Writing Test Review

1. Writing Test Review Ernest Hemingway, when asked what was the most frightening thing he ever encountered, answered: "A blank sheet of paper."

2. Planning Guidelines • As soon as you get your blank paper, fold it into your graphic organizer and label each box. • The prompt will be read twice, so highlight the instructions in the prompt the first time and listen to all of the quotes. The second time, pick out your two to three quotes and highlight them. • Make sure you understand what the topic is and that you address all parts of the prompt when planning. • Use the information given to you in the quotations to create your points in the essay. Consider who is saying the quotes and the differing points of view. • Do not take more than 25 minutes to plan as it is essential that you spend more time writing and editing your essay.

3. Definition Essay Guidelines -A definition prompt will ask you to explore the different meanings of a concept, word, or idea, i.e.: the meaning of love -For each of your examples, think of unique ideas that help to give different views of the concept (i.e.: friendship love, family love, religious love, romantic love, patriotic love) -It is the easiest to use something you have read with a definition prompt, but if you can’t think of something that you have read to go along with the topic, give two personal examples or two observations. -It is a good idea to use the definition of the concept, word, or idea somewhere in your essay to show that you are focused on the meaning and understand it.

4. Cause and Effect Essay Guidelines -All former Writing Test prompts have only asked students to analyze the effects of a concept, but you can still write about the causes of the issue as well. -When writing about the effects of an issue, you can either write about the positive or negative effects stemming from the issue, or you can write about both positive and negative effects, if both types of effects exist. -Depending on the topic, it may be harder to incorporate a pieced of literature into this type of essay. DON’T PANIC if this happens. Just give two personal experiences or two observations!

5. Introduction Guidelines • Introductions give the reader a first impression of you and your writing, so impress the reader with the first sentence by using a hook: (story, question, quote, startling statement, definition). • There must be a link between your hook and your thesis, some way of explaining the significance of your hook. If it is a quote, you need to identify the source by weaving the name into the link sentence. • Your thesis must state what you are going to prove in your paper with your examples and usually goes at the end of the introduction. Do not say “In this article, I will write about…” • Don’t take up too much space with your introduction, as it shouldn’t be longer than your body paragraphs.

6. Example Introduction Imagine soaring high above in the clouds, flying across America. At a glance you observe millions of people expressing all types of cultures and diversity, this is due to human rights. When our founding fathers created this wonderful homeland, human rights was a huge factor that they wished to mold into our country. Over the years human rights have helped to transform America, and make it what it is today. The meaning of human rights being able to express ones individuality, standing up for what is right, and having the freedom to live life the way that you want to.

7. Example Conclusion: Undeniably, human rights have a major role in our everyday lives. Human rights allow us to share our individuality with the world, stand up for what we believe in, and live life the way that we want to. Without human rights we could not express ourselves and that could keep many of us from reaching our ultimate potential. Human rights have helped to create the society that we live in today, and will help to better our future. Human rights, means having the freedom to be who you are, and that is what this country is all about. Essay Score: 12

8. Example Introduction Human rights are natural, granted to every person in the world regardless of the many differences that separate cultures. Human rights are simply rights given to all people because they are human. A right, defined by Mr. Webster, is “that which is just, legal, morally good, or appropriate.” There are many places in our lives that create hostile environments of hate and inequality between people that are different. It’s important to realize that everyone is equal on the human rights level; it doesn’t matter how different we seem because truly we all have the same foundation.

9. Example Conclusion: Human rights apply to everyone in the world, regardless of race, gender, or religion. Being skeptical of people different from you causes more harm that good. If you never reach out, you might never get to experience a new way of thinking from a new culture. Nelson Mandela explains that “…the normal condition for human existence is democracy, justice, peace, non-racism, non-sexism, prosperity for everybody, a healthy environment and quality and solidarity among the peoples.” After living in this chaotic world for so long, Mandela’s ideal world seems far off. However, with all the new technology and development of our generation, you never know what we may do next! Essay Score: 16

10. Example Introduction The night is warm and dry with a slight breeze, it feels as if God has rapped a blanket over Northern Iraq and every once and a while cool air is coming through the sheets. A beautiful young girl lays her ebony curls on the sand and looks up at the millions of stars, like nightlights in the sky. She daydreams about becoming an astronaut and soring through the night sky some day. She has her eye on one star that is brighter than all the others, it seems to be moving closer to her. She closes her eyes and makes a wish. When she opens them she is met by an extravagant explosion, and just like that, her dreams are gone. This was a depiction of the bombing of the Kurds in the late 1980s and 1990s. Saddam Hussein took away these people’s basic human rights of freedom of life, liberty, and happiness, by not allowing them to be free and murdering almost the entire race.

11. Example Conclusion John Locke said, “Everyone is entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Those things are considered the basic human rights because without those mankind would not exist, at least it wouldn’t be worth living for. If everyone was given their rights then that beautiful Kurdish girl with hair like ebony showing in the moonlight might have been an astronaut some day. Ruth Solomon might have had a good long life in Israel with generations of children. Human rights are defined by that girl’s dreams, young Ruth’s life, and our own personal happiness, because that is what we live for. Essay Score: 20

12. Twenty Questions on the Writing Test • How many minutes do you get for the Writing Test? • What is the most amount of time you should spend on planning for the Writing Test? • How many quotes minimum should you highlight on the prompt? • Where can you find the definition of the term you have to write about? • What are the two types of prompts the writers can choose from? • Where does your thesis statement go in your introduction? • Which paragraph is the only one in which you should use first or second person? • What is the name of the sentence at the end of each of your body paragraphs that should link the current paragraph and the upcoming paragraph?

13. Twenty Questions on the Writing Test 9. How many scorers will read your essay? 10. What is the lowest passing score out of 20? 11. What score do you have to get out of 20 to get a level 4? 12. What are two types of things you should include in your essay to get the higher score? 13. How many pages do you have to write your essay? 14. Who wrote My Forbidden Face? 15. Alexandre Dumas wrote which book? 16. Who wrote The Power of One? 17. During which years did the Holocaust take place? 18. What does the word “Apartheid” mean? 19. During what years did the Taliban rule in Afghanistan? 20. Who wrote “The Veldt”?