STAAR Writing Strategies

Which part of the prompt should you focus on when writing my essay?

• The "READ" statement

• The "THINK" statement

• The "WRITE an essay" statement

• None of these, write about whatever you want

Can I skip the outline in Pre-writing #2?

• Sure - no one needs a plan when they write

• No - organizing your ideas is important to writing a good essay

• Always - it is a waste of time, I'm too smart to need it

• Outlines are for babies

What are the parts of an introduction?

• Hook, Reasons, Topic Sentences

• Hook, Bridge, Controlling Idea

• Controlling Idea and restated Controlling Idea

• I do not need an introduction

What kind of support do I need for my reasons?

• Support is not important, forget about it

• A nice fluffy pillow for my aching head

• My best friends will support me through thick and thin

• Specific, Concrete and relevant examples that support your controlling idea

What is the effect of using a rhetorical question in writing?

• To provide the reader with specific information

• To persuade the reader by appealing to their emotions

• To engage the reader by prompting them to think about the topic

• To confuse the reader by introducing unrelated topics

What is the main purpose of using transition words in writing?

• To confuse the reader

• To add more details to the text

• To connect ideas smoothly

• To end a paragraph

What is the best strategy for organizing a persuasive essay?

• Presenting the strongest argument first

• Saving the strongest argument for last

• Mixing strong and weak arguments throughout

• Only using emotional appeals

How many times should you read the STAAR prompt?

• none -- wing it

• as many times as needed

• once

• four times

What is the purpose of a thesis statement in an essay?

• To summarize the conclusion

• To list the sources used

• To outline the main argument or claim

• To provide a detailed description of the topic

In writing, what is the purpose of using transition words or phrases?

• To confuse the reader

• To create a visual image

• To connect ideas smoothly

• To introduce a new topic