Activities

1. Given a well-written essay and claim, identify the key words in the claim.  Highlight the number of times the key words or their synonyms are used throughout the essay.
   
   
2. Given an informative text, write several claims that can be defended.

3. Given a claim and informative text, identify evidence that would support the claim.
   
   
4. Outline the key ideas from a given informative text/opinion piece, demonstrating an understanding of the text.

5. Given stated information from the informative text, make logical inferences.  Explain how inferences were made.
   
   
6. Given an informative text and a claim, write two or more well-developed paragraphs.  Use relevant evidence from the text to support claims, opinions and inferences, showing a thorough understanding of the informative text.

Answer Key/Rubric

1. Given a well-written essay and claim, student identifies the key words in the claim.  Student correctly identifies key words in the claim.  Student highlights the number of times the key words or synonyms are used throughout the essay.  Student accurately counts the number of times key words or synonymous words from the claim are used.  Student understands that key words in the claim should be used throughout the essay as opinions, examples and explanations are given.  Using key words throughout the essay ensures the author stays on topic and gives cohesiveness or unity to the essay. 

2. Given an informative text, student writes several claims that can be defended.  Student closely reads text.  Student writes several claims correctly.  Student understands:

• Claims are one sentence.
• Claims are declarative, make a statement, or declare something.
• Claims state an opinion.
• Claims are short and concise.
• Claims can be defended or supported with evidence.
• Claims are an opinion statement without the words, “I think” or “I feel”.

3. Given a claim and informative text, student identifies evidence that would support the claim.  Student closely reads the text.  Student identifies and highlights evidence that is relevant.    Relevance means the evidence connects to the claim, has significance and is helpful in proving the claim’s assertion.  Evidence is copied correctly, in quotations marks and written verbatim.

4. Outline the key ideas from a given informative text/opinion piece, demonstrating an understanding of the text.  Student makes an outline of key ideas from text.  Key ideas are noted and complete.  No key ideas are excluded.  Student understands the most important ideas will be well-developed with evidence and examples.  Student understands there may be a key idea in every paragraph or section and the section subtitles signal that a key idea is found here.  The key idea is often reflected in the subtitle’s name or heading. 

5. Given stated information from the informative text, student makes logical inferences.  Student explains how inferences were made.  Student makes logical inferences based on the stated information given.  Student understands that if only stated information is used, there will not be enough “student thinking” included to fully explain and develop ideas.  If only stated information is used, then the essay is only a restatement of the original article.  Student thinking needs to be included to support the assertions being made from evidence.  Student understands that when explaining why evidence was used to support the claim, inferences must be made and used to adequately explain the significance of the evidence.  Student understands to make an inference they must take the author’s information and combine it with what they already know about the world to come up with a logical, new idea that is not directly stated in the text. Student makes logical inferences from the stated information given and explains how he came to make the inference.  For example, “The woman put her pearls on as she dressed for the opera.”  The student may infer the women has money and/or is well-educated.  He/she explains he/she made the inference in the following way:  The woman is rich or well-off because pearls are expensive. 

6. Given an informative text and a claim, write two or more well-developed body paragraphs.  Use relevant evidence from the text to support claims, opinions and inferences, showing a thorough understanding of the informative text. 

• Student writes two or more well-developed paragraphs that contain evidence, opinions, inferences and other types of support for the claim. 
• Student’s selection of textual evidence shows an understanding of the text.  Student chooses evidence that is relevant and supports the claim.  Relevance means the evidence connects to the claim, has significance and is helpful in proving the claim’s assertion. 
• Evidence is copied correctly, in quotations marks and written verbatim. 
• Student provides an adequate amount of evidence, inferences and “student thinking” that support the claim so that the paragraph is well-developed.  “Student thinking” or student analysis should be multiple sentences in length and should account for most of the paper.
• Student connects ideas with appropriate transition words. 
• Each paragraph should be organized in some fashion such as the following:
  
  Paragraph 1 -      an example that supports the claim, written as a topic sentence
                              textual evidence that backs up the topic sentence/example 1 and claim
                             “student thinking” or analysis that explains how the evidence supports the claim
  Paragraph 2-       a second example that supports the claim, written as a topic sentence                    
                              textual evidence that backs up the topic sentence/example 2 and claim
                              “student thinking” or analysis that explains how the evidence supports the claim