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Style

Unit Plan

Style

Objectives

In this unit, students will work on developing their own style of writing. Students will:

  • sharpen their skills in word choice.
  • practice expressing themselves in a precise manner.
  • practice using a variety of sentence structures and sentence openings.
  • compose their own passages, imitating the models of noted authors.
  • maintain a portfolio of their work.
  • identify the characteristics of an effectively written passage.
  • respond to the writing of their classmates.
  • revise their own writing, applying what they have learned about effective writing.
  • evaluate their own writing, using a rubric.

Essential Questions

  • What role does writing play in our lives?
  • How do we develop into effective writers?
  • To what extent does the writing process contribute to the quality of the writing?

Related Unit and Lesson Plans

Related Materials & Resources

The possible inclusion of commercial websites below is not an implied endorsement of their products, which are not free, and are not required for this lesson plan.

The possible inclusion of commercial websites below is not an implied endorsement of their products, which are not free, and are not required for this unit.

  • Steering the Craft: Exercises and Discussions on Story Writing for the Lone Navigator or the Mutinous Crew by Ursula K. Le Guin. The Eighth Mountain Press, 1998. (an excellent handbook on the craft of writing)
  • The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr. and E.B. White. The Penguin Press, 2005. (the classic handbook for style, an excellent source for everyone who wishes to use language well)

Formative Assessment

  • View

    Short-Answer Item:

    Read the paragraph:

    The snow continued to fall in great, downy flakes, softening the outlines of every garbage-strewn alley and settling silently over the town like a vast feather comforter. So completely did it enfold the town and its inhabitants that no movement at all was visible; all of the peeling paint and rusting cars had disappeared from sight. For the moment, the scene was one of pristine perfection.

    Identify the tone of the paragraph and give evidence to support your choice.

    Short-Answer Key and Scoring Rubric:

    Points

    Description

    3

    Student responds to the prompt by

    • identifying the paragraph’s tone (admiring/ironic).
    • giving more than one piece of evidence to support the choice of tone (great downy flakes, softening, settling silently, like a vast comforter, pristine perfection/snow covers garbage-strewn alley, makes peeling paint and rusting cars disappear/turns a town with many imperfections into pristine perfection).

    2

    Student responds to the prompt by

    • identifying the paragraph’s tone (admiring/ironic).
    • giving at least one piece of evidence to support the choice of tone (great downy flakes, softening, settling silently, like a vast comforter, pristine perfection/snow covers garbage-strewn alley, makes peeling paint and rusting cars disappear/turns a town with many imperfections into pristine perfection).

    1

    Student responds to the prompt by

    • identifying the paragraph’s tone (admiring/ironic).

    0

    Student does not appear to identify the paragraph’s tone.

     


    Performance Assessment:

    The portfolio should include all assigned work and drafts of writing, including small-group work. Students should also complete all required drafts of their work, as well as any required responses to their writing from classmates. The description for the final grade should be accompanied by earlier drafts and responses, dated, as well as a completed evaluation rubric and a self-evaluation paragraph.

    Performance Assessment Scoring Rubric:

    Points

    Description

    6

    The student received credit for all six of the following requirements:

    • completing all daily work in the unit
    • participating regularly in class and group discussion
    • completing four required drafts of the original descriptive paper

    5

    The student received credit for five out of six of the requirements.

    4

    The student received credit for four out of six of the requirements.

    3

    The student received credit for three out of six of the requirements.

    2

    The student received credit for two out of six of the requirements.

    1

    The student received credit for one out of six of the requirements.

    0

    The student received credit for none of the requirements.

     

     

DRAFT 03/15/2012
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