Transcript Daily SOL Writing Practice

Daily SOL Writing Practice
Grade 8
Week 9
School Rules
The principal has asked students to suggest a school rule that should be changed. Jody thinks
students should have two extra minutes between class changes. He makes the cluster diagram
below before he begins his rough draft.
Students have more time
for the restroom.
School lunches are not
healthy.
Extra time between
class changes.
Eliminates running in
the halls
Prevents lost books,
papers, etc.
1
Which detail does not belong on Jody’s
diagram?
2 Which of these best describes the
reason for writing this letter?
A
School lunches are not healthy.
F
to inform
B
Eliminates running in the halls
G
to tell a story
C
Prevents lost books, papers, etc.
H
to entertain
D
Students have more time for the
restroom.
J
to persuade
provided by Simply Achieve, Inc.
Daily SOL Writing Practice
Grade 8
Week 9
Answer Sheet – For Teacher Use
Question
Correct Answer
VA SOL Essential Understanding Correlation
1
A
8.7ab – Use prewriting strategies to generate and
organize ideas.
2
J
8.7ca – Select specific vocabulary and information
Notes to Teacher:
The writing subtest of the Grade 8 English test will have a series of brief scenarios, each of which defines a
writing task for a specified audience. Items following the statement of the writing task will address planning
or prewriting activities relevant to the specified task and will be coded to the Planning, Composing, and
Revising reporting category. A rough draft of a response to the specified writing task will follow the
planning/prewriting test items. The rough draft will be divided into sections. The first section will have errors
which require revision such as the inclusion of a sentence that does not belong or two sentences that need
to be combined. Items following the first section of the rough draft will require the student to correct these
errors by choosing the correct revision from the answer choices provided. These items will also be coded to
the Planning, Composing, and Revising reporting category.
The second section of the rough draft will contain embedded errors in usage or mechanics. Items following
this section will refer to underlined words or groups of words in the second section of the rough draft and will
require students to choose the answer which represents correct usage or mechanics. These items will be
coded to the Editing reporting category. In some cases the underlined words will contain no error and the
correct answer will be "as it is." Following the expanded blueprint is a list of usage and mechanics skills
which are addressed in the Editing reporting category.
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Daily SOL Writing Practice
Grade 8
Week 9
Read the first part of Jody’s rough draft. Use it to answer the questions below.
(1)Dear Dr. Randall,
(2)I’ve carefully considered your offer to change one of the school rules. (3)I think the rule
that needs to be changed is the one that addresses the time students have between
classes. (4)Four minutes is not enough. (5)If you would add two minutes to the time
between classes, we would have enough time to get stuff done.
3
Which sentence should be written
with more description?
A sentence 2
B sentence 3
C sentence 4
4
Which of these sentences can
best be added after sentence 5?
F
We need more time at lunch too.
G
Please consider my reasons and
make this rule change.
H
Students run down the hall to
get to class.
J
We all need more time for the
restroom.
D sentence 5
provided by Simply Achieve, Inc.
Daily SOL Writing Practice
Grade 8
Week 9
Answer Sheet – For Teacher Use
Question
Correct Answer
VA SOL Essential Understanding Correlation
3
D
8.7cc – Select specific vocabulary and information.
4
G
8.7dc – Revise writing for word choice, sentence variety,
and transitions among paragraphs.
Notes to Teacher:
During the revising stage of the writing process students will revise for focus, organization, and
elaboration.
To assist students in developing these skills direct instruction must take place on including important
details, deleting unnecessary information and varying sentences.
The Standards of Learning writing assessments ask students to use their revising skills to identify ways
to improve a passage that is provided. To be successful on this section of the test, students must be
able to suggest the best way to combine provided sentences, choose a more descriptive way to write
provided sentences and locate unneeded information.
provided by Simply Achieve, Inc.
Daily SOL Writing Practice
Grade 8
Week 9
Read the second part of Jody's rough draft. Use it to answer the questions below.
(6)Last year 23 students were suspended because of excessive tardiness. (7)I was one
of them. (8)I was often late because I was trying to get books out of my locker or use the
restroom before class. (9)The restrooms have too much graffiti in them. (10)After my
suspension, I was determined to get to class on time. (11)Unfortunately, I found myself
leaving class to use the restroom and forgetting items needed for class because I was
rushed to get there.
5
Which sentence should be removed
because it does not focus on the topic?
6
In this part of the letter, what is Jody’s
main purpose?
A
sentence 6
F
to complain that the restrooms are dirty
B
sentence 7
G to describe the difficulty of getting to
class in time
C
sentence 8
H to use impressive language
D
sentence 9
J
to make the letter sound sophisticated
provided by Simply Achieve, Inc.
