Prompt Writing 101

Prompt Writing 101

Students will create writing prompts in order to develop proficiency in understanding prompts

RAMP

After you deconstruct the prompt and know what to do, it is time to RAMP up to writing.

What is RAMP?

-Role

-Audience

-Mode

-Purpose

-Role

The Role of the writer refers to the role that the student assumes as the actual writer himself/herself. Who are you as the writer?

Oftentimes students are writing as students, but at other times, they may be writing as a critic, member of a specific group, a reporter, group leader, another person, or even an inanimate object.

By identifying their specific role as a writer, students are able to make personal connections with their subject matter. Creating plans based on the identified viewpoint will encourage more authentic voice and style in their writing.

-Audience

Students should consider the Audience for whom the piece is being written. To whom is the student writing?

To make writing more authentic, teachers are encouraged to create real-world audiences for students to address in their work. For example, Anne Marie Olson at LeTourneau University has students “... imagine themselves trapped in the classroom after some natural disaster and needing to get information out to a variety of people (Red Cross or other help agencies, news sources, campus organizations, moms and dads, etc.). Groups of students draft brief messages to be sent out, and they share them to demonstrate how different the information and the language and tone are depending on the audience” (Olson, 2012).

 Some examples might include:

-writing to a peer (letters, notes, text messages, your blog readers),

-a teacher (you, another teacher, an anonymous teacher),

-other adults (community members, parents, a rapper, newspaper audience),

-or groups (scientists, hunters, test scorers, environmentalists).

In reality, the audience is an active participant in the rhetorical situation. After students identify their specific audience, they should consider this perspective as they plan their response.

-Mode

The Mode of writing refers to the rhetorical modes students are expected to produce to enable them to be college- and career-ready.

Within each mode (category) are a number of genres (formats or approaches to writing).

If students identify the rhetorical mode, then they will more easily be able to incorporate writing elements generally associated with each mode in their planning.

The three rhetorical modes are:

-Narrative: short story, novel, memoir, personal narrative, biography, autobiography, narrative poetry

-Expository: informational, opinion/support, compare/contrast, cause/effect, problem/solution, research reports, explanations, technical writing

-Argumentative: ads, public service announcements, editorials, personal commentary, persuasive writing, speeches

-Purpose

The Purpose of the writing may be directly stated in the writing prompt to be addressed or it may be implied.

Students should identify their purpose in order to more clearly define and plan their response.

Students may be able to identify their purpose by answering the question, “Why am I writing this?”

Examples of writing purposes

• to entertain (short stories or personal narratives), to explain (cause-and-effect or process papers)

• to inform (reports or summaries)

• to describe (descriptive papers or poems)

• to argue (speeches, essays, debates, research)

• to persuade (editorials or personal commentaries)

• to evaluate (lab reports, literary analysis)

• to solve a problem (problem/ solution essays).

Sample Prompt

In stories and novels authors show us a character’s personality and attitudes by what the character says, what the character does, and what other people say about him/her.

Choose one character from the novel and identify 1–2 traits that you believe to be true about this character and explain how you know that. Cite evidence that proves your thesis.

In stories and novels authors show us a character’s personality and attitudes by what the character says, what the character does, and what other people say about him/her.

Choose one character from the novel and identify 1–2 traits that you believe to be true about this character and explain how you know that. Cite evidence that proves your thesis.

• Role–The student is writing as the student themselves.

• Audience–The implied audience is the teacher and classmates

• Mode–The writer is writing in the expository mode.

• Purpose–The writer’s purpose for this literacy analysis is to inform and explain.

Open Ended

Many Schools in America are struggling with the question of whether students should wear uniforms or not. Do you think students should wear uniforms? Write an editorial supporting your view for the local newspaper.

Identify the RAMP for this prompt.

Open Ended

Reality television has become a popular pastime in American culture. Write a proposal for a new idea for a reality television show that you would send to a particular network. Remember you must account for the safety of the participants, and they must not be humiliated on television.

Identify the RAMP for this prompt.

Elements of a Well-Written Prompt

• Sentence 1: A declarative sentence that makes a generalization about a particular topic or subject matter.

• Sentence 2: An imperative sentence that asks students to make a personal response to the subject matter identified. OR an interrogative sentence that gives students a question to answer.

• Sentence 3: Any specific directions about the mode of writing expected, the length, or any qualifiers.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Create your own writing prompt on one of the topics provided incorporating the necessary elements, RAMP considerations, and key vocabulary.