Essay Writing

Essay Writing

In preparation for Write Score

First Steps

When going to write an essay, your first step should be to read the prompt! The prompt will tell you not only what you are writing about, but also what you should look for in the text.

Language Arts

Wagner

Take notes on the text!

Whether you are using T Chart, a Venn Diagram, or Cornell Notes, it is important that you take notes on the text. By doing so, you will be able to find quotes to back up your claim as you read. This will save you tons of time!

Language Arts

Wagner

Open Ended

What style of notes do you like to use?

Analyzing the Text

When reading a text, be thinking about not only the topic, but what the author's claim is.

In the story we read about pitbulls, the topic was pitbulls, but the claim was that pitbulls should not be banned from cities.

Language Arts

Wagner

Multiple Choice

How many paragraphs should your essay be?

• 4

• 3

• As many as you want

• 6

Elaboration

Elaborating refers to the additional details that explain or further develop the evidence.

You could state, "I dislike Mondays," but elaborating on that would look like, "I dislike Mondays. My favorite day of the week is Friday, because it's close to the weekend, and Monday is my least favorite because it is furthest from the weekend. I enjoy weekends! I get to play video games with friends."

Language Arts

Wagner

Open Ended

Elaborate on this phrase, "Mrs. Wagner wants me to succeed on the Write Score."

Use your best reasoning to infer why I might want you to do well!

Multiple Choice

What is a claim?

• The claim is the topic of the essay.

• A claim is a statement that shares about the author's favorite things.

• A claim is evidence.

• A claim is a statement that conveys the author's position (their opinion on a debatable topic).

Multiple Choice

What is a counterclaim?

• The counterclaim is the claim the author makes.

• A counterclaim is a statement that opposes the original claim.

• A counterclaim is an argument that agrees with the author's claim.

• A counterclaim is a type of reasoning.

Open Ended

If an essay has multiple texts, should you use quotes from all the texts, or just one?

Multiple Choice

How many sentences should a paragraph be?

• 10

• 3-6

• 5-7

• 4