Handout Packet
ASE 1: Production and Distribution of Writing
Steve Schmidt, schmidtsj@appstate.edu
This course is funded by:
Talk, then write
Talk with the people at your table about why you or someone in your family history migrated (moved)
from one place to another. After talking, write about it:
Here are the reasons why I or someone in family migrated:
Person ________________________________
Moved from ______________________________ to ______________________________
Here is why the migration occurred:
What were some push and pull factors for this migration?
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Cause and Effect
Effect #1
Cause #1
Event
Cause #2
Effect #2
Cause #3
Effect #3
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Cause and Effect Model Essay
Obesity, having an excessive amount of body fat, is a growing
problem. Today, almost one in three children and teens is
overweight. This is three times the rate of obesity in 1963.
There are several reasons why obesity is increasing as well as
many harmful effects.
The main cause of childhood obesity is poor diet and lack of
exercise. Over the last decade there has been a huge increase in
the number of fast food restaurants, now numbering more than
235,000 in the United States. Fast food is unhealthy and high in
fat content, and much of its advertising is targeted at children. At
home much of the food eaten is processed food, which is easy to
serve but is very high in calories. Food is often mindlessly eaten
in front of a cell phone, computer, or TV, where kids spent up to
eight hours each day. Instead of exercising their bodies to burn
calories, kids and teens only work their thumbs texting or playing
video games.
To grab the reader’s attention, a
shocking statistic is used.
The introductory paragraph also
tells the reader what will be
covered in the essay.
The first body paragraph describes
two main causes of obesity: poor
diet and lack of exercise.
Since we are doing academic
writing, we use a formal style that
has many longer complex
sentences.
While obesity has several causes, its effects on children and
teens are very serious. There has been a large increase in health
related diseases, especially diabetes. Overweight kids also have
a much greater risk of high blood pressure and heart disease.
These kids are absent from school four times more days than
normal weight children and miss out on valuable learning time.
Very overweight children often experience bullying, which may
affect their mental health. The negative stigma of being
overweight may also affect self-esteem and cause depression.
To move from causes to effects, we
use a transitional phrase in the first
sentence of the second body
paragraph.
Finally, while the causes of childhood obesity are quite clear and
its effects severe, what to do about it is not. Health care costs
associated with overweight children average $14 billion dollars
each year and will continue to rise. We must find a solution to
this severe problem or millions of kids will continue to suffer
chronic physical and mental health problems for years to come.
The conclusion sums up what was
discussed and ends with a warning
if steps are not taken to solve the
problem.
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Draw-Label-Caption Model
The two strings supporting the
bottle are tied to the top of the wall
Lettuce leaf
The green bottle looks
great against the drab
stucco wall
I cut out the top section
The plastic bottle is now a planter
The cap is lighter in color
Dirt fills the bottle about halfway
I made an old plastic drink bottle into a vegetable planter
Tips on Draw-Label-Caption for Students
Just Draw It!
Drawing a picture before writing helps you become much more focused and have better command of
details. Finally, while you are drawing, you will spend several minutes thinking about what you want to
say. The drawing creates a rehearsal of your writing in your mind, serving as the paper’s first draft.
Get into the Labeling
Each label can be turned into a detail in your piece, and each detail can then be turned into a sentence
or two. But actually, you can go farther than that. You can actually label your labels. Here is an
example. Say you have labeled the grass in a scene about throwing a Frisbee with your dog: “grass.”
You could add a label to that label that tells something about the grass: “green grass.” And then you
could label that label: “tall green grass blowing in the breeze.” What you are doing is building up
strings of modifiers (adjectives, adverbs, and phrases) that make writing more descriptive and specific.
Moving from Labels to Sentences
For each label, try to come up with one or more sentences. Here are some examples:
Plastic Bottle:
I have come up with a way to reuse an old plastic drink bottle. Instead of throwing
it away, I made it into a planter. I cut off most of the top middle section, and I
filled it about half full of dirt.
Lettuce Leaf:
The lettuce leaf is a pale green color. It has noticeable veins in it. The leaf blows
in the spring breeze. It will look great on a salad and even better in my mouth!
