Slow Way Home
Unit 7: Assessment Part II
Review of Lesson I
Chapters 13-20
 What does it mean to read as a writer, and
how can doing so help your writing?
 Reading as a writer means paying close
attention to how a writer sets up
sentences, paragraphs, chapters.
 We read as writers to become better
writers ourselves.

Review your classroom list of
Techniques of good writing
Preparation for In-class Essay
Today we will spend some time preparing
for a practice FCAT Writes essay.
 You will write this essay in one class
period, and then next week, you will grade
the essay using the anchor sets that
actual FCAT graders use when they grade
your essays in the spring

How to write a decent essay
Your essay needs to have at least two
paragraphs with elaborated support.
 If you sandwich these two paragraphs of
elaborated support between an
introduction that clarifies your subject and
a conclusion that leaves your reader with
something to think about, you will have a
decent essay.

How to write a decent essay 2

Five and Six FCAT essays have this in
common: the writer has a sense of to
whom he/she is writing, and the writer
seems to enjoy writing the essay.
What is elaborated support?
There are four levels of support identified
in FCAT essays
 Bare
 Extended
 Layered
 Elaborated

Essays
In the 1-3 range have bare and extended
support.
 Essays in the 4-6 range have layered and
elaborated support

Bare support
The writer makes a statement and gives a
basic reason for it:
 I like to sit in the swing with my father
because it makes me feel peaceful.

Extended support
The writer makes a statement and uses
information that begins to clarify meaning:
 I like to sit in the swing with my father
because it makes me feel peaceful. My
father doesn’t talk a lot. He is happy I am
with him.

Layered Support
The writer makes a statement and then uses a
series of informational statements that
collectively help to clarify meaning. For example
 I like to sit in the swing with my father because
it makes me feel peaceful. My father doesn’t talk
a lot. He is happy I am with him. We watch the
sun set over the bay, and rock back and forth on
the swing. The only sounds we hear are birds in
the trees and the waves lapping against the
shore.

Elaborated Support:


The writer makes a statement and uses additional
details, anecdotes, illustrations and examples to further
clarify meaning. The writer provides information that
answers the question, “what do you mean?”
I like to sit in the swing with my father because it makes
me feel peaceful. My father doesn’t talk a lot. He is
happy I am with him. We watch the sun set over the
bay, and rock back and forth on the swing. The only
sounds we hear are birds in the trees and the waves
lapping against the shore. I feel peaceful because I don’t
feel like I have to prove myself, I don’t have to do
anything I don’t have to say anything. My father is
simply happy that I am there sitting with him.
Now, review the previous slides
And practice writing a sentence with bare,
extended, layered and elaborated support.
 Use this prompt
 Why do people save things?

Brainstorm
An essay using the prompt, “Why People
Save things”
 Remember, when you are brainstorming a
prompt, you want to think of real people
you know who save things, and then think
of anecdotes or stories you can tell about
a particular person saving something and
why.

Review
The brainstorming methods from earlier
lessons:
 Listing
 Web
 Outline
 Venn diagram
 Or any other strategies that you know
work for you.

Spend ten minutes

Brainstorming
Now,
Share your method with your group.
 Talk about the ideas you came up with

Teacher Modeling
Your teacher has written a model
brainstorming as well
 He/she will share her brainstorming with
you.

Tomorrow
You will write an essay on this topic.
 You will have 50 minutes to write your
essay.
