Name_________________________________________________________________________ period______
TAG EXPOSITORY ESSAY ASSIGNMENT
For our revision and STAAR prep unit, we will be working on responding to the STAAR essay prompts; however, I do
not want you to feel limited in your writing topics or the length. In addition, I’m going to ask you to push yourself
beyond the writing expectations in the scoring STAAR rubric and write what I would consider a 5 or a 6 essay (instead
of just a 4).
Step 1: For help getting started, use RAFT (page 256 in your Springboard book).
format (already chosen—expository essay), and topic.
Consider your role, audience,
Please read each category below and try to fill in the blanks.
Role- Do you wish to come across as an expert? A fellow classmate? A protestor? A complainer? A problem solver? A
questioner? A deep thinker? An observer? A comedian? Something else? ____________________________________
Audience- Are you hoping your essay will be read by parents, teachers, peers, the general public, fellow athletes, movie
enthusiasts, poets, music lovers, others?????
________________________________________________________
Format- You need to strive to stick to the essay. An expository essay explains or defines something. It can also inform
or be somewhat opinionated. Also, use the fluff, star sentence, body, conclusion type outline we’ve used in class to
help you organize your ideas. And… don’t forget CAFÉ. _Expository Essay- one that informs or explains_____________
Topic- (See step 2.)
Step 2:
_______________________________________________________________________________
Find a topic. After seeing some of the topics from STAAR and considering RAFT, begin to ask yourself what
topic you truly wish to write about. What do the kids in your school need to know? Is there something you’ve noticed
lately that needs to be addressed? Have you discovered something about life that seems important? Is there a topic
that you feel is important? Is there something you wish could happen?
Use these sentence stems to generate ideas, but feel free to come up with your own:
I feel it is important to/that_____________________________ because ______________________________________.
Most people like __________________________________, but I prefer_____________________________________.
In life, it seems that____________________________________________________ and/but_____________________.
I used to think________________________, but then________________________, so now I realize that____________.
Step 3:
Look for examples of essays in real life. Look on the website TEEN INK. Take a magazine from my shelf and
look toward the back or maybe the front. Usually magazines have guest columns that are essays. (I will try to provide at
least one copy from a magazine for the entire class to look at.) You may not write an essay as lengthy as these, but
looking at the format and types of support may help you get a sense of how to write yours. In addition, if you are still
not sure of a topic, this could help you find one.
PLEASE volunteer to share what you’ve found with the class. Each day I will ask the TAG students about topic ideas, and
this is a great time to tell us about the real life essay you found also. (If, and when you do share, bring this form to the
teacher and she’ll initial in the space below, and that will improve your overall grade.)
_____________
Step 4:
Tell the teacher. Before writing day comes, if possible, share your idea with the teacher so that she can give
you a “thumbs up”, advice, or maybe a caution. Once you’ve visited, have her initial in this space. _____________
Step 5:
Once writing day comes, you will write your essay instead of the one the other kids write. So, you can
make yours longer, you may type it if you wish, and you will have an extended deadline. I’ll let you know when the
time comes.
Plus, you may (and should) try to be creative; for example, if you are a poet, feel free to include poetry in your
essay or at the beginning or end. If you are artistic, add a drawing or illustration of some type. Many essays include
visuals of some type. If you are a creative writer, add a science fiction short story (or some type of fictional piece) to
accompany your essay. If you like to sing, I’ll find time to let you perform a song that somehow relates to your topic. ---- You can also share some other piece of work that you find relates to your essay—a story, poem, song, piece of art,
movie clip (that is created by someone else) and explain how it connects to your essay. Let me know if you have any
other ideas!
RUBRIC
Organization/Progression (emerging- 20
proficient-25
exemplary- 30)
•
The essay is skillfully crafted because the writer uses organizational strategies that are
particularly well suited to the expository task. The writer establishes a clear controlling idea. All ideas
are strongly related to the controlling idea and are focused on the topic specified in the prompt. By
sustaining this focus, the writer is able to create an essay that is unified and coherent.
•
The writer’s progression of ideas is logical and well controlled. Meaningful transitions and
strong sentence-to-sentence connections enhance the flow of the essay by clearly showing the
relationships among ideas, making the writer’s train of thought easy to follow.
Development of Ideas (emerging- 20
proficient-25
exemplary- 30)
•
The development of ideas is effective because the writer uses details and examples that are
specific and well chosen, adding substance to the essay. The essay is thoughtful and engaging.
The writer may choose to use his/her unique experiences or view of the world as a basis for writing
or to connect ideas in interesting ways.
Use of Language/Conventions (emerging- 20
proficient-25
exemplary- 30)
•
The writer’s word choice is purposeful and precise. It reflects a keen awareness of the
expository purpose and maintains a tone appropriate to the task. The word choice strongly
contributes to the quality and clarity of the essay. Sentences are purposeful, varied, and well
controlled, enhancing the effectiveness of the essay.
•
The writer demonstrates a consistent command of sentence boundaries and age-appropriate
spelling, capitalization, punctuation, grammar, and usage conventions. Although minor errors may be
evident, they do not detract from the fluency of the writing or the clarity of the essay. The overall
strength of the conventions contributes to the effectiveness of the essay.
PLUS (up to 10 pts) - The writer completes the activities on this page completely, with enthusiasm and
demonstrates creativity in some way. He or she finds a topic that truly interests him or her (preferably one that is not
too closely related to those we’ve covered in class), looks for professional examples for inspiration and ideas,
enthusiastically contributes to class discussion, and somehow includes creativity in their work.