Writing Tasks on the Literacy Test

On the literacy test, you will have two long writing tasks

1) A News Report and

2) A Series of Paragraphs (Opinion Essay)

Today’s lesson will focus on: A Series of Paragraphs

Please distribute Booklet 2 QUESTIONS and Booklet 2 ANSWERS to students.

Turn to page 2 in the Booklet 2 QUESTIONS book.

The instructions are always the same for the Series of Paragraphs question.

The only change is the topic you are given to write about.

Here is a sample question.

Breaking down the requirements so there are no surprises later:

Written instruction on the Test

Expectation of the instruction

“Task: Write a minimum of three paragraphs expressing an opinion…”

Notice the word “minimum”. Three paragraphs will NOT be enough for full marks. Prepare a FIVE paragraph essay. This allows you to fill in the space more easily and systematically. You need an intro, 3 body paragraphs and closing paragraph.

“Purpose and Audience: an adult who is interested in your opinion.”

Use language that would make your teacher proud (no slang, no short forms, no text messaging language). Use full sentence. Be careful of your spelling and grammar.

“Length:…” EQAO always gives you two pages with a total of 48 lines across the page to answer the question. This space should be filled but not exceeded. Do not OVERWRITE.

“Topic:…” You are given a single question that you need to provide a “for” or “against” response to. It doesn’t matter which point of view you take as long as you have three supporting reasons. Pick one side and stick with it.

How your work is marked

Each answer is assigned two marks : Topic Development (main idea, supporting details

and organization) Use of Conventions (spelling, grammar, punctuation)

Teachers, please hand out one rubric per student.

The Rubric for marking Topic Development (main idea, supporting details and organization) looks like this:

The Rubric for marking Use of Conventions (Spelling, Grammar, Punctuation) looks like this

Helpful Tips The “Topic” is always a single question that you need to

give a clear “for” or “against” answer to. Pick one side of the argument only and stick with it. AVOID the approach “I agree in some cases but disagree in other cases”.

There is no reading attached to this question. All information comes from your own experience and imagination.

There is a “Rough Notes” area which is not marked. Use the SEES method (next slide) in this area to organize your thoughts. This will make your organization and task of filling two pages (48 lines) much easier.

You can use “I think”, “I agree” in your response. This is your opinion essay but you need to give at least three examples/reasons to support your position and explain them.

The final Series of Paragraphs should look like this.

Topic: Is it a good idea for high school students to have a part-time job?

Rough Notes/PlanningSTEP 1: Take a position

Having a part time job is a good idea for high school students because it: provides them with income, increases their independence and provides work experience.

STEP 2: Give three reasons to support your position. Supporting argument # 1 (S1)= IncomeSupporting argument # 2 (S2)= IndependenceSupporting argument # 1 (S3)= Experience

STEP 3: Use S.E.E.S to organize paragraphs to explain each of the three reasons stated in STEP 2 S - Sentence 1 – Supporting Argument (directly supports the point of view- for or against) E - Sentence 2 – Explanation / Example (expands/explains the supporting argument) E - Sentence 3 – Explanation / Example (expands/explains the supporting argument) S - Sentence 4 – Summary statement

STEP 4: Provide a closing paragraph where you restate your position and the main ideas. From the arguments I have provided it is clear that having a part time job is a good idea for high school students because of the benefits it provides, such as: income, independence and work experience.

Body Paragraph 1S1 – Provides and incomeE1 – Able to go out with friendE1 – Able to buy clothingS1 – Avoid running to parents for money

Body Paragraph 2S2 – Increases independenceE2 – Self-sufficient, maturityE2 – Learn about commitment, don’t let employers downS2 – Responsibility, accomplishment

Body Paragraph 3S3 – Provides Work ExperienceE3 – Resume, 2 people fighting over a job person with experience will get the jobE3 – Learn about like, dislikes about jobsS3 – People skills

Sample Answers

Let’s look at some samples of student responses based on the Topic Development Rubric /60 marks.

Remember an additional /40 marks is based on the Conventions Rubric (spelling grammar etc.) … we are just looking at topic development.

CODE 50

Before we look at a perfect Code 60, let’s revisit the Rough Notes made earlier

Topic: Is it a good idea for high school students to have a part-time job? Rough Notes

AGREE

S1 – IncomeE1 – Out with friendE1 – ClothingS1 – Avoid running to parents

S2 – IndependenceE2 – Self-sufficient, maturityE2 – Commitment, don’t let employers downS2 – Responsibility, accomplishment

S3 – Work ExperienceE3 – Resume, 2 people fighting over a jobE3 – Like, dislikes about jobsS3 – People skills

CODE 60

Student Activity #1: Write a series of paragraphs

•1) Turn to page 7 of the Booklet 2 QUESTIONS on page 2. Write your response in the Booklet 2 ANSWERS book on pages 2-4.

•OR

•2) Choose one of the questions below and write a response.

• Are today’s famous people good role models for young people?

• Should the sale of “junk foods” be banned from Ontario secondary schools?

• Should school uniforms be mandatory at the secondary level?

• Should joining a club or team be mandatory at the secondary level?

• Should Physical Education classes be mandatory for all four years of high school?

•When you are finished self and/or peer edit your work using the rubric provided.

Student Activity #2: Additional Practice

This is the last OSSLT prep lesson. You will notice that Booklet 2 has additional questions that we did not complete during our lessons. We encourage you to work on these questions at home.

You can find the answers to these questions on the school website by selecting the Literacy Resources link.

Thank you for your attention and participation!

If you would like a copy of this PowerPoint you can visit www.bcssonline.com for all the materials used for each OSSLT preparation lesson. Select the “Literacy Resources” link on the right.