Adapted from Peha, Teaching That Makes Sense
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Draw Label Caption
Adapted from Peha, Teaching That Makes Sense
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
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Descriptive Writing Model Essay
Society sends the message that people should reduce,
reuse, and recycle. Yet about 32 million tons of plastic
ends up in landfills every year in the United States. Picture
a crushed pile of 576 billion two liter bottles to understand
how much plastic this is. But reusing plastic creates
challenges. I was recently given the task of finding
something useful to do with an old plastic drink bottle.
Since I love to garden, I made the bottle into a vegetable
planter.
Come to my garden and see the finished product. It is a
gorgeous April day with just a hint of a slight chill in the air.
The sun pours its warmth on the earth, and the newly
turned soil fills the air with a sweet, clean smell. The
garden is about four feet wide and ten feet long. It runs
along a painted stucco wall. The wall is a dull, drab gray
color, and it has paint flaking off it here and there. Brown
twine strings dangle down from the top of the wall.
The strings, one on each side, hold the plastic bottle
sideways touching the wall. With each wind gust, the
bottle scrapes against the wall. The dark green bottle could
once have held Mountain Dew that quenched someone’s
thirst on a hot summer day. Most of the bottle’s midsection is cut away in a large rectangle that extends
halfway down each side. Instead of a soft drink, the bottle
is now halfway filled with rich, black dirt which the light
green cap keeps from leaking out of the right side. The
lettuce planted a few weeks ago pokes its small, light green
head out of the bottle and waves to me in the breeze.
Harvest time is just a few short weeks away, and I can
already taste the delicious lettuce leaves drenched in salad
dressing with a few ripe tomatoes thrown in for good
measure.
While there is no way I can reuse all 32 million tons of
thrown out plastic, I did take an old, beat up drink bottle
and made something useful from it. When I visit the
garden and see the sun glinting off the plastic planter, I can
rest in the knowledge that I helped to make a difference to
the earth in some small way.
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The introduction describes the task given
and explains what will be described.
Focus on what the thing being described
looks like and use as much sensory detail
(sight, sound, taste, feel, smell) as
possible.
The body paragraph starts with a
description of the garden where the
planter hangs.
A description of the strings holding the
planter makes the transition from one
body paragraph to another.
Details from the draw label caption
graphic organizer are used to describe
the planter, the wall behind it, and the
strings that hold it to the wall.
It is fine to use first person (I) when
writing most descriptive essays. This is
an exception to the write in third person
rule used in most formal academic
writing.
VS.
Similarities
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VS.
Similarities
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Compare and Contrast Model Essay
In the United States, people own 80 million dogs and 96 million
cats as pets. With that many animals around, humans clearly
love their pets. Cat and dog owners love to talk about their pets
and will share both their joys and frustrations. Having dogs and
cats as pets is a similar experience as both can provide
companionship and teach kids responsibility. Yet having dogs
and cats as pets is a much different experience in terms of their
play and how social they are.
Having cats and dogs as pets is a similar experience in two ways.
Both types of pets provide companionship. Millions of people
live alone in the United States. To have some company, they
enjoy petting a dog or cuddling with a sleeping cat. Pet owners
can talk with their animals that will always listen and love them
no matter what. For families with children, pets can also teach
responsibility. Both cats and dogs need to be cared for in order
to live. A child will have to walk a dog, clean a cat’s litter box,
and feed both animals. This helps a child develop a schedule as
well as learn to think of others beside themselves.
While there are some similarities, having dogs and cats as pets is
quite different. Dogs love to play with their humans while cats
can amuse themselves. Dogs want to go outside and play games
with their owners like catch the Frisbee or fetch the tennis ball.
Cats are happy to play games not involving others. Give cats a
squeaky mouse toy and they will spend hours pretending to
capture and kill it. Another big difference is the social nature of
dogs and cats. Dogs are much more social. Dogs love to be
around people and want to be petted or scratched behind the
ears. Cats, on the other hand, are more solitary. They spend
hours sleeping or exploring by themselves and have little need of
human companionship.
Owning dogs and cats is a similar but different experience.
While both pets have different personalities and habits, they
both provide companionship and joy for millions of people
around the world. Families considering a pet should consider
the differences between the animals and what type of pet
personality would best fit into their family.
