Exemplars for Teaching Writing

Annette Smith and Patricia Ciuffetelli

Information Report

Recount

Explanation

Exposition

Discussion

Description

Procedure

Narrative

PM Writing Exemplar Big Books 4 (750 x 522mm) CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

Response

IWBCD-ROM inside

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SAMPLE PAGES

Canada’s Learning Advantage

In

forM

AtIon rEPort

an inland taipan

Page 16

Venomous snakes are found all over the world. They are reptiles that kill or immobilize their prey by releasing a poisonous liquid called venom when they bite.

The world’s most venomous snake, the inland taipan, is found in rural Australia. It is recognized by its brown scales, cream-coloured belly and long pointed head with prominent eyes. It can grow up to three metres in length. Scientists have tested the inland taipan’s venom. They found there is enough poison in one bite to kill several people; although attacks on humans rarely occur.

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2

Key Feature Text presentation

a prairie rattlesnake

Page 17

Information Report

In the USA, one of the deadliest venomous snakes is the prairie rattlesnake. A distinct feature of this rattlesnake is the scales at the end of its tail. When threatened, the rattlesnake shakes its tail violently to produce a rattling sound. The venom released during an attack can cause serious injury to the victim’s skin and muscles near the bite area. However, only a small number of people die each year from prairie rattlesnake bites.

Both the inland taipan and prairie rattlesnake use venom to immobilize their prey. Although they can be dangerous, very few people have been killed by these venomous snakes.

Purpose: To present information that classifi es living or non-living things

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3

Key Feature

Text type and purpose

Page 18

Text StructureInformation Report

Venomous snakes are found all over the world. They are reptiles that kill or immobilize their prey by releasing a poisonous liquid called venom when they bite.

The world’s most venomous snake, the inland taipan, is found in rural Australia. It is recognized by its brown scales, cream-coloured belly and long pointed head with prominent eyes. It can grow up to three metres in length. Scientists have tested the inland taipan’s venom. They found there is enough poison in one bite to kill several people; although attacks on humans rarely occur.

Gen

eral

Sta

tem

ent

Des

crip

tion

Title

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4

Key Feature

Text type identifier

Key Feature

Text structure highlighted

Teacher Focus

Page 19

In the USA, one of the deadliest venomous snakes is the prairie rattlesnake. A distinct feature of this rattlesnake is the scales at the end of its tail. When threatened, the rattlesnake shakes its tail violently to produce a rattling sound. The venom released during an attack can cause serious injury to the victim’s skin and muscles near the bite area. However, only a small number of people die each year from prairie rattlesnake bites.

Both the inland taipan and prairie rattlesnake use venom to immobilize their prey. Although they can be dangerous, very few people have been killed by these venomous snakes.

• Reinforce the importance of a concise title that identifi es the subject of the report.• Identify the general statement, which introduces and classifi es the subject of the report.

• Discuss the paragraphs of description that provide information about venomous snakes. Ask the students to identify the topic sentence in each paragraph.

• Draw students’ attention to the way in which the author has summarized and evaluated information in the report.For more explicit teaching strategies, refer to Section 7 of PM Writing Teachers’ Resource Book 4.

Eval

uatio

nD

escr

iptio

n

General StatementWhat living or non-living thing is the subject of this information report?

DescriptionWhat do they look like? Where are they found?How do they behave?

EvaluationHow has the writer summed up the information?

Title

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5

Key Feature

Teacher focus points

Page 20

Language FeaturesInformation Report

Venomous snakes are found all over the world. They are reptiles that kill or immobilize their prey by releasing a poisonous liquid called venom when they bite.

The world’s most venomous snake, the inland taipan, is found in rural Australia. It is recognized by its brown scales, cream-coloured belly and long pointed head with prominent eyes. It can grow up to three metres in length. Scientists have tested the inland taipan’s venom. They found there is enough poison in one bite to kill several people; although attacks on humans rarely occur.

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6

Key Feature

Text type identifier

Key Feature

Language features highlighted

Teacher Focus

Page 21

• Locate and group the nouns under the headings People, Places and Things. Note the use of technical nouns that link specifi cally with the subject.

• Draw students’ attention to the use of the pronouns they and it to refer to the class of snakes or an individual species.

• Revise the purpose of adjectives to provide descriptions of nouns. Identify factual, quantitative, comparative and classifying adjectives in the text.

• Locate the adverbs and adverbial phrases used in the text. Demonstrate how the meaning of the text becomes much clearer when information about how, when, where or why is added.

