Finding the SPAM
Situation, Purpose, Audience, Mode
On-Demand Writing tasks
Read the prompts and locate the SPAM
(Situation, Purpose, Audience, Mode) in
each prompt.
Situation – the event that prompts the need to
communicate/write. Draw a box around it.
Purpose – To persuade, to narrate an event, to
respond to a text/graphic/chart – Circle it.
Audience – To whom you are writing.
Underline it.
Mode – letter, feature article, editorial, or
speech. (Put parenthesis around it.)
Situation: Has cursing gone overboard? Some signs
suggest the answer is yes. States and cities are
beginning to enforce anti-obscenity rules that have
been ignored for decades. In 1999, for example, a
young canoeist in Michigan was given a 90-day
jail sentence and a $100 fine for cursing. He had
fallen out of his canoe and let out a scream of
obscenities within earshot of a family.
Task: Write an editorial for the Messenger-Inquirer
in which you take a position on the answer to the
question: Has cursing gone overboard? Give
reasons for your position on this topic, and be sure
to include supporting details.
Situation: Public-school students in Maryland are
required to do 75 hours of community service
during their middle and high school years in order
to get their high school diplomas. A growing
number of school districts across the country are
deciding to require the same thing from their
students.
Task: Write an editorial for the Messenger-Inquirer
in which you respond to the information above.
Should community service be a graduation
requirement? Give reasons to support your
position.
Situation: Each year, students who work hard on their CATS
test are rewarded with various special activities, such as an
after school dance, a particular field trip, or homework
passes. The celebration is planned by a special committee,
which is made up of parents, teachers, and students. In
order to get as much input from students about what they
want the celebration to consist of, Mrs. Rich has asked all
students to write a letter to the committee with suggestions.
Only the best suggestions will be used.
Task: Write a letter to the CATS committee suggesting
activities that you would like to see as a part of the day of
celebration after the CATS test. Remember that only the
best ideas will be considered, so be sure to include why
you think your ideas are the best.
Situation: Your school newspaper is seeking student writing
addressing immediate issues and current concerns of teens
in public schools.
Task: Think of a school related issue that you and your peers
care about:
 longer breaks between classes
 beginning classes later in the day
 offering an alternative year-round schedule
 going to a block schedule
 having a longer lunch break
Choose one of the topics above, or one of your own, and
write a letter to your site-based council that clearly
expresses your topic of concern. Include specific
examples of support and offer suggestions. Persuade the
council to make any changes you think are necessary.
Situation: Kentucky’s state legislatures are
concerned about the issues surrounding the CATS
assessment for Kentucky students. The state is
proposing new guidelines and revisions to be
made to the state’s educational assessment
program.
Task: Write a letter to the state legislatures voicing
your opinions about the CATS assessment. Be
sure to offer suggestions for improvement or
change to the state’s educational assessment
program.
Situation: At lunch each day, students are forced to
sit at a table with only children from their
homeroom. Many students want to be able to sit
at other places with friends.
Task: Write a letter to the principal persuading him
to allow students to sit with friends at different
tables in the cafeteria.
Situation: The principal at your school has been
noticing that students have been mean to other
students by teasing them or leaving them out.
Task: Write an article for the school newspaper
narrating a time a classmate teased you or left you
out. Identify things you did or could have done to
stand up for yourself.
Situation: What do you find yourself doing in your
spare time? Do you spend most of your evening
playing video games? Students often spend a
large portion of their time in front of a television
playing video games.
Task: Write an editorial for the local newspaper
explaining why parents should or should not limit
the amount of time spent playing video games.
Situation: There has been a lot of research recently
suggesting that when students are separated by
gender (all boy or all girl classes) that their test
scores and overall achievement goes up. Our
school board is reviewing this information and
discussing trying same sex classes in our middle
school.
Task: As a middle school student, write a letter to
the school board that discusses what you see as
advantages or disadvantages of trying genderbased classes in your school.
Situation: The SBDM council (site-based decision
making council) at your high school is considering
a policy that would mandate that if a student
misses 20 days a semester, that student
automatically fails.
Task: Write a speech that you would deliver at a
SBDM meeting that would support or refute this
proposal.