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To grab the reader’s attention, the
essay begins with an interesting
fact about pet ownership.
The introduction paragraph
describes the similarities and
difference that will be explained in
the rest of the essay.
Body paragraph one explains two
similarities between owning dogs
and cats.
The transition phrase “while there
are some similarities” draws the
reader from the first to the second
body paragraph.
The second body paragraph
contrasts the different pet owning
experiences by explaining how they
are different.
The concluding paragraph sums up
the similarities and differences and
ends with advice on selecting a pet.
Compare and Contrast Writing Frame
A surprising fact about ________________ and ________________ is that _________________
___________________________________________________________________________________ .
________________ and ________________ are similar because they both _______________________
_________________________________________________ . Yet, they are also different because they
___________________________________________________________________________________ .
________________ and ________________ have many similarities. One important similarity is
___________________________________________________________________________________ .
This means that ________________ and ________________ both _____________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
Another similarity between ________________ and ________________ is that they _______________
__________________________________________________________________________________ .
While ________________ and ________________ share similarities, one major difference is
___________________________________________________________________________________ .
This difference is important because ______________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________ .
Additionally, another difference between ________________ and ________________ is ____________
___________________________________________________________________________________ .
This difference shows _________________________________________________________________ .
In conclusion, ________________ and ________________ have similarities and differences.
This is meaningful because ________________ and ________________ ________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________ .
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Bridge Builders
Why are bridges designed in a certain way? Which type of structure makes them the strongest? Why?
Some bridges have stood the test of time like the Pons Aemilius in Rome. It was built in 179 BC and
still stands today! Other bridges, like the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, opened on July 1, 1940 and
collapsed a few months later on November 7th.
Today, your team will become bridge builders. Your challenge is to use the items provided to your
team to build a bridge that will span twelve inches (the distance between two chairs or two tables).
You will have no more than _________ minutes to work.
Your items may be used in any way. (In other words, you can tear them, roll them, etc.) You can use
all the items or only a few.
The object is to see which team’s structure will hold the most weight. Team members will slowly add
heavy objects one at a time onto the bridge. The bridge must hold for at least ten seconds before the
next object is added. The items your team can use are note cards, paper clips, popsicle sticks, yarn,
masking tape, and sheets of 8.5 x 11 paper.
First, brainstorm some quick sketches of how your bridge might look:
Then, decide on your best idea. We choose our final design for the bridge because:
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Tell Show Graphic Organizer Example
Tell
Say it as simply as possible, the less the better.
The house down the street is abandoned.
Show
Describe it in detail by creating a picture in the reader’s mind.
The house has not been lived in for at least 20 years. It is a
big house and may have about ten rooms. The front porch is
caving in and loose boards are everywhere. The front door
has white, peeling paint with an old rusty door knocker. In
the front yard, the grass is about three feet high. Weeds are
everywhere. A huge overgrown bush covers the east side of
the front porch. The wooden siding is falling off and just a
hint of white paint is left. It must have been an amazing
house in its prime.
Adapted from Peha, Teaching That Makes Sense
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Tell
Show
Say it as simply as possible, the less the better.
Describe it in detail by creating a picture in the reader’s mind.
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Problem/Solution Model Essay
They are everywhere. They have Earth surrounded, and they
The introductory paragraph starts
are winning the battle for control of human minds. What are
with an attention grabber to draw in
these things that threaten to take over life itself? The answer
is portable digital devices like cell phones and tablets. How can the reader.
people escape from their ever present technology?
Sit in a restaurant and watch families as they wait for their
meal to come. Instead of talking with each other, each person
stares intently into their cell phone screen surfing the web or
sending texts. This is a huge problem in America today.
Marriages end and families are destroyed because it seems
that people prefer social media to real life socializing. People
become addicted to their smartphone apps and become
anxious if their phones are not in reach. They spend an ever
increasing amount of time in the virtual world and less time
interacting with the real people that matter in their lives.
To solve the problem of technology addiction in families, there
are two easy to implement solutions. First of all, families need
to take back the dinner hour. Families can start slowly and
agree that they will all meet for dinner at least two nights each
week. While at the table, no digital devices are allowed. This
will help families become closer as they share the news of the
day and connect with each other. Once this habit is
established, more dinner hour nights can be added.
