The Nova Scotia Writing Exemplars, Grades One to Eight Project Writing Exemplars: Spring Writing Task Grade 7 An Advertisement for a New Food Product Instructions for the Teacher Nova Scotia Department of Education, 2006. Queen s Printer for Ontario, 1999. Reproduced and adapted with permission.
Description of the Task The student will write an article for a food magazine describing a new and exciting food product. The composition will follow an essay format and will persuade readers/potential consumers of the value of this product. Curriculum Expectations This task requires that students use the writing process as described in Nova Scotia English Language Arts documents. Overall Expectations By the end of Grade 7, students will experiment with a range of strategies (brainstorming, sketching, freewriting) to extend and explore learning, to reflect on their own and others= ideas, and to identify problems and consider solutions become aware of and describe the writing strategies that help them learn; express an understanding of their personal growth as language learners and language users understand that note-making is purposeful and has many purposes (e.g., personal use, gathering information for an assignment, recording what has happened and what others have said) and many forms, (e.g., lists, summaries, observations, and descriptions) demonstrate an ability to integrate interesting effects in imaginative writing and other forms of representation produce a range of writing forms, for example, stories, cartoons, journals, business and personal letters, speeches, reports, interviews, messages, poems, and advertisements recognize that a writer=s choice of form is influenced by both the writing purpose (to entertain, inform, request, record, describe) and the reader for whom the text is intended (e.g., understand how and why a note to a friend differs from a letter requesting information) demonstrate an understanding that ideas can be represented in more than one way and experiment with using other forms such as dialogue, posters, and advertisements develop the awareness that content, writing style, tone of voice, language choice, and text organization need to fit the reader and suit the reason for writing ask for reader feedback while writing and use this feedback when shaping subsequent drafts; consider self-generated drafts from a reader=s/viewer=s/listener=s point of view understand and use conventions for spelling familiar words correctly; rely on knowledge of spelling conventions to attempt difficult words; check for correctness; demonstrate control over most punctuation and standard grammatical structures in writing most of the time; use a variety of sentence patterns, vocabulary, and paragraph structures to aid effective written communication recognize and begin to use more often the specific prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, proofreading, and presentation strategies that most effectively help to produce various text acquire some exposure to the various technologies used for communicating to a variety of audiences for a range of purposes (videos, e-mail, word processing, audiotapes) demonstrate a commitment to crafting pieces of writing and other representations collect information from several sources (interviews, film, CD-ROMs, texts) and combine ideas in communication
Expectations in Specific Areas By the end of Grade 7, students will understand and use conventions for spelling familiar words correctly rely on knowledge of spelling conventions to attempt difficult words check for correctness demonstrate control over most punctuation and standard grammatical structures in writing most of the time use a variety of sentence patterns, vocabulary, and paragraph structures to aid effective written communication use modifiers correctly and with increasing effectiveness show a growing awareness of the expressiveness of words in their word choice Time/Materials Time Needed The teacher may wish to introduce the prewriting activities in an initial block of time, allow another block for the draft copy, and provide a further period of time for revising, editing, and publishing, as the class schedule permits. Materials Needed Teacher: chart paper, markers, cards naming specific consumer groups (e.g., parents of babies, athletes, seniors, teens, children, busy adults). Student: student worksheets, computer with Inspiration software, word processor, image editor such as iphoto, Image Blender, Photoshop Elements, or IrfanView, paint and draw software such as is included within the software Word; drawing materials, paper for drawing and writing, pencils, digital still camera, newspapers and magazines. Resources: wall charts (e.g., listing adjectives describing taste, smell, appearance, texture). Students should have their customary access to a dictionary, thesaurus, and the use of computers to do this writing task. Previous Learning Experiences Students performing this task would benefit from prior experience working with adjectives, adverbs, verbs and nouns so that they fully understand the function of each; writing descriptive paragraphs in the context of other subject areas (e.g., science, mathematics, history); process writing; using a dictionary and a thesaurus; discussing descriptive languages used in effective print and radio advertisements; using literary devices in descriptive writing; using a word processor, image editor, camera, paint and drawing tools including software tools; comparing their work to criteria outlined on task-specific scoring rubrics.
Instructions for the Teacher: General Instructions The times allocated for the student activities of prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing will vary. The student work is to be completed in its entirety at school. The stages of the writing process should be followed, but the student work should not be edited by the teacher, parent, or other adult. The Writing Task: Prewriting (approximately 50 80 The teacher introduces the purpose of writing. The students have been hired by a food manufacturer to design a new food product for a specific group of consumers. The teacher brainstorms with the students lists of adjectives for the categories of taste, smell, appearance, and texture. The teacher records the adjectives using the Inspiration template located in the Resources Section (Grade 7) of the Nova Scotia Writing Exemplars, Grades One to Eight website located at http://nswritingexemplars.ednet.ns.ca, or on a paper chart. Students identify and list descriptive phrases in advertisements, recipe books, newspapers, magazines, and so on. The teacher posts the lists of phrases and discusses with students, the literary devices such as onomatopoeia, similes, and metaphors. (approximately 70 120 The teacher organizes the students into groups and gives each group a card naming one consumer group. Students brainstorm the type of food that would be appropriate or appealing to that consumer group. They use the Planning Guide A Great Food from the Student Worksheets to organize their discussion. Students brainstorm possible names for their product and then decide on one. They then decide on appropriate packaging for the product and illustrate it. Students write a poem, a slogan, or a song to describe their food product and present it orally to the class. They use their illustration to reinforce the message. The teacher discusses with the class the effective words and phrases used by each group to describe the product. Drafting (approximately 30 40 The teacher introduces the task as follows: You have developed a new food product for a specific group of consumers. Develop an article for a food magazine that describes your product and convinces the readers of the value/benefits of the product. Students draft the article using their planner as a guide. Students may use a word processor or paper from the Student Worksheets. Revising (approximately 30 45 The teacher reviews with the students the criteria for a summary report. Teachers may use either one or both of the following methods: a) Rework the task-specific Scoring Rubric in the Resources
Section (Grade 7) of the Nova Scotia Student Writing Exemplars< Grades One to Eight website http://nswritingexemplars.ednet.ns.ca into student language with the students. b) Share and discuss the Revising and Editing Checklist with the students. Students use the Editing and Revising Checklist independently and then with a peer editor. (approximately 40 60 Publishing (approximately 40 60 Students make changes in their writing, using the suggestions from their peer editor. Students print out their revised, publishing copy or write their published copy on the paper provided in the student work sheets. Students should be encouraged to read over their published writing and check to make sure it is their best work. Student Reflection Students complete the Student Reflection sheet after they have written their final copy.