TEACHING WRITING: Persuasive Text

1. TEACHING WRITING: Persuasive Text Curriculum Team CSO

2. 2011 NAPLAN Writing “In the 2011 NAPLAN Writing test, students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 will write a persuasive text. Persuasive writing is writing in which the writer needs to convince someone of his or her point of view or opinion. For example, a student may be asked whether reading books or watching TV is better. The student would present his or her opinion on this topic and would include reasons for that opinion. In writing this way, the student is attempting to persuade the reader to agree with his or her opinion.” http://www.naplan.edu.au/verve/_resources/NAPLAN_2011_Writing_Fact_Sheet.pdf

3. Persuasive writing • The topic and task will be the same for Years 3 5 7 and 9 • It will be marked in a way that closely resembles narrative writing as there is common criteria

4. Talking & listening • Reading • Writing

5. “In the literate citizen…..all these repertoires are variously mixed and orchestrated in proficient reading and writing, speaking and listening, viewing and representing” Luke and Freebody 1999

6. Note Whenever the word text is used it includes written, visual, oral/aural, digital and multimodal texts

7. Persuasive vs Narrative • persuasive writing assesses rhetorical techniques (writer’s viewpoint) • narrative writing assesses the development of character and setting.

8. *Text types / Purpose

9. Activity • Task cards

10. What do we ask of our students? Middle class Anglo Saxon English The language of POWER

11. Structure Exposition • State thesis or position: • Write a series of paragraphs to argue the position: • Sum up, restate the position or provide a recommendation:

12. Grammar-Exposition • General nouns ears zoos • Abstract nouns policy government • Technical words species of animals • Relating verbs It is important • Action verbs We must save • Thinking verbs Many people believe • Modal verbs We must preserve • Modal adverbs Certainly we must try • Connectives firstly secondly • Evaluative language important significant

13. Structure - Discussion • State the issue: • A series of paragraphs to argue for the issue: • A series of paragraphs to argue against the issue: • Concludes by summing up or providing a recommendation:

14. Grammar - Discussion • General nouns uniforms alcohol • Relating verbs is are have • Thinking verbs feel believe hope • Connectives • Additive similarly • Contrastive on the other hand • Causal however • Noun groups unwanted kittens • Modality perhaps must should may • Adverbs of manner deliberately hopefully

15. Structure_Personal Response • Context for the response: • Writes an opinion or reaction:

16. Grammar – Personal Response • All types of verbs • Noun groups describing characters • Present tense • Past tense if historical setting • Temporal sequence of events • Persuasive language used in judgement • Clause or sentence themes that are often title of the book. Author

17. Structure - Review • Context – giving information about author, work, setting and summary: • Paragraphs describing main characters, relationships and theme of text: • Judgement by evaluating the work giving opinion or recommendation:

18. Grammar - Review • As per Response • NB. Students are encouraged to speak and write Personal responses in Stage 1. By stages 2 and 3, students should be speaking and writing reviews

19. Language features / Grammar • Opinion adjective • Generalised nouns • Words that qualify-usually, probably, some, most • Connectives also, another reason, as well, however, therefore • Thinking & feeling verbs • Emotive language-hero, champion, bloodshed, disaster • Adjectives (modal) • Evaluative language • conjunctions

20. Persuasive Texts-Criteria • Audience • The writer’s capacity to orient, engage and persuade the reader • Text structure • The organisation of the structural components of a persuasive text (introduction, body and conclusion) into an appropriate and effective text structure

21. Ideas • The creation, selection and crafting of ideas for a persuasive argument • Persuasive devices • The use of a range of persuasive devices to enhance the writer’s position and persuade the reader

22. Vocabulary • The range and precision of language choices • Cohesion • The control of multiple threads and relationships over the whole text, achieved through the use of referring words, substitutions, word associations and text connectives

23. Paragraphing • The segmenting of text into paragraphs that assists the reader to follow the line of argument • Sentence structure • The production of grammatically correct, structurally sound and meaningful sentences

24. Punctuation • The use of correct and appropriate punctuation to aid the reading of the text • Spelling • The accuracy of spelling and the difficulty of the words used

25. Activity • Assisting students in improving their writing

26. Sample Task • http://www.naplan.edu.au/verve/_resources/persuasive_prompt.pdf

27. Useful websites • http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/student-interactives/persuasion-30034.html • http://www.writingfun.com/writingfun2010.html

28. Exploring the Modules What is the expectation for each stage?