day.” Many
people feel that being a stay-at-home-mom is fulltime job. Write an essay explaing why you agree or
disagree with this.
R = explain
A = Dads
F = 5 paragraph essay
T = Being a mom is a full-time job
S = I’m going to write a 5 paragraph essay to
Dads everywhere explaining that being a
stay-at-home-mom is a full-time job.
RAFTS example 2
Prompt: Today marks the anniversary of the death of Anne
Frank who died in 1945. This brave young woman is well
known for the diary she kept, capturing her time in
hiding from the Nazi soldiers. Write Anne a letter
expressing your thoughts on what it means to be brave.
R = express
A = Anne Frank
F = Friendly letter
T = what it means to be brave
S = I’m going to write friendly letter to Anne
Frank expressing what I think it means to be
brave.
Your turn…
Prompt 1:
You rush home from school. Swing open
your bedroom door and find a
mysterious cardboard box on your bed.
Write a story telling what you found and
what happens next.
Your turn…
Prompt 2:
Your basketball team really wants new
uniforms, but uniforms cost money. You
want your team to fundraise to get the
money to buy the new uniforms. Write a
letter to your coach convincing him that you
have a lots of ideas for raising the money.
Your turn…
Prompt 3:
Everyone has special skills. Choose one of
your skills, then write a process
explaining all the steps that are involved.
Example: making a peanut butter and jelly
sandwich.
2. Graphic Organizers
“If you build it, they
will come.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSKlSExuA-s
So, what’s the point?
“If you build it, they will come.”
If you build your writing with a
graphic organizer, magic will
happen with your writing.
Think about it…
A magical baseball game!
That’s incredible!!!
1. Power Outline
1. Big Idea
2. Tell me more
2. Tell me more
3. Tell me even more
1. Big idea
2. Tell me more
3. Tell me even more
3. Tell me even more
2. I Planner
3. Stance/Argument
Stance
Argument 1
Argument 2
Argument 3
Types of Graphic Organizers
Organizer
When you use it
Power Outline
I-Planner
Stance/Arguments
Expository writing: essay, process essay
Narrative and personal narrative
Persuasive essay or letter
3. Ideas and Content
message
Meet
Boring Bob
Boring Bob is just your everyday
average 6th grader.
Boring Bob eats
cheerios for breakfast,
enjoys puppies, draws
smiley faces on his
school work, plays
hours and hours of
video games, and goes
to bed at exactly 8:00
p.m. every night.
…you don’t
want to be
Boring Bob…
…you want to be this guy…
Meet Unforgettable Ulric
He may not be the coolest kid, but he is
definitely impossible to ignore and hard forget!
So, just accept it, this is you.
Get over yourself.
Seriously, this is you for the next 2
weeks or so…
Take a long look. I want Unforgettable
Ulric to be burned onto your brains, so
that when you get your AIMS test, you
will see him, and remember that you
must be him.
Why have I introduced you to
these jolly fellows?
Let’s delve deeper shall we?
Both Bob and Ulric get the following
prompt on their AIMS test.
Write a personal
narrative about your
best day ever. What
made that day so
memorable?
Let’s take a look at their
brainstorm lists…
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My eleventh birthday
The last day of school
The first day of school
The day I got my puppy
The day I learned to ride
my bike
• The day I got my Nintendo
DS
• The day I won the science
fair
• When my class had a
pizza party
• The day I was abducted
by aliens
• The day I got my pet
crocodile
• The day I stuck a marble
up my nose
• The day I convinced my
little sister that she had
lice
• The day I ate 14 hot dogs
• The day I met a
leprechaun and he led me
to the pot of gold at the
end of the rainbow
Whose paper would you rather
read?
There’s no contest,
Unforgettable Ulric wins hands
down!
Now, it’s your turn…
Make a t-chart on your paper. Label one
side “Boring Bob” and the other side
“Unforgettable Ulric.”
Boring Bob
Unforgettable Ulric
I’m going to give you a writing prompt and
you have to brainstorm a list of ideas that
Boring Bob would come up with.
Then brainstorm another list of ideas that
Unforgettable Ulric would come up with.
Remember: Unforgettable Ulric is a cool cat!
Carpooling, recycling, and planting
trees are all activities that are good
for the environment. Write an
essay convincing readers to
actively participate in one of these
activities.
Take a look at what you need to do
4. Organization
structure
Take a look at what you need to do
Transition Words
Transition words are the bridge
between 2 ideas.
Let’s take a look…shall we?
Transitions are the cord between Christmas lights.
List as many transition words as
you can!
Of course
suddenly
on one hand
Obviously
then
additionally
on the other hand
as you can imagine
next
As a result
similarly
first
second
in addition
equally important
in contrast
however
third
in conclusion
traditionally
on the contrary
clearly
truly
furthermore
later
finally
consequently
as you can see
another
too
also
5. Voice
personality
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwpTj_Z9v-c&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CdJTfGiRCI
You have your own voice,
your own personality.