In addition to the dinner hour, families need a technology free
day. They might agree to make Sunday the day when no one is
allowed to use any electronic devices. In addition to allowing
their devices to recharge, family members can unplug, relax,
and bond together. Families can plan activities that are just
that: active. Instead of surfing on the web, families could take
a walk together or picnic at a state park. Instead of being
alone with their devices, families can be together creating
memories that last a lifetime.
Finally, while technology addiction in families is a real problem
that does not have an easy solution, it is one worth solving.
Families may find it difficult to coordinate their schedules and
give up their smartphones for a whole day. Over time, families
will realize the benefits of unplugging from their devices as
they become closer together and feel less stressed.
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The first body paragraph explains the
problem in more detail.
The transition “to solve the problem
of technology addiction” moves the
reader between the two paragraphs.
This body paragraph suggests and
describes how one solution would
work.
The transition “in addition to the
dinner hour” moves the reader
between the two solution
paragraphs.
The third body paragraph explains
how a second solution would work.
The concluding paragraph shows that
while the problem is hard to solve,
the benefits are worth it.
Other Language Arts Writing/Thinking Skills Exercises
Ban the Books!
When the wind blows over the ocean, it creates waves. When children have no books at home, they
often fall behind in reading. These two examples show how one thing can lead to another. This is
called cause and effect. In the first situation, the wind (cause) produced the waves (effect). In the
second example, the lack of books was the cause and falling behind in reading was the effect. A causeand-effect strategy is used to show why things happen the way they do.
In the novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, books are illegal. A person can be arrested for owning a
book! Some people even disappear, never to be seen again – all for their love (and possession) of a
book. Just consider how different the world would be if all reading material (books, magazines, phone
texts, song lyrics, instructions) were banned. Describe three effects of the book ban focusing on why
the effect would occur.
Adapted from: Hagler (2012) Take 5 for language arts: 180 bell-ringers that build critical-thinking skills
Teaching Narrative Writing: Narrative Writing Model Essay
Remembering A Civil Rights Swim-In: “It Was A Milestone”
On June 18, 1964, black and white protesters jumped into the whites-only pool at the Monson Motor
Lodge in St. Augustine, Fla. In an attempt to force them out, the owner of the hotel poured acid into
the pool.
Martin Luther King Jr. had planned the sit-in during the St. Augustine Movement, a part of the larger
civil rights movement. The protest — and the owner's acidic response — is largely forgotten today, but
it played a role in the passing of the Civil Rights Act, now celebrating its 50th anniversary.
J.T. Johnson, now 76, and Al Lingo, 78, were two of the protesters in the pool that day. On a visit to
StoryCorps in Atlanta, the pair recalled the hotel owner, James Brock, "losing it."
"Everybody was kind of caught off guard," J.T. says.
"The girls, they were most frightened, and we moved to the center of the pool," Al says.
"I tried to calm the gang down. I knew that there was too much water for that acid to do anything,"
J.T. says. "When they drug us out in bathing suits and they carried us out to the jail, they wouldn't feed
me because they said I didn't have on any clothes. I said, 'Well, that's the way you locked me up!'
"But all of the news media were there, because somehow I guess they'd gotten word that something
was going to happen at that pool that day. And I think that's when President [Lyndon B.] Johnson got
the message."
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The following day, the Civil Rights Act was approved, after an 83-day filibuster in the U.S. Senate.
"That had not happened before in this country, that some man is pouring acid on people in the
swimming pool," J.T. says. "I'm not so sure the Civil Rights Act would have been passed had [there] not
been a St. Augustine. It was a milestone. We was young, and we thought we'd done something — and
we had."
J.T. went back to St. Augustine 40 years later, he tells Al. By then, the Monson Motor Lodge had been
replaced with a Hilton Hotel.
"I sat and talked with the manager. I said to him that, 'You know, I can't stay in this hotel. You don't
have any African-Americans working here,' " J.T. recalls.
"He said, 'Well, I promise you that next time you come down here it'll be different.' He immediately
got busy," J.T. continues. "But he was one of the few people in St. Augustine, I think, that did some of
the things that we had been talking about."
"So, to go back to St. Augustine, and it's still somewhat the same — now, that does make me feel bad.
