Informative/ Explanatory Writing Across Content Areas
2012
Howard County Public School SystemDr. Renee Foose,
Superintendent
Board of EducationHoward County Public School System
Janet Siddiqui, M.D.Chairman
Sandra H. FrenchFrank J. Aquino, Esq.Vice Chairman
Allen Dyer, Esq.Ellen Flynn Giles
Brian J. MeshkinCynthia L. Vaillancourt
Dr. Renee FooseSuperintendent of Schools
Acknowledgements
The development of this resource was a team effort between the
Office of Secondary Language Arts Office and Howard County
teachers.
Curriculum Writers
Steve Ammann, Mount View Middle School
Emily Stackhouse, Atholton High School
Jeanette Swank, Wilde Lake Middle School
Overview
Informative/Explanatory Writing Across Content Areas, addresses
writing skills, and student expectations regarding explanatory
writing and provides classroom teachers with a common language
necessary for understanding the standards. As the Maryland State
Department of Education (MSDE) provides additional information,
this document will be revised.
Contents
College and Career Readiness (CCR) Anchor Standards for
Writing2
Questions and Answers About Non-Language Arts Teacher
Expectations3
Common Language Students Know and Use When Writing5
The Thesis Statement6
Explanatory Writing: What is it7
Argument vs. Explanatory Writing: A Snapshot8
Natural Classroom Connections 10
Explanatory Writing Glossary11
Explanatory Writing Standards for History, Science, and
Technical Subjects (6-12)12
Explanatory Writing Rubric Sample14
Explanatory Writing Quick Reference Card15
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College and Career Readiness (CCR) Anchor Standards for
Writing
The CCR anchor standards and high school standards in literacy
work in tandem to define college and career readiness
expectationsthe former providing broad standards, the latter
providing additional specificity (Common Core State Standards).
Text Types and Purposes*
1. Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of
substantive topics or texts using valid reasoning and relevant and
sufficient evidence.
2. Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey
complex ideas and information clearly and accurately through the
effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or
events using effective technique, well-chosen details and
well-structured event sequences.*
Production and Distribution of Writing
4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development,
organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and
audience.
5. Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning,
revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.
6. Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and
publish writing and to interact and collaborate with others.
Research to Build and Present Knowledge
7. Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects
based on focused questions, demonstrating understanding of the
subject under investigation.
8. Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital
sources, assess the credibility and accuracy of each source, and
integrate the information while avoiding plagiarism.
9. Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support
analysis, reflection, and research.
Range of Writing
10. Write routinely over extended time frames (time for
research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a
single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks, purposes, and
audiences.
Note:
*Students narrative skills continue to grow in these grades. The
Standards require that students be able to incorporate narrative
elements effectively into arguments and informative/explanatory
texts. For example in history/social studies, students must be able
to incorporate narrative accounts into their analyses of
individuals or events of historical import. In science and
technical subjects, students must be able to write precise enough
descriptions of the step-by-step procedures they use in their
investigations or technical work that others can replicate them and
(possibly) reach the same results. (Common Core State Standards,
page 65)
Questions and Answers About Non-Language Arts Teacher
Expectations
1. What is the role of language arts teachers regarding
writing?
Language arts teachers provide explicit writing instruction and
opportunities for students to express themselves through the
written mode. Such instruction includes the writing of short and
long responses to a myriad of texts, both fiction and
non-fiction.
2. What are the expectations for all discipline-specific
teachers?
Teachers in content areas, other than language arts, are
expected to provide opportunities for students to construct written
responses that respond to discipline-specific objectives.
3. Do students currently have opportunities in language arts
classes to reflect on their writing?
All middle and high school students maintain writing
folders/portfolios for self-reflecting concerning their writing and
growth as writers. This collection of artifacts is used extensively
as students complete the Senior Writing Project, a requirement
began in the freshman year and completed in the senior year.
4. Are there specific terms we should be using with the students
in regards to writing?
The goal of Common Core is to allow students to apply writing
skills across disciplines. In order to help them do this it is
important that a common language is used in regards to writing.
Therefore, refer to the glossary of terms when teaching writing to
the students.
5. The 2014-2015 state assessments will require students to
write to source. What does that mean?
Write to source means students construct a response based on
something they read, referred to as diverse media. The source is
cold text since students will be required to respond to sources for
which they receive no preparation.
7. What are the fundamental differences between argument writing
and
explanatory writing?
The main difference between argument writing and explanatory
writing is that in argument writing you are persuading an audience
to change their beliefs or behaviors while with explanatory writing
you are simply attempting to inform an audience on the topic. See
chart.