For more explicit teaching strategies, refer to Section 7 of PM Writing Teachers’ Resource Book 4.

For coding rationale, refer to Section 5 of PM Writing Teachers’ Resource Book 4.

In the USA, one of the deadliest venomous snakes is the prairie rattlesnake. A distinct feature of this rattlesnake is the scales at the end of its tail. When threatened, the rattlesnake shakes its tail violently to produce a rattling sound. The venom released during an attack can cause serious injury to the victim’s skin and muscles near the bite area. However, only a small number of people die each year from prairie rattlesnake bites.

Both the inland taipan and prairie rattlesnake use venom to immobilize their prey. Although they can be dangerous, very few people have been killed by these venomous snakes.

Nouns

Adjectives

Present tense verbs

Adverbs

Adverbial phrases

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7

Key Feature

Teacher focus points

The PM Writing Exemplars for Teaching Writing are Big Books designed to help teachers model

the conventions of written language in whole-class and small-group sessions. The books provide

the initial introduction to each text type, presenting and deconstructing exemplars of the eight

text types taught across the primary grades.

The Exemplars for Teaching Writing form the start of the PM Writing suggested teaching

pathways. The material presented in these books is reinforced through use of the Interactive

Writing Pro Formas and Student Assessment and Activity Pages located in the back of each

Teachers’ Resource.

TEXT TYPE

Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 3 Grade 3 Grade 4 Grade 4

TAUGHT EXPOSED TAUGHT EXPOSED TAUGHT EXPOSED TAUGHT EXPOSED

Recount . . . . . . . .Description . . . . . . . .Information Report . . . . . . . .Narrative . . . . . . . .Procedure . . . . . . .Exposition (Persuasive) . . . . . . .Explanation . . . . . .Discussion . . . . . .

Text types in PM Writing

Throughout the Exemplars for

Teaching Writing (and all other

PM Writing components) students

are gradually introduced to and

scaffolded through eight key

text types: Recount, Description,

Information Report, Narrative,

Procedure, Exposition, Explanation,

and Discussion.

Page 2 Page 3

Recount

This morning, I did lots of things to help my mom at home.

First, I got dressed and I made my bed.

Then, I put my clean clothes in the big dresser. I put my toys away, too.

Next, I went into the kitchen and I fed the cat.

After I had my breakfast, I got ready for school. I put my lunch and my books in my bag.

Mom was very pleased with me. I liked helping her.

Helping MomPurpose: To retell and evaluate events and experiences

Teacher Focus

Page 4 Page �

Text Structure

Title

Seq

uenc

e o

f Ev

ents

Recount

Seq

uenc

e o

f Ev

ents

Orie

ntat

ion

Pers

ona

l Co

mm

ent

Focus students’ attention on the text structure by asking the following questions:Title: What is the title of this recount? How does it tell us what the recount is about?

Orientation: Where in the text does it tell us when the events happened, who was there, and where the events happened?

Sequence of Events: Where in the text does it tell us what happened First … Then … Next … After that …? Which words ordered the events?

Personal Comment: Where in the text does it tell us how the boy felt after he had helped his mom?

This morning, I did lots of things to help my mom at home.

First, I got dressed and I made my bed.

Then, I put my clean clothes in the big dresser. I put my toys away, too.

Next, I went into the kitchen and I fed the cat.

After I had my breakfast, I got ready for school. I put my lunch and my books in my bag.

Mom was very pleased with me. I liked helping her.

Helping Mom

OrientationWhen? Who? Where?

Sequence of EventsWhat happened?

Personal CommentHow did the events make the writer feel?

Title

Teacher Focus

Page 6 Page �

Language FeaturesRecount

This morning, I did lots of things to help my mom at home.

First , I got dressed and I made my bed .

Then, I put my clean clothes in the big dresser . I put my toys away, too.

Next , I went into the kitchen and I fed the cat.

After I had my breakfast, I got ready for school. I put my lunch and my books in my bag.

Mom was very pleased with me. I liked helping her.

Helping Mom

Focus students’ attention on the specific language features of the text:• Identify the nouns. Separate them into groups under the headings People, Places or Things.

• Identify the past tense verbs. Talk about why they are used in a recount.• Identify the time and sequence words. Talk about how they order events in the sequence in which they

hapened.

Nouns

Past tense verbs

Time and sequence words

First spread – text presentation. Second spread – the text structure of the text type is

deconstucted using colour-coding. Teacher Focus notes

are provided at the top right-hand side of the spread,

highlighting key teaching points and questions.

