The+Write+Stuff

In your life, you will want people to understand what you say verbally and in the written word. In your world of work, you'll create cover letters and resumes, write persuasive and summative reports, evaluations and requests. In your private world, you may blog or have a website, write to your local politician or write a letter of explanation to your insurance provider. All of these communications require you to write an organized and clearly stated document. In our classroom, we'll practice creating the Write Stuff for various audiences and purposes.

( **Role, Audience, Format, Topic) //Why:// The RAFT writing assignment gives you the freedom and creativity to explore various roles as author of your writing assignment and to target a specific audience for your document. We will use various formats, such as the different documents noted above, and by choosing a specific topic, you will be able to focus your writing on and in support of, a main idea. //How//: Choose a role (note: What authority does your position give you? Reflect that in your writing). **
 * R.A.F.T. **
 * = **Role** ||= **Audience** ||= **Format** ||= **Topic** ||
 * = Newspaper Reporter ||= Elderly ||= Special Section ||= Student Behavior at School ||
 * = Debit ||= Credit ||= Persuasive Essay ||= The left side of a journal entry is more important than the right ||
 * = Parent ||= Sean Covey ||= Letter ||= Reaction to their child reading __The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens__ ||
 * = Student ||= Younger Sibling ||= Recipe ||= How to succeed in Middle School ||
 * = Retirement Account ||= Young worker ||= Love Letter ||= If you loved me, you'd make a long term commitment ||
 * = Recently retired from dream job ||= co-workers and family ||= Speech ||= The keys to my success (incl. people and traits) ||
 * = Newspaper Ad ||= Blog ||= Complaint ||= Benefits of printed newspaper ||

//Why:// To generate a quality written piece, authors should understand and use an organized process. We will use the process shown below for some of our writing projects. You will be working cooperatively in small groups during some of the process and will also have an opportunity to work independently. As your teacher, I will also assist you in reviewing your draft and suggesting possible revisions. This is directly related to real life where you will need to create written documents, and with the help of a peer reviewer, you can be sure that your final draft is your best draft.
 * Writers Workshop

//How//: We will start our Writers Workshop by brainstorming ideas (I will give you a topic in class) and putting them to paper using a graphic organizer.A rough draft of the assigned writing will be generated from your brainstorming organizer. The rough draft will be edited by your peers and then you will have a brief conference with me, as your teacher, to discuss the piece. Based on the peer and teacher input, you will create your final draft to be submitted by the assigned due date. **

One of the assignments will be to write your resume. Here's an example of resumes where the writer should have their peer review and editing.

Resources: If you like to write and be published, check out these teen writing links Definition of RAFTS, including using strong verbs within them.