Show it when you write!
Take a look at what you need to do
This means that when your
audience reads your writing,
they get to know a little
bit about your personality.
Your personality includes your…
Your mission, should you choose to
accept it, is to free-write about the
following topic:
AIMS
Write about AIMS.
Just make sure you put a lot of
“YOU” into your writing.
Just write!
6. Word Choice
color
Take a look at what you need to do
Pop quiz!
Which part of speech gives you the
“most bang for your buck”?
a. Nouns
b. Adjectives
c. Verbs
d. Adverbs
Answer = c. Verbs
Verbs = $$$
quiver
shriek
spill paste
rush
produce
glare slam perceive
hammer
halt
shiver
sob dedicate
squish
implore
blast
squeak
release
scribble
action
words
surround
shimmer devour
spin
twirl
cram
desire consume annoy
whistle sprint
inhale
crave ogle
construct bloom
shower
recall
pour
grip
Post card project
Directions:
1. I’ll show you an image of a certain place.
2. Pretend you’ve visited this place.
3. Write a post card to your teacher describing
things that you’ve seen, heard, tasted,
smelled, felt and done in this crazy place.
4. You must write 3 GOOD sentences. Include
power verbs.
Example
Great
Wall of China
Dear Ms. Dimler,
I just witnessed the
glory of the Great
Wall of China. I
ascended the
numerous steps
and traipsed along
the ancient stones.
Now, I can
comprehend all
those history
lessons you taught
me.
Your turn #1
Leaning Tower
of Pisa, Italy
Your turn #2
Statue of
Liberty,
New York City
Your turn #3
Sphinx,
Egypt
7. Sentence Fluency
flow
Take a look at what you need to do
Ready to meet the
sentence fluency crew?
Too bad!
Buckle up anyway!
Drum roll please…
Who
What
When
Where
Why
HOw
Tip:
Whenever you want your
flow
sentence to
better, ask
yourself a couple of these
questions and re-write your
sentence.
Dr. Seuss Activity
I love Dr. Seuss, and his whole aim in life was
to give kids 2 things:
1. The abilitly to read and write well
and
2. The permission to be imaginative
So, he’s going to help us out.
Excerpt from One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish
Dr. Seuss’s version:
Ms. Dimler’s version:
Who am I?
Who am I? Well, my grandpa
My name is Ned.
decided to name me Ned
after his favorite pet turtle.
I do not like my little bed.
Anyway, I do not like my
This is no good.
teensy, little bed, because
This is not right.
my feet stick out and freeze
My feet stick out of bed all
like ice cubes. This is no
night.
good, and this is most
And when I pull them in,
definitely not right. Either
my feet or my head will stick
Oh, dear!
out and freeze all night!
My head sticks out of bed
up here!
Let’s analyze…
same
Answers
“Why?”
Answers
“Why?”
Combines two
complete
sentences with a
conjunction and a
comma.
Transition
Word
Who am I?
Well, my grandpa decided to
name me Ned after his favorite
pet turtle.
Anyway, I do not like my teensy,
little bed, because my feet stick
out and freeze like ice cubes.
This is no good, and this is most
definitely not right.
Either my feet or my head will
stick out and freeze all night!
Get ready.
You’ll need a pencil and
a piece of paper.
Your turn… I’ll give you a few hints
What things will
you know?
The more what
that you read?
“The more that you read, the more
things you will know. The more
that you learn, the more places
you'll go.”
Learn about
what?
What places?
How will you
learn again?
Where?
--Dr. Seuss
Your turn again…this time I’m not helping.
I could not, would not, on a boat.
I will not, will not, with a goat.
I will not eat them in the rain.
I will not eat them on a train.
Not in the dark! Not in a tree!
Not in a car! You let me be!
--Dr. Seuss
8. Conventions
CUPS
Take a look at what you need to do
CUPS
C
Capitalization
P
Punctuation
U
Understanding
S
Spelling
9. Real Deal Rehearsal
Just do it!
Your Checklist
 RAFTS
 Unforgettable Ulric
 Graphic Organizer
 Draft
 Revise
 Edit
 Final
How will you remember this?
 RAFTS
 Unforgettable Ulric
 Graphic Organizer
 Draft
 Revise
 Edit
 Final
 Red
 Unicorns
 Glide
 Down
 Rotten
 Elephant
 Farts
Red Unicorns Glide Down Rotten
Elephant Farts
Pew!!!
Prompt
Have you ever traveled to a
place that you found very
meaningful and rewarding?
Write an essay that persuades
others to visit this important
place.
important place.
10. Real Deal Rehearsal
Give it all you got!
Prompt
Some of our most memorable
moments are when we achieve
an important goal. Tell about a
time when you accomplished a
goal you had been working
toward.
Show me what you got!