Blast off into Space … Crafts

1. Blast off into Space … Crafts At Clark, our writing comes straight from the heart

2. What Parents need to know about FCAT 2.0 Writing • The writing portion of The Florida Comprehensive Test is administered at grade levels 4, 8, and 10. • Students are asked to respond to an informational or narrative prompt. • Students are given 60 minutes to plan, write, and edit their work.

3. Students are scored on a scale of 0-6 using the FCAT scoring rubric. • If they do not pass FCAT Writing in 4th grade they are given a district version of the test called Hillsborough Writes in 5th grade. • At the elementary level, they must pass FCAT Writing or Hillsborough Writes in order to be promoted to 6th grade.

4. Scores The FCAT 2.0 anchor papers are the instruments used to score student’s writing. In order to pass, a child’s elaboration must be equivalent to a level 4 anchor paper. It is a guide we use, however your child’s writing is holistically scored. This means the writing is being scored for its overall quality. The four areas addressed are:

5. FOCUS • Is the writing focused on the Big/Main Idea? • If not, the writing is considered “unscorable” and given a score of 0.

6. What is the Big Idea?? • Everyone has jobs or chores. Before you begin writing, think about one of your jobs or chores. Now explain your jobs or chores. • Everyone has a favorite day of the week. Think about your favorite day of the week. Now write a story about your favorite day of the week.

7. Organization • Is it logical? • Does the essay include a beginning, middle, middle and end? • Are appropriate transitions used to relate ideas within and between paragraphs?

8. SUPPORT • Is the writing elaborated with ample writer’s craft? • Did you stick, stay and stretch on a moment, character, setting, action, etc.? • Does the writer demonstrate mature use of language? • All support must be plausible.

9. CONVENTIONS • Are commonly used words spelled correctly? • Does the writer demonstrate a knowledge of the rules of capitalization and punctuation? • Is the writing grammatically correct using appropriate subject/verb agreement and tenses. • Are various kinds of sentence structure used?

10. Elaboration or Extension?? Extension or Elaboration?? Extension or Elaboration?? Extension or Elaboration?? Extension or Elaboration?? Extension or Elaboration??

11. Support: Bare • Use of a detail or a simple list that focuses on events or reasons. • For example: I like to go to school because it is fun. -FLDOE, state report

12. Support: Extended • Use of information that begins to clarify meaning. • For example: I like to go to school because it is fun when the teacher allows us to do experiments with frogs. -FLDOE, state report

13. Support: Elaborated • Use of additional details, anecdotes, illustrations, and examples that further clarify the meaning. Information that answers the question, “What do you mean?” • For example: I like to go to school because it is fun when the teacher allows us to do experiments with frogs instead of just reading about frogs in books. Experiments allow us to have the fun of discovering for ourselves how far and how fast frogs can jump and what kinds of foods frogs like to eat. - FLDOE, state report

14. The Princess and the FrogBare Support When Tiana was a little girl, she loved to cook. “Food brings people together,” Tiana’s daddy always said. -page 2

15. The Princess and the FrogExtension Back at home. Tiana happily finished cooking dinner with her father, James. They dreamed of opening their own restaurant together someday. “This is the best gumbo I’ve ever tasted!” he declared. “A gift this special just has to be shared!” Soon the whole neighborhood gathered around their porch to enjoy the good food.

16. The Princess and the FrogElaboration See Book!!! Pages 13-14

17. Lewis Carroll’s Alice in WonderlandExtension Alice fell down, down, down the rabbit hole. She passed bookshelves, jars of jam, and maps. “I wonder how many miles I have fallen?” Alice asked aloud. “I wish my cat, Dinah, were here with me!” Thump! Alice landed on a pile of leaves. She saw the White Rabbit running down a long hall and she chased after him. But he turned a corner and disappeared.

18. Lewis Carroll’s Alice in WonderlandElaboration See Book!!! Page 8

19. 10 ways to set the “write” attitude 1. Write to your children. 2. Let your children see you write. 3. Write with your children. 4. Talk with your children before they write. 5. Encourage your young author to draw. • Encourage your children to take risks with writing. • Let your children know they have something to say. 8. Emphasize the fun of writing. 9. Listen to your children read their writings. 10. Read to your children.

20. Search for Crafts Sensory Details- using your senses to elaborate Specific Details- size, number, color, brand, temperature, etc Onomatopoeia- write the sound the word makes Similes- comparing 2 things using like or as Metaphor- comparing 2 things Personification- giving an inanimate object human qualities Purposeful Dialogue- using quotations to move the piece forward Vivid verbs-strong action words Color Words- using specific terms for color Dash- use to further explain or define Hyphenate to spell- S-P-E-L-L Ellipses- pausing; cliffhanger; takes place of unspoken words Sentence Variety- using different lengths of sentences Thought Shots-express what the writer is thinking Alliteration-series of words with the same beginning sound Purposeful Repetition- repeating words or phrases