[LIT] writing in History and English

[DeAnn Kaduce]

Many state tests, Missouri I know, require students to extrapolate
information as if they were a character from a story to an audience in a
particular format with a topic/theme based on the reading from the test.
 I have used this strategy with my 7th graders, and they enjoyed writing
the responses.  They wrote with great insight and creativity.
 
 
DeAnn Kaduce
Central Middle School
Kansas City, MO 64128
(816)418-2100, xt. 0605

>>> barblazar at msn.com 10/11/2006 7:39:31 PM >>>
there is a real need - and desire - to search for more ways
> to integrate and collaborate in grades 9-12 (yay upper school
teachers!).
>
>
As a teacher of both language arts AND social studies (sometimes
together, 
as a "humanities" class) , one technique I have used as a way to
connect the 
content of history with the skills of writing, is a R.A.F.T. ---
R=Role; 
A=audience; F= format; T= topic --- for example... Role: you are a
settler 
in the New World, Audience: you are writing to your family left back in
the 
crowded cities of Europe; Format - you are writing a "friendly letter"
to 
them; Topic: you are alleviating their fears about coming to the
colonies by 
letting them know about your journey, the history of your colony, and
what 
life is like for you.... I have gotten some great writing and evidence
of 
thinking from this particular RAFT -- there are SOOO many more
examples, and 
having kids come up with their own RAFT can also be a fun way to
synthesize 
knowledge!!

Barb Lazar
Cleveland Middle School
Albuquerque, NM 


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