8. How is this similar to what I am already doing?
Any time you are asking your students to explain, analyze,
compare and contrast, classify, determine cause and effect, define,
or identify a process you are already doing explanatory
writing.
9. Am I still expected to teach argument writing?
Yes. Argument and Explanatory are both types of writing
emphasized in the Common Core.
Word Choice
Word choice is the use of rich, colorful, precise language.
Ideas
The ideas are the heart of the message, the content of the
piece, the main theme or topic, together with all the details that
enrich and develop that theme. The ideas are strong when the
message is clear.
Organization
Organization is the structure of a piece of writing. A clear
beginning, middle, and end should be present.
Sentence Fluency
Sentences vary in length. The writer includes both short and
long sentences. A combination of simple, compound, complex, and
compound-complex sentences may be present.
Conventions
Conventions include spelling, grammar, punctuation,
capitalization, and usage.
Voice
The voice is the writer coming through the words, the sense that
a real person is speaking to the reader. Voice must be appropriate
for the intended audience.
Presentation
Presentation combines both visual and verbal elements- it is the
way we "exhibit" our message. This may include formatting elements
such as font, proper heading, and spacing. The paper is clean and
neat.
Common Language Students Know and Use When Writing*
*from 6+1 Traits of Writing
The Thesis Statement
Information in the introduction prepares the reader for the
thesis statement, which traditionally appears at the end of the
introduction and which specifically presents the main point and
indicates the purpose of the essay. The thesis statement is the
most important sentence in the introduction because it states the
controlling idea or point. It also clarifies the purpose for the
essay and helps to set the tone. The thesis statement is the
keystone of an essay.
The main point in the thesis statement can be:
a statement of fact
a statement of opinion
a dominant impression
a general truth.
Explanatory/Informational Thesis Statement
The thesis statement for an explanatory essay seeks to explain,
support, or clarify. The thesis statement for an expository essay
should be factual and objective. It conveys the writers purpose to
increase readers knowledge, not to change their minds.
Explanatory Writing: What is it?
Explanatory writing requires students to examine and convey
complex ideas, concepts, and information clearly and accurately.
The purpose of this type of writing is to demonstrate comprehension
of a topic, concept, process, or procedure. Students write in
response to a source, which may be a text or other media such as
art, music, charts, or graphs. An effective response requires
students to read the text closely, in order to demonstrate an
understanding of the topic and locate evidence from the text to
support their response.
Organizational Structures and Sample Tasks
Cause/Effect
Classification
Compare/Contrast
Definition
Process
Shows why something happened, why certain conditions exist, or
what resulted from an action or condition; shows the influence of
one event upon another.
Organizes ideas/concept/ terms into useful categories; provides
related examples and explains how they fit into each category.
Explores the similarities and differences between two or more
subjects; addresses similarities and/or differences between/among
topics; organized either to analyze or inform.
Provides more than a dictionary definition; shows what something
is.
Explains how something works; provides sequential directions for
how something is done.
Discuss the source of Romeos and Juliets emotional turmoil and
its effects of each individually and as a couple.
Explain how Camus The Plague is classified as an existential
novel.
Select another poem by Robert Frost. Compare the selection to
the poem studied in class.
Define Ionescos definition of man as illustrated in one of his
plays.
Shakespearean plot sequencing for his tragedies can be described
as formulaic. Explain the advantages and disadvantages for the
audiences knowing what to expect and when.
Argument vs. Explanatory Writing: A Snapshot
When writing an argument paper, it is important to state a claim
that can be argued from different perspectives. The writer of an
explanatory response is not attempting to persuade or argue a
point. Its thesis statement informs the reader of the subject
rather than ask the reader to take a position on an issue. This
chart outlines claims, which appeared originally in the HCPSS
argument resource, and how an explanatory task would differ.
ARGUMENT TASK
EXPLANATORY TASK
Content: Art
Topic: Argue that the medium you chose in order to create your
self-portrait was the most effective medium to use given your
options?
Content: Art
Topic: Explain the choices you made as you developed ideas for
your portrait. Consider the master artist examples viewed, the
pose, the props, the lighting, and your choice of composition,
color, and placement.
Content: Career Technology Education
Topic: Prove that the sequence of steps you took to diagnose and
troubleshoot a problem with malfunctioning equipment was the most
efficient method?
Content: Career Technology Education
Topic: Diagram the sequence of steps required to diagnose and
troubleshoot malfunctioning equipment.
Content: English
Topic: Argue that the word choice in Sandra Cisneross story
Eleven creates a particular tone within the text.
Content: English
Topic: Explain how Sandra Cisneross choice of words develops the
point of view of the young speaker in her story Eleven.
