Standard 3: Critical Reading and Writing

Students will apply critical thinking skills to reading and writing.

 For more specific genre information, please refer to Genre Guidance (page 4 of the Support Documents.).

8.3.W.2 INFORMATIVE Students will compose essays and reports about topics, incorporating evidence (e.g., specific facts, examples, details) and maintaining an organized structure and a formal style.

Student Actions 

Teacher Actions 

The following statements are elements of an informative piece of writing.  While composing, teachers and students need to keep in mind the writing process (8.2.W), word choice (8.4.W), language (8.5.W), and research (8.6.W). 

• Students will compose informational  writing to explain ideas.

• Students will select and maintain an appropriate text structures for clarity.

• Students will introduce a topic and compose a well-developed thesis statement.

• Students will add relevant facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples to develop the topic.

• Students will transition between ideas and concepts using appropriate words and phrases.

• Students will consistently use a formal style.

• Students will write a conclusion to bring all ideas to a close. 

• Teachers share mentor text of strong informative essays and reports about topics that:
• incorporate evidence (e.g., specific facts, examples, details) and maintain an organized structure.
• use appropriate text structures and text features for clarity.
• maintain a well-organized structure for the informative writing introduction, body, and conclusion.
• use a formal style.
• Teachers model:
• introducing a topic and compose a well-developed thesis statement.
• adding relevant facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples to develop the topic.
• using transitions between ideas and concepts using appropriate words and phrases.
• writing a conclusion to bring all ideas to a close.
• Teachers allow time for students to practice composing informational pieces while realizing not every piece needs to be taken completely through the writing process. 

Supporting Resources

Teacher Insights

• The Power Paragraph Writing Fix (PDF)
• WritingFix: prompts, lessons, and resources for writing classrooms (webpage)
• OK ELA Frameworks: Informational Writing Literacy Progression (webpage)
• OSDE Informative Exemplars (PDF)
• OSDE Writing Rubric with ELA OAS (PDF)
• learnzillion.com: Informative writing/write along videos (video)

• Informative writing is factual writing about a nonfiction topic.

• The main goal of informational writing is to increase knowledge by providing straightforward information on a topic.

• Writers  establish the main idea with a strong introduction that captures the reader’s attention.

• Ideas for Strong Introductions: include an unusual fact, ask a question, include vivid description, tell a brief story

• Writers restate the main idea with a strong conclusion.

• Ideas for Strong Conclusions: summarize key points, make a prediction, offer an opinion or a suggestion, explain the topic’s importance

• Transitional words and phrases guide the reader easily and clearly from one idea to the next.

• Students are expected to use a formal style.

• Introduce students to simple rubrics or checklists. It is helpful to use the OSDE rubric for 8th grade writing.

Due to recursive nature of the standards, it is essential that teachers are aware of how all objectives within and between strands work together for optimal instruction.