R.A.F.T.

1. R.A.F.T. Which of the following describes R.A.F.T.? A. A device that floats in the water B. An acronym for the parts of speech C. A useful tool that will allow you to get better grades D. A strategy for writing

2. R.A.F.T. R.A.F.T. stands for: • Role • Audience • Format • Topic So how can that help you?

3. R.A.F.T. The RAFT strategy forces you to process information, rather than merely write out answers to questions. So…..What exactly is it anyway?

4. R.A.F.T. R=role The role is who you are writing as. Is your role reporter? Observer? Eyewitness? Object? Etc.? Want an example?

5. R.A.F.T. Look at the following writing prompt. What would your role be as the writer? Write a letter to the editor of your local paper voicing your concern over the lack of after school activities for teenagers. Role=

6. R.A.F.T. If you said teenager, you were right.. That one was easy, let’s try a harder one. A famous athlete writes an autobiography. What is your role? Role=

7. R.A.F.T. Who is doing the writing? The famous athlete. Think you got it? Maybe one more? The local theater group puts on a play about a dragon with no wings. Role=

8. R.A.F.T. Your role in that example was the…. Local theater group Let’s move on to the next part which is audience. If you’re still unsure about the role, don’t worry. It will get easier with practice.

9. R.A.F.T. A=audience The audience is whoever will be doing the reading. Teacher, other students, parent,, editor, people in the community, etc. Want an example?

10. R.A.F.T. Your girlfriend’s father lectures her after coming home late about why she shouldn’t be dating you. Role? Audience? You’d be better off staying out of it altogether.

11. R.A.F.T. The audience is very important in writing. Let’s try another one. Joseph Stalin writes a letter to George Orwell about his reaction to Animal Farm. Audience=

12. R.A.F.T. F=format Format is how the writing is being presented. What FORM is it taking? A letter? Memo? Essay? Article? Report? Poem? Let’s look at the previous examples.

13. R.A.F.T. What is the format in the following prompt? Joseph Stalin writes a letter to George Orwell about his reaction to Animal Farm. Format=

14. R.A.F.T. Let’s try one more: Your girlfriend’s father lectures her after coming home late about why she shouldn’t be dating you. Format=

15. R.A.F.T. How is the message being delivered? Did you say a lecture? You’re right! The last strategy is T=topic The topic is the who or what (subject).

16. R.A.F.T. Again, let’s look at previous examples. Write a letter to the editor of your local paper voicing your concern over the lack of after school activities for teenagers. What is the topic?

17. R.A.F.T. The topic is what is being written about. In the previous example it was your concern over the lack of after school activities for teenagers.

18. R.A.F.T. Let’s try one more: Your girlfriend’s father lectures her after coming home late about why she shouldn’t be dating you. The topic is….

19. R.A.F.T. What was the dad lecturing about? Why she shouldn’t be dating you….

20. R.A.F.T. Now we’re going to take a little test. I’m going to show you a writing prompt and you need to identify the R.A.F.T. for each one. Ready? Let’s get started……..

21. R.A.F.T. The President of the United States will deliver a speech trying to convince the United Kingdom to join forces in the war against terrorism. R= A= F= T=

22. R.A.F.T. Your grandmother tells a story to the children at the local community center about when she was a little girl growing up during the great depression. R= A= F= T=

23. R.A.F.T. The citizens of China give a speech to the Emperor about allowing everyone to have a passport. R= A= F= T=

24. R.A.F.T. Chuck Norris gives a speech to the “bad guys” letting them know what will happen if they mess with him. R= A= F= T=

25. R.A.F.T. A caterpillar writes a biography describing his life to the world. R= A= F= T=