Content: Health Education
Topic: After viewing the video, The Cat Who Drank Too Much,
argue that the metaphor created within the film is or is not an
accurate depiction of alcoholism.
Content: Health Education
Topic: After viewing the video, The Cat Who Drank Too Much,
trace and explain the stages of alcoholism as they relate to the
cats behavior.
Content: Mathematics
Topic: Prove that the graph you chose to depict the data was the
most appropriate model given your options.
Content: Mathematics
Topic: Contrast the graph you created with a partner and depict
the differences you discovered.
Content: Music
Topic: After listening to both the Marine Band performance and
the school band performance, select the superior performance and
justify your choice.
Content: Music
Topic: After listening to recordings of two performances,
identify strengths of
each performance and give suggestions for improvement in our
performance, considering tone, intonation, balance, and
articulation.
Content: Science
Topic: Defend the change in the Earths temperature as either the
result of human actions or a part of the Earths natural cycle.
Content: Science
Topic: Trace the changes in climate within the Amazon Rain
forest and its effect on the Earth over the last 100 years.
Content: Social Studies
Topic: Argue that the southern states had economic factors that
would motivate them to continue slavery.
Content: Social Studies
Topic: After reading primary source perspectives about slavery,
compare Northern and Southern rationales for the ending or
continuation of slavery. Use details from the documents to support
your answer.
Content: World Languages
Topic: Italian IV: In our Italian studies, which of the
following individuals best represents the concept of omert:
Salvatore Giuliano, Jesse James, or Robin Hood,
Content: World Languages
Topic: Italian IV: In Italian, define omert by comparing the
actions of Salvatore Giuliano, Jesse James, and Robin Hood and
examining how each provides justice for the people.
Natural Explanatory Instructional Connections: Samples
Warm-Up/Drills
Science Lab Reports
Entrance/Exit Tickets
Journal Writing
Reflections
Document-Based Questions
Research Reports
Math or science journals
Art work analysis
Analysis of lab results
Theatre performance analysis
Remember, if the assignment asks students to explain, compare or
contrast, analyze, determine cause and effect, classify, define, or
identify/explain a process, the response is an explanatory
response.
Explanatory Writing
Common Core Glossary
1. Analysis is examination, close study, and evaluation of a
text by breaking down and examining its elements and
components.
2. Cohesion is the arrangement of ideas in such a way that the
reader can easily follow one point to the next. Devices for
creating cohesion include appropriate transition words and phrases,
repetition of words as needed, and the use of appropriate
pronouns.
3. Conventions are commonly accepted rules of language such as
spelling,punctuation, complete sentences, subject-verb agreement,
verb tense, and usage.
4. Discipline-specific content is text associated with
individual subjects or areasof instruction.
5. Evaluation is making a judgment based on criteria.
6.Evidence/Concrete Details are examples that validate or
support a thesis statement. It may be found in a text or
research.
7. Formal style is free of slang, trite expressions,
abbreviations, symbols, email shortcut language, contractions, and
the use of the personal pronoun I (first person pronouns may be
appropriate as it relates to the nature of the assignment). The
writer does not speak directly to the reader by using the word you.
Formal style ensures that readers are able to read and understand
what is written.
8. Inference is a logical guess based on text evidence.
9. Summary is an objective recounting of the important ideas of
a text.
10. Support/Controls are the key points that the writer intends
to discuss in the body paragraphs and will support the thesis
statement.
11. Syntax is the way in which the words and phrases of a
sentence are ordered to show how the words relate to each
other.
12. Tertiary source is a term used for information that has been
compiled from both primary and secondary sources.
13. Thesis Statement is the main focus that addresses the
writers intent; is basedon the writers purpose; often appears as
the last sentence in the essays opening paragraph.
14. Tone is an author's attitude toward a subject.
15. Topic Sentence is the first sentence of a paragraph that
organizes and introduces the main idea of that paragraph. It
indicates to the reader what the paragraph will be about.
Explanatory Writing Standards For Middle and High Schools
Explanatory Writing and Its Purpose: Grades 6-8
W.6-8.2. Write informative/explanatory texts, including the
narration of historical events, scientific procedures/ experiments,
or technical processes..
a) Introduce a topic clearly, previewing what is to follow;
organize ideas, concepts, and information into broader categories
as appropriate to achieving purpose; include formatting (e.g.,
headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables), and multimedia when
useful to aiding comprehension.
b) Develop the topic with relevant, well-chosen facts,
definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and
examples.
c) Use appropriate and varied transitions to create cohesion and
clarify the relationships among ideas and concepts.
d) Use precise language an domain-specific vocabulary to inform
about or explain the topic.
e) Establish and maintain a formal style.
f) Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from
and supports the information or explanation presented.