The lifting is still kind of heavy, but I'll continue to work as hard as I can, as long as I live," J.T. says. "I
won't ever stop, and I won't ever give up."
Source: NPR
Somebody Wanted But So Example
Somebody
Wolf, 3 Little Pigs
(Who?)
Wanted
(What did they want to
do?)
But
The three little pigs wanted to live happily on their own so they built houses of
straw, sticks, and bricks
The wolf wanted to eat them for dinner
(What was the problem?)
So
(How was the problem
solved?)
The wolf blew down the houses of straw and sticks and ate the first two pigs.
The wolf could not blow down the brick house and ended up being boiled in a
pot as he climbed down the chimney.
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Somebody Wanted But So
Somebody
(Who?)
Wanted
(What did they want to
do?)
But
(What was the problem?)
So
(How was the problem
solved?)
Somebody Wanted But So
Somebody
(Who?)
Wanted
(What did they want to
do?)
But
(What was the problem?)
So
(How was the problem
solved?)
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Writing From a Different Perspective
Imagine you are a United States Senator who would be voting on the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which was
being discussed during the events in St. Augustine in June, 1964. This bill would outlaw discrimination
in hotels, motels, restaurants and theaters. How would seeing this picture of James Brock dumping
acid in the pool have influenced your vote? Why? Write your thoughts in at least one paragraph.
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Transition Action Details Example
Transition
Actions
Detail
(Introduce the Action)
(What Happened?)
(Answer Reader Questions)
On October 4, 1957,
The Soviet Union launched
Sputnik 1.
- It was the first man made
satellite
- The United States was scared
of what the Soviets might do
with their advanced
technology
- There were many questions
about how effective math and
science education were in the
U.S.
On January 31, 1958,
The United States launched its
first satellite, Explorer 1.
- The U.S. matched the Soviet
Union’s feat of successfully
launching a satellite
- The Space Race began as the
U.S. worked to catch up and
beat the Soviets in space
related accomplishments
On April 12, 1961,
The Soviet Union’s Yuri Gagarin
becomes the first man to orbit
the earth.
- This was a propaganda victory
for the Soviet Union as it
showed it was once again
ahead of the U.S. in space
- The U.S. would not be able to
send an astronaut in orbit until
February 1962
On September 12 1962,
On July 20 1969,
U.S. President John F. Kennedy
set a goal for the United States
to land a man on the moon.
- Since the U.S. finished second
in both launching a satellite
and in sending a man in orbit,
this goal raised the bar for the
Space Race competitors
The U.S. lands men on the
moon.
- The U.S. is recognized as the
leader in space exploration and
wins the Space Race
Adapted from Peha, Teaching that Makes Sense
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Transition
Actions
Detail
(Introduce the Action)
(What Happened?)
(Answer Reader Questions)
Adapted from Peha, Teaching that Makes Sense
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Editing Checklist: Informative/Explanatory Texts
□ Introduced your topic
Is there a strong opening paragraph that grabbed the reader’s attention and told the reader
what to expect in the essay?
□ Organized complex ideas
Are there different paragraphs that each describe a certain part of the topic?
□ Developed the topic with well-chosen, relevant, and sufficient facts
Did the writer make statements, use facts to support the statement, and then explain how the facts fit
in with the statement?
Example: “Breathing is very important to most people. The average person breathes about
20,000 times in a single day. Without breathing, it would be impossible to take in
the oxygen we need and expel the carbon dioxide we do not need.”
□ Used appropriate and varied transitions to link the major sections of the text
Examples: However, in addition to, on the other hand, another example of, at the same time
□ Established and maintained a formal style and objective tone
What not to do: (use slang, contractions, text speak, write in second person):
“Dude, s’up? My bad, u don’t have to get all emo on me, u know.”
What to do: (write in third person, use longer and more complex sentences):
“A recent study noted that walking was the most effective way of moving short distances
in the least amount of time. It also mentioned that people normally walk with their feet,
but some circus performers have become quite good at walking on their hands.”
□ Provided a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the information that
was presented
Example: “As we have shown, breathing is very important. Billions of people breathe every day, and
when people stop breathing, their faces turn blue and they may suffer other negative
health consequences.”
Comments:
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