Third spread – selected language features of the text

type are highlighted. Teacher Focus notes are provided

at the top right-hand side of the spread, highlighting key

teaching points and questions.

Exemplars for Teaching Writing

Each of the exemplar texts is presented over three double-page spreads:

1120 Birchmount Road Toronto ON M1K 5G4

416 752 9448 or 1 800 268 2222 Fax 416 752 8101 or 1 800 430 4445

email: nelson.orderdesk@nelson.com www.nelson.com 9 780176 382087

ISBN-13 978-0-17-638208-7ISBN-10 0-17-638208-9

02/10

Recount

Explanation

Discussion

Description

Exemplars for Teaching Writing

Annette Smith and Beverley Randell

Exposition

Procedure

Narrative

Information Report

Please visit the Nelson Education website at:

www.nelson.com

or send e-mail to inquire@nelson.com

ISBN-10: 0-17-624000-4ISBN-13: 978-0-17-624000-4

PM Writing Interactive Writing Pro Formas

PM Writing Lesson Planner

PM Writing Teaching in Practice

•

•

•

Exemplars for Teaching Writing Book 1

• 18 Levelled Exemplar Texts (Levels 5–12)

•

Teachers’ Resource Book 1

•

PM Writing has been specifically developed for use in the primary grades. The PM Writing Exemplars for Teaching Writing introduce each text type taught within PM Writing, allowing teachers to model the conventions of written language in whole-class and small-group sessions.

Within the books, exemplars of the eight key text types taught in the primary grades are presented and deconstructed. Each text type exemplar is presented over three double-page spreads:

on the first spread, the text is presented for shared reading

on the second spread, the text structure is deconstructed

on the third spread, the key language features of the text are highlighted

Teacher Focus notes appear on each spread, featuring key teaching points and teacher talk related directly to the text structure and language features of the text type.

PM Writing components for Grade 1:

•

•

•

Exemplars for Teaching Writing

Annette Smith and Beverley Randell

Recount

Explanation

Exposition

Discussion

Description

Procedure

Narrative

Information Report

Please visit the Nelson Education website at:

www.nelson.com

or send e-mail to inquire@nelson.com

ISBN-10: 0-17-624001-2ISBN-13: 978-0-17-624001-1

PM Writing Interactive Writing Pro Formas

PM Writing Lesson Planner

PM Writing Teaching in Practice

•

•

•

Exemplars for Teaching Writing Book 2

• 18 Levelled Exemplar Texts (Levels 14–19)

•

Teachers’ Resource Book 2

•

PM Writing has been specifically developed for use in the primary grades. The PM Writing Exemplars for Teaching Writing introduce each text type taught within PM Writing, allowing teachers to model the conventions of written language in whole-class and small-group sessions.

Within the books, exemplars of the eight key text types taught in the primary grades are presented and deconstructed. Each text type exemplar is presented over three double-page spreads:

on the first spread, the text is presented for shared reading

on the second spread, the text structure is deconstructed

on the third spread, the key language features of the text are highlighted

Teacher Focus notes appear on each spread, featuring key teaching points and teacher talk related directly to the text structure and language features of the text type.

PM Writing components for Grade 2:

•

•

•

Exemplars for Teaching Writing

Patricia Ciuffetelli

Information Report

Recount

Explanation

Exposition

Discussion

Description

Procedure

Narrative

Please visit the Nelson Education website at:

www.nelson.com

or send e-mail to inquire@nelson.com

ISBN-10: 0-17-624002-0ISBN-13: 978-0-17-624002-8

PM Writing Interactive Writing Pro Formas

PM Writing Lesson Planner

PM Writing Teaching in Practice

•

•

•

Exemplars for Teaching Writing Book 3

• 18 Levelled Exemplar Texts (Levels 20–25)

•

Teachers’ Resource Book 3

•

PM Writing has been specifically developed for use in the primary grades. The PM Writing Exemplars for Teaching Writing introduce each text type taught within PM Writing, allowing teachers to model the conventions of written language in whole-class and small-group sessions.

Within the books, exemplars of the eight key text types taught in the primary grades are presented and deconstructed. Each text type exemplar is presented over three double-page spreads:

on the first spread, the text is presented for shared reading

on the second spread, the text structure is deconstructed

on the third spread, the key language features of the text are highlighted

Teacher Focus notes appear on each spread, featuring key teaching points and teacher talk related directly to the text structure and language features of the text type.

PM Writing components for Grade 3:

•

•

•

Kindergarten coming

Fall 2010!

Includes Interactive White Board Software!