Explanatory Writing and Its Purpose: Grades 9-10
W.9-10.2. Write informative/explanatory texts, including the
narration of historical events, scientific procedures/ experiments,
or technical processes.
a) Introduce a topic and organize ideas, concepts, and
information to make important connections and distinctions; include
formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., figures, tables), and
multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.
b) Develop the topic with well-chosen, relevant, and sufficient
facts, extended definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other
information and examples appropriate to the audiences knowledge of
the topic.
c) Use varied transitions and sentence structures to link the
major sections of the text, create cohesion, and clarify the
relationships among ideas and concepts.
d) Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to manage
the complexity of the topic and convey a style appropriate to the
discipline and context as well as to the expertise of likely
readers.
e) Establish and maintain a formal style while attending to the
norms and conventions of the discipline in which they are
writing.
f) Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from
and supports the information or explanation presented. (e.g.,
articulating
implications or the significance of the topic).
Explanatory Writing and Its Purpose: Grades 11-12
W.11-12.2. Write informative/explanatory texts, including the
narration of historical events, scientific procedures/ experiments,
or technical processes.
a) Introduce a topic and organize complex ideas, concepts, and
information so that each new element builds on that which precedes
it to create a unified whole; include formatting (e.g., headings),
graphics (e.g., figures, tables), and multimedia when useful to
aiding comprehension.
b) Develop the topic thoroughly by selecting the most
significant and relevant facts, extended definitions, concrete
details, quotations, or other information and examples appropriate
to the audiences knowledge of the topic.
c) Use varied transitions and sentence structures to link the
major sections of the text, create cohesion, and clarify the
relationships among complex ideas and concepts.
d) Use precise language, domain-specific vocabulary and
techniques such as metaphor, simile, and analogy to manage the
complexity of the topic; convey a knowledgeable stance in a style
that responds to the discipline and context as well as to the
expertise of likely readers.
e) Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from
and supports the information or explanation presented. (e.g.,
articulating implications or the significance of the topic).
Explanatory Writing Rubric for Grades 6-12
Areas Evaluated in Writing
Max points
Points scored
Ideas
Contains a clear well-defined thesis
Thoroughly answers readers questions
Develops the topic with relevant facts, definitions, concrete
details, quotations, or other information and examples (this may
include research when appropriate)
Organization
Introduction grabs the readers attention and sets the purpose
for the paper
Body of the paper expands the topic introduced in the first
paragraph
Well-organized paragraphs
Logically and clearly presents supporting details
Organize ideas, concepts, and information, using strategies such
as definition, classification, comparison/contrast, and
cause/effect; information is organized in a manner that is
appropriate for the assignment
Voice
Projects confidence and interest
Establishes and maintain a formal style
Word Choice
Defines key terms when necessary
Chooses words that are appropriate to the assignment and the
audience
Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform
about or explain the topic
Sentence Fluency
Uses a variety of simple, compound, complex, and
compound-complex sentences.
Use appropriate transitions to create cohesion and clarify the
relationships among ideas and concepts including transition words
and phrases between points (however, such as, most important)
Conventions- Shows control over spelling, usage/grammar,
capitalization; punctuation
Total Score:
Comments:
Informative/ Explanatory Writing
Within Content Areas
Informative/Explanatory writing requires students to examine and
convey complex ideas, concepts, and information clearly and
accurately. The purpose of this type of writing is to demonstrate
comprehension of a topic, concept, process, or procedure. Students
write in response to a source, which may be a text or other media
such as art, music, charts, or graphs. An effective response
requires students to read the text closely, in order to demonstrate
an understanding of the topic and locate evidence from the text to
support their response.
How Argument and Informative/Explanatory Writing Differ
Argument Writing Explanatory Writing
Seeks to make people believe that something is true or to
persuade people to change their beliefs or behavior.
Provides information about causes, contexts, and consequences of
processes, phenomena, states of affairs, objects, and terminology,
and presents a case with the solid evidence, while acknowledging
counterarguments on a debatable issue.
Supports the writers claim(s) with sound reasoning and relevant
and sufficient evidence.
Attempts to make the reader understand rather than to persuade
him or her to accept a certain point of view
Provides information about causes, contexts, and consequences of
processes, phenomena, states of affairs, objects, and
terminology.
Supports the writers thesis with evidence and supporting
detail.
The Connection to Close Reading
In order to write about a text, students must be able to
understand a variety of text and media formats. Close reading helps
students make meaning of scientific, historical, or technical texts
and art forms so they can identify the evidence that they need to
write an effective informative/explanatory essay.
