Sunday, April 19, 2015

STAAR Opinion & Argument Writing Test Prep STAAR

STAAR Opinion/Argument Writing Test Strategies | Creating Keyword Outline and Rough Draft From Opinion or Argument Essays | Ideas and Models From Writing with Structure and Style!

STAAR Writing Test | Opinion/Argument Assessment Pre-Writing
  • Read and Highlight the STAAR Assessment Writing Prompt
  • Write out your keyword outline
  • Reread the question and prompt again
  • Read the articles and rank sentences and paragraph that are of interest or important
  • Choose and rank the sentences and paragraphs that support your opinion or counterclaim


Pre-writing and planning: Keyword outline process: Choose three or four words from every ranked or selected sentence, topic, paragraph or article of your source Argument/Opinion essay. Rank 5-10 essential sentence that you choose that will help you remember the argument or opinion of that sentence. If taking the test online use the highlighter tools to rank and select keywords. Longer articles or writing from multiple source/articles only pick 5-7 sentences that have great ideas or are of interest to you. The keywords do not have to be predetermined or specific types of words, just interesting or informative words that will help you write your opinion or argument paragraphs. Make a standard outline: List Roman Numerals 1-6 down the page. Fill in each number with three or four keywords from the ranked sentences. Number one is not automaticly what was selected first or as ranked most important.  Separated each keyword with commas, on line number one. Repeat this process until all of the sentences you've selected have their key words. Look for the authors theses statements and conclusions and use those to create your keyword outline introduction and conclusion. Do not use more than four key words per sentence, and preferably keep it to three. Numbers and symbols are free.

If your opinion/argument essay has more than seven sentences in a selected paragraph, you will need to gather your key words from the ideas of multiple articles, rather than from each paragraph. This means combining some sentences, and not using others. Choose ideas that supports your argument or help make a counterclaim, interesting or important.

Keyword Outline Model 
I. Introduction/Thesis Statement
    1.
    2.
    3.
    4.
    5. Restate Opinion/Argument  






























II.  
    1.
    2.
    3.
    4.
    5.
III.
    1.
    2.
    3.
    4.
    5.
IV.
    1.
    2.
    3.
    4.
    5.
V. Conclusion 
    1.
    2.
    3.
    4.
    5.
Key Word Outline


Rough Drafts

Use your KWO, and create a sentence using the three words from number one on your new piece of paper. Continue on, repeating this process until all the sentences from that paragraph are created. Rough drafts must be double spaced. You must put at least three key words in each sentence and try using a prepositions, strong verb, adverbial clause, because opener, gerund opener, who, whom or which clause. This will require moving sentences around words around, changing tenses, adding words, etc. No erasing allowed. Cross out unwanted words, and 'click and drag' others to the desired place when using a computer. Remember not to use any of the banned words.

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