How to Conquer the 5 th Grade Writing Test

1. How to Conquer the 5th Grade Writing Test By Mountain Park 5th Grade Teachers

2. Ideas • Stick to the topic and develop a main idea. • Include descriptive, supporting details. • Add personal experiences and/or examples about the topic. • Write enough! An essay or story should be no less than 1 ½ pages, or it may be considered too short to score.

3. Organization • The lead must grab the reader’s attention and introduce the topic or begin the story. • Write in paragraphs, sequenced with the most important idea first for informational or persuasive. Events must be sequenced in time order in narrative writing. • Transition smoothly and creatively from one idea or event to the next. • Write an effective ending that does not repeat ideas and gives the audience a sense of closure.

4. Style • Sentence Variety – Use different length sentences; include a mixture of declarative, interrogative, imperative, and exclamatory sentences; use simple, compound, and complex sentences. • Voice- Pay attention to the audience by writing as if the student is speaking, like a conversation with the reader. Individual personalities should shine through! • Word Choice – Use higher level vocabulary that is exact and engaging (“hundred dollar” words, awesome adjectives, vivid verbs, etc.). Include figurative and/or technical language.

5. Conventions • Sentence Structure- no sentence fragments or run-ons! • Punctuation – end punctuation is the most important, but also quotation marks, commas, etc. • Grammar- subject/verb agreement, usage • Spelling- grade level words should be spelled correctly, but it is more important for students to include higher level vocabulary (even if it is not spelled correctly!)

6. For more information… Visit the Georgia Department of Education website http://www.gadoe.org/

7. See you at the Saturday Writing Extravaganzas!