Related Vocabulary
Analyze: to examine, closely study, and evaluate a text by
breaking down and examining its elements and components.
Concrete details: the specific facts, examples, and data that
provide evidence for an informative/explanatory essay.
Formal style: writing that is free of slang, trite expressions,
abbreviations, symbols, email shortcut language, contractions, and
the use of the personal pronoun I. The writer does not speaking
directly to the reader by using the word you.
Organizational structures
Cause/ Effect shows why something happened, why certain
conditions exist, or what resulted from an action or condition;
shows the influence of one event upon another; uses logic and
evidence to show the relationship between an event and its cause or
an event and its outcome.
Classification organizes ideas/concept/ terms into useful
categories; provides related examples and explains how they fit
into each category.
Compare/contrast explores the similarities and differences
between two or more subjects; addresses similarities and/or
differences between/among topics; organized either to analyze or
inform.
Definition provides more than a dictionary definition; shows
what something is.
Process explains how something works; provides sequential
directions for how something is done.
Thesis statement addresses the writers intent; is based on the
writers purpose; appears as the last sentence in the essays opening
paragraph.
The length of a written response is determined by the task and
its purpose. Every written response is not intended to be an
essay.
Art: Write to Source- Self-portraiture
Explain the choices you made as you developed ideas for your
portrait. Consider the master artist examples viewed, the pose, the
props, the lighting, and your choice of composition, color, and
placement.
Career Technology Education: Write to Source-Technical
Specifications Manual
Diagram the sequence of steps required to diagnose and
troubleshoot malfunctioning equipment.
Career Technology Education: Write to Source- Journal
Article
Explain the conflicts that arose regarding the acceptance and
use of HeLa cells in research.
Compare and contrast health benefits and risks of Paleolithic
vs. vegan diets.
English/Language Arts: Write to Source- Short Story
Explain how Sandra Cisneross choice of words develops the point
of view of the young speaker in her story Eleven. [RL.6.6]*
English/Language Arts: Write to Source- Diverse Media and
Formats
Analyze how the Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa in his film
Throne of Blood draws on and transforms Shakespeares play Macbeth
in order to develop a similar plot set in feudal Japan.
[RL.910.9]*
Gifted and Talented: Write to Source-Primary Research Data
Evaluate the usefulness of your original primary research data
for supporting your hypothesis.
Health Education: Write to Source-Diverse Media and Formats
After viewing the video, The Cat Who Drank Too Much, trace and
explain the stages of alcoholism as they relate to the cats
behavior.
Compare and contrast two of the Decision Making Models that have
been used in class.
Explain one of the Decision Making Models and its strengths in
facilitating a healthy decision.
Explain how to determine the validity of a source of health
information, products, or services.
Mathematics: Write to Source- Multiple Representations
Examine and explain the connections among the verbal model,
graph, and equation of a quadratic function.
Music: Write to Source- Marine Band Performance and School Band
Performance
After listening to recordings of two performances, identify
strengths of
each performance and give suggestions for improvement in our
performance, considering tone, intonation, balance, and
articulation.
Science: Write to Source- Diverse Media and Formats (video clip,
laboratory data, selected readings)
Trace the transformation of a rock through the rock cycle from
sedimentary to metamorphic to igneous back to sedimentary. Be sure
to explain the processes that affect each transformation.
Using the data that you collected from the Photosynthesis by
Chloroplast lab, explain the process of photosynthesis and how
photosynthetic activity varies in different lighting
conditions.
Social Studies: Write to Source-Diverse Media and Formats (maps,
articles, first-person accounts)
Explain how human actions contributed to the desertification of
the Sahel region.
Social Studies: Write to Source- Primary Sources
After reading primary source perspectives about slavery, compare
Northern and Southern rationales for the ending or continuation of
slavery. Use details from the documents to support your answer.
Analyze the role of African American soldiers in the Civil War
by comparing and contrasting primary source materials against
secondary syntheses such as Jim Haskinss Black, Blue and Gray:
African Americans in the Civil War. [RH.910.9]*
Write to Source- Primary Sources
Spanish II: Interview two adults about their childhood
experiences and, in Spanish, compare them to experiences of
children today.
World Languages: Write to Source- Diverse Media and Formats
(newspaper clippings, movie posters, video clips)
Italian IV: In Italian, define omert by comparing the actions of
Salvatore Giuliano, Jesse James, and Robin Hood and examining how
each provides justice for the people.
*From Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts and
Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects
Appendix B: Text Exemplars and Sample Performance Tasks
HCPSS2012
