Activities

1. Given a list of various forms of specific writing, identify the audience.
   
   
2. Given several published pieces of writing, identify the author’s purpose.

3. Given various pieces of published writing, identify the author’s tone and identify the words and phrases that contribute to the tone.
   
   
4. Given various pieces of published writing, identify the author’s purpose, the audience, style of writing and author’s tone.

5. Given a piece of writing, edit the piece to change the tone of the writing.
   
   
6. Write an informative paragraph while maintaining consistency in style and tone.

Answer Key/Rubric

1. Given a list of various forms of specific writing, student identifies the audience.   Student understands that the author’s purpose for communicating and the author’s audience helps the author determine his style and tone for the writing piece.  Student understands he must know who he/she is writing for to maintain consistency in style and tone.  Student correctly identifies the audience members.  For example:

2. Given several published pieces of writing, student identifies the author’s purpose.  Student carefully reads each piece of writing.  Student identifies words, phrases and ideas used by the author that signal his purpose.  Student looks for key words, phrases or ideas that bring associations to mind indicating that the purpose is to entertain, inform, or persuade.  Student correctly names the author’s purpose.  Student understands that the author’s purpose for communicating and the author’s audience helps the author determine his/her style and tone for the writing piece.  For example, if the author is writing poetry for children and his purpose is to entertain, he/she will use a style suitable for children and will use a humorous tone, or if the author is writing an advertisement about a medical condition, he/she will use a formal style and a somber tone with words and phrases that persuade adults.  Student understands that writing style is the way something is written. Style is the author’s choice and arrangement of words and sentences.  This includes word choice, vocabulary and sentence patterns or structure.  Student understands the author’s tone is the way an author feels about a character, event or topic.  Student understands that tone is expressed through words and details the author includes in the text.
   
   
3. Given various pieces of published writing, student identifies the author’s tone and identifies the words and phrases that contribute to the tone.  Student correctly identifies the tone in all pieces of writing.  Student understands that tone is the way an author feels about a character, event or topic.  Student understands that tone is expressed through words and details the author includes in the text.  Student correctly identifies words or phrases that indicate the author’s tone.  Student understands that authors use tone to create the mood, or the feeling readers get from the text.   For example, a character might cheerfully talk about the, “fresh breeze.”  The tone is happy and upbeat.  Or the character might complain about the, “sharp, stinging wind.”  The tone is bitter.

4. Given various pieces of published writing, student identifies the author’s purpose, the audience, style of writing and author’s tone.   Student understands that the author’s purpose for communicating and the author’s audience helps the author determine his style and tone for the writing piece.  Student carefully reads writing pieces.  Student correctly identifies the author’s purpose.  Student understands that author’s purpose for communicating can be to inform, entertain or persuade.  Student correctly identifies the audience by asking:

• Who would be interested in reading this piece?
• Who does the author want to read this piece?
• Could there be more than one person or group interested in reading this piece?

     Student correctly states the style of writing.  Student decides if the writing is formal or informal.  Student
     understands:

• Informal language is often used with friends and family. 
• Informal writing may contain slang, contractions, phrasal verbs, abbreviations or lower level vocabulary. 
• Formal language is used at work, school, when writing essays, to demonstrate academic proficiency and so forth.
• Formal writing should not sound like a conversation.  In conversation, people speak and listen and can ask questions for clarification.  Formal writing must stand on its own and convey its ideas precisely by words alone.  It must be written differently than everyday speech. 
• Formal writing uses verbs that are fully written out, not written as contractions.  For example, do not, instead of don’t.
• Formal writing uses higher level or content-specific vocabulary.  For example, repair, instead of fix or children, instead of kids.
• Formal writing avoids phrasal verbs.  Phrasal verbs are verbs put together with prepositions or adverbs to create a new meaning, ran into, showed up, made up, fixed up, talked into, looked up, etc.  For example, increase, instead of go up or inquire instead of find out.

     Student understands that tone is the way an author feels about a character, event or topic.  Student understands that tone is expressed through words
     and details the author includes in the text.  Student correctly identifies words or phrases that indicate the author’s tone.  Student understands that
     authors use tone to create the mood, or the feeling readers get from the text.   For example, a character might cheerfully talk about the “fresh 
     breeze.”  The tone is happy and upbeat.  Or the character might complain about the “sharp, stinging wind.” The tone is bitter.  Student correctly
     identifies the author’s tone in all pieces of writing.     

