Getting Ready for
STAAR Writing
Grade 7 Writing
Not just any writing…
But STAAR Writing!
TEA Online Resources
www.tea.state.us/student.assessment/staar
Assessed curriculum*
Blueprints*
Released Test Questions*
Writing and English I, II, III*
Dictionary/Thesaurus policies*
TEA Online Resources, continued
Rubrics*
Test design schematics*
Question and answer document (FAQs)
Much more
Assessed Curriculum
Readiness Standards
• Essential for success in the current grade/course
• Important for preparedness for the next grade/course
• Support college and career readiness
• Necessitate in-depth instruction
• Address broad and deep ideas
Assessed Curriculum
Supporting Standards
• Introduced in the current grade or course,
emphasized in a subsequent year
• Reinforced in the current grade or course,
emphasized in a previous year
• Play a role in preparing students for the next grade
or course, but not a central role
• Address more narrowly defined ideas
STAAR Writing
Online “Look Fors”
• Blueprint – reporting categories, number of
standards, number of questions
• Test Design Schematics – information about
genres assessed, field test items
• Released Test Questions– some questions
and answers (full STAAR test not released
until 2014)
STAAR Writing Grade 7
(also Reading Grades 6-8)
Resources
• Dictionary Policy – available for all
students - one for every
better: one for every
best: one for each
• Thesaurus – allowed either as part of
dictionary or separate, available for all
students - one for every
Most Significant Differences
STAAR/TAKS
 Rigor of items has been increased
(assessing skills at a greater depth and
level of cognitive complexity)
 Total number of test items increased for
most grades, subjects, and courses
 Four-hour time limit on STAAR as
opposed to TAKS which was untimed
Part of Four Hours
• bathroom breaks
• water breaks
• snack breaks
• short physical/mental breaks
Not Part of Four Hours
• Lunch
• Emergency situations
• Consolidation/movement to another area
• Medical breaks to nurse
Day 1 - Revising and Editing
 Grade 7
One writing prompt
Revising - 16 multiple choice questions
Editing – 24 multiple choice questions
Four hours!
Day 2 - Composition
 Grade 7
Two writing prompts
Four hours!
STAAR Written Composition
 Students will write two one-page
compositions
 Additional field test composition in
Grade 7 and English EOCs
 26 lines maximum
 Different types of writing
STAAR Written Composition


Grade 4−personal narrative story
and expository essay
Grade 7−personal narrative (with
extension) story and expository
essay
STAAR Written Composition
 Essays will be weighted equally
 No “gatekeeper”
(automatic fail of writing test for a 1)
STAAR Writing Prompts
 Personal narrative (with extension)
and expository prompts contain a
stimulus and are scaffolded:
Read
Think
Write
Be Sure to
STAAR Writing Prompts
 READ
 Sometimes a statement (There are people in our
lives who are special to us. Sometimes this
person is a teacher or coach, a parent, a brother
or sister, or even a friend.)
 Sometimes a quote ( A famous businessman once
said, “Players win games; teams win
championships.”)
 Sometimes an image
STAAR Writing Prompts
 THINK (Sometimes it’s hard to make a
decision because there are so many
choices.)
 The synopsis or quotation
generalized and reworded
 Clarification of READ
 Idea starters
STAAR Writing Prompts
 Write
An even more focused rewording
Often called the “charge”
 Be Sure to –
Reminder bullets, appear in rubrics
(different rubric for each type of writing)
STAAR Writing - What the field tests revealed…
 Score Point 3 or 4 Papers
* Good form/purpose match
* Introduction and conclusion short/effective
* No wasted words
* Well crafted
* Narrow and deep focus
* Specific use of language and appropriate
tone for purpose
* Clear beginning, middle and end
* Strong conventions
STAAR Writing - What the field tests
revealed…
Score Point 1 or 2 Papers
* Wrong form/purpose
* Meaningless introduction and/or conclusion
* Wasted space (repetition, wordiness,
meandering, extraneous details of examples)
* Poorly crafted
* General/vague use of language or
inappropriate tone for purpose
* Weak conventions
What do Maurice Sendak, Ernest
Hemingway and William Faulkner
have in common?
They never made their point in 26
lines!
o However, that doesn’t mean it can’t be
done!
o Texas students will be expected to
complete each composition in 26 lines or
less.
We don’t want the 26 line limit to
create “Blah” sentences.
• He walked through the door.
“Explode the moment” sentences,
although wonderful, likely won’t fit.
• He grasped the cold doorknob and turned it slowly to the
right. He pushed the door inward. The hinges squeaked
and cold air rushed past the opening door. The room
was dark. His eyes darted to the right. Nothing. He
pushed the door open a little farther, and slowly moved
his right foot into the room. His shoe creaked a bit as it
hit the polished hardwood floor.
Precise and concise is what we
need on the STAAR.
• He crept through the door, hoping to be as
quiet as a mouse.
Keys to Success for Students
• Being able to contrast “Explode the
Moment” writing with precise and concise
writing
• Being able to identify examples and nonexamples of concise and precise writing in
reading passages and their own writing
Next Step:
Practice STAAR Writing Skills
 By providing purposeful, thoughtful
assignments – based on the assessed TEKS
and Student Expectations
 Guiding students through the process from
modeling to independent practice
 Allowing our students to showcase their
writing talents (revising, editing, and writing
compositions)
Composition/Writing/Personal
Narrative Texts
• Grade 7 14A: write a personal narrative
that has a clearly defined focus and
communicates the importance of or
reasons for actions and/or consequences
Mini-lessons on areas of need, with
independent use of the strategies the goal
Teacher-Made Rubric
Personal Narrative Text
1
Personal narrative
Clearly defined focus
Communicates importance of
actions/consequences
Communicates reasons for
actions/consequences
2
3
4
Explanation of “WITH
EXTENSION”
• Grade 4 – Personal Narrative prompt:
 Write about a time when you discovered that
you were good at something.
• Grade 7 – Personal Narrative (with extension)
prompt:
 Write a personal narrative about a time when
you had to make a decision. Be sure to write in
detail about the choice you made and describe
what happened as a result of your decision.
Composition/Writing/Expository
Texts
• Grade 7 17A: write a multi-paragraph essay to convey
information about a topic that:
(i) presents effective introductions and concluding
paragraphs;
(ii) contains a clearly stated purpose or controlling idea;
(iii) is logically organized with appropriate facts and details
and includes no extraneous information or inconsistencies;
(iv) accurately synthesizes ideas from several sources;
(v) uses a variety of sentence structures, rhetorical devices,
and transitions to link paragraphs.
 Mini lessons on areas of need, with independent use of the
strategies the goal
Teacher-Made Rubric
Expository Texts
1
Multi-paragraph essay
Effective introductions and
concluding paragraphs
Clearly stated
purpose/controlling idea
Logically organized
Appropriate facts/details
No extraneous
information/inconsistencies
Accurately synthesizes ideas
Variety of sentence structures
Rhetorical devices
Transitions to link paragraphs
2
3
4
TEA Scoring of Written Compositions
• 4 page rubric to score students STAAR
writing compositions – one page per score
point
• Each genre has a separate rubric
• Familiarize yourself with these
Questions?
Contact Information:
Beverly Richard
Curriculum and Instructional Specialist
832-223-0146
brichard@lcisd.org