Daily SOL Writing Practice
Grade 8
Week 9
Answer Sheet – For Teacher Use
Question
Correct Answer
VA SOL Essential Understanding Correlation
5
D
8.7bc – Organize details to elaborate the central idea.
6
G
8.7cc – Select specific vocabulary and information
Notes to Teacher:
During the revising stage of the writing process students will revise for focus, organization, and
elaboration.
To assist students in developing these skills direct instruction must take place on including important
details, deleting unnecessary information and varying sentences. Students should be provided
opportunities to examine problems in their drafts and their classmates’ drafts and then discuss them and
revise them.
The Standards of Learning writing assessments ask students to use their revising skills to identify ways
to improve a passage that is provided. To be successful on this section of the test, students must be
able to suggest the best way to combine provided sentences, choose a more descriptive way to write
provided sentences and locate unneeded information.
provided by Simply Achieve, Inc.
Daily SOL Writing Practice
Grade 8
Week 9
Read the third part of Jody’s rough draft. Use it to answer the questions below.
(12)There are several benefits to extending the time between class changes. (13)First, an extra
two minutes would eliminate students running and trampling each other. (14)Second students
could make it to the restroom and to class instead of taking time from class for the restroom.
(15)Finally, the extra time would give students time to organize their items for the next class.
7
In sentence 14, Second is best
written –
8
In sentence 15, their is best
written –
A
Second,
F
our
B
Second;
G
his
C
Second:
H
my
D
as it is
J
as it is
provided by Simply Achieve, Inc.
Daily SOL Writing Practice
Grade 8
Week 9
Answer Sheet – For Teacher Use
Question
Correct Answer
VA SOL Essential Understanding Correlation
7
A
8.8bi – Use and punctuate correctly varied sentence
structures to include conjunctions and transition words.
8
J
8.7d – Revise writing for word choice, sentence variety,
and transitions among paragraphs.
Notes to Teacher:
During the editing stage of the writing process students will edit for correct grammar, punctuation,
capitalization, spelling and sentence construction.
Students should be provided with many opportunities to edit and correct punctuation in their writing and
the writing of their classmates.
The Standards of Learning writing assessments ask students to edit a given passage for punctuation,
correct case and number, verb tense, and comparative and superlative degrees. Students will be
expected to understand the use of conjunctions and transitional words.
provided by Simply Achieve, Inc.
Daily SOL Writing Practice
Grade 8
Week 9
Read the fourth part of Jody’s rough draft. Use it to answer the questions below.
(16)Dr. Randall, you asked for suggestions and I think adding time between classes is
worthwhile. (17)Neither the other 22 students suspended last year nor I want to experience
that fate again. (18)Changing this rule will benefit our entire student body.
(19)Sincerely,
(20)Jody Matthews
9
How is sentence 16, best written?
A
B
C
Dr. Randall, you asked for
suggestions, and I think adding time
between classes is worthwhile.
Dr. Randall, you asked for
suggestions, and, I think adding
time between classes is worthwhile.
Dr. Randall, you, asked for
suggestions and I think adding time
between classes is worthwhile.
10 In sentence 14, how is Neither the other
22 students suspended last year nor I
correctly written?
F
G Neither the other 22 students
suspended last year, nor I
H Neither, the other 22 students
suspended last year nor, I
J
D
Neither the other 22 students
suspended last year or I
as it is
as it is
provided by Simply Achieve, Inc.
Daily SOL Writing Practice
Grade 8
Week 9
Answer Sheet – For Teacher Use
Question
Correct Answer
VA SOL Essential Understanding Correlation
9
A
8.8ba – Use and punctuate correctly varied sentence
structures to include conjunctions and transition words.
10
J
8.8bj – Use and punctuate correctly varied sentence
structures to include conjunctions and transition words.
Notes to Teacher:
During the editing stage of the writing process students will edit for use of language, capitalization,
punctuation and spelling. Students can earn 14 multiple choice points and 8 possible score from the
direct-writing component by accurately editing.
On the Grade 8 Standards of Learning writing assessments students will edit for the use of:
Grade 6
Grade 7
Grade 8
•subject-verb agreement with
intervening, phrases and clauses
•pronoun-antecedent agreement to
include indefinite pronouns
•maintain consistent tense inflections
across paragraphs
•choose adverbs to describe verbs,
adjectives, and other adverbs
•use correct spelling for frequently used
words
•choose pronouns to agree with
antecedents
•subject-verb agreement with
intervening phrases and clauses
•edit for verb tense consistency
provided by Simply Achieve, Inc.
•use and punctuate correctly varied
sentence structures to include
conjunctions and transition words.
•choose the correct case and number
for pronouns in prepositional phrases
with compound objects.
•maintain consistent verb tense across
paragraphs
•use comparative and superlative
degrees in adverbs and adjectives