5. Given a piece of writing, student changes the tone of the writing.  Student understands that tone is the way an author feels about a character, event or topic.  Student understands that tone is expressed through words and details the author includes in the text.  Student correctly identifies words or phrases that indicate the author’s tone.   Student uses a thesaurus to change words and phrases that will change the tone of the writing.  Student successfully changes the tone of the writing.  For example, My car may be on its last leg, but since I’ve owned it forever it has a special place in my heart (sentimental tone) to My car is a lemon. I’ve owned it forever and it’s given me nothing but misery which is why I can’t wait to replace it (annoyed or exasperated tone)! 

6. Write an informative paragraph while maintaining consistency in style and tone.  Student plans his informative paragraph.  Student understands that the author’s purpose for communicating and the author’s audience helps the author determine his style and tone for the writing piece.   Student identifies his purpose for writing as writing to inform.  Student identifies his audience.  Student uses his purpose and audience to determine his style and tone.  Student effectively maintains a consistent style and tone.   If student is writing an informative paragraph for family or friends he may adopt an informal style.  If student is writing for school or to demonstrate academic proficiency, he uses a formal style.   Student uses the same style consistently throughout the entire written piece.  Student understands:

• Informal writing may contain slang, contractions, phrasal verbs, abbreviations or lower level vocabulary. 
• Formal writing should not sound like a conversation.  In conversation, people speak and listen and can ask questions for clarification.  Formal writing must stand on its own and convey its ideas precisely by words alone.  It must be written differently than everyday speech. 
• Formal writing uses verbs that are fully written out, not written as contractions.  For example, do not, instead of don’t.
• Formal writing uses higher level or content-specific vocabulary.  For example, repair, instead of fix or children, instead of kids.
• Formal writing avoids phrasal verbs.  Phrasal verbs are verbs put together with prepositions or adverbs to create a new meaning, ran into, showed up, made up, fixed up, talked into, looked up, etc.  For example, increase, instead of go up or inquire instead of find out.

     Student correctly maintains the same tone throughout entire written piece.  Student understands that tone is the way an author feels about a
     character, event or topic.  Student understands that tone is expressed through words and details the author includes in the text.  Student correctly 
     uses words or phrases that indicate how he feels about the topic.  He does not change his tone during the written piece.  For example, if the words and
     phrases indicate he feels excited about the topic, the excitement is evident throughout the piece.

     Student understands an effective style for an informative piece usually uses a variety of sentences.  Student understands the elements within a
     simple, compound and complex sentence.   Student uses a variety of sentence.  Student understands:

• Simple Sentence- Is a complete thought.  Contains a subject and a predicate (verb).  It is an independent clause because it can stand by itself as a complete sentence.
  For example:  Mary ate the blueberries.   Mary = subject/noun, ate = predicate/verb
• Compound Sentence-Is a complete thought.  Contains two independent clauses that are joined by the coordinating conjunctions for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so.  These coordinating conjunctions are often referred to mnemonically as FANBOYS.  To coordinate means to bring into balance and the coordinating conjunction makes both independent clauses equally important.  This is why compound sentence conjunctions do not tell much about the relationship between the two independent clauses and therefore should not be overused.
  For example:  Mary ate the blueberries, and John ate the strawberries.
• Complex Sentence-Is a complete thought.  Contains an independent clause and one or more dependent clauses.  A dependent clause cannot stand alone as a sentence.  The independent and dependent clauses are joined by subordinating conjunctions such as:  after, although, as, as if, because, before, even though, if, in order that, once, provided, provided that, rather than, since, so that, than, that, though, unless, until, when, whenever, where, whereas, whether, which, while, why, etc.  These subordinating conjunctions provide a transition between the clauses and indicate time, place or a cause and effect relationship.  To subordinate means to make something less important.  Therefore, the independent clause in a complex sentence is more important than the dependent clauses.  This helps the writer produce clearer, more specific relationships when using complex sentences.
  For example:  Mary ate the blueberries after John ate the strawberries.