EZEH ENGLISH II The Open Ended Response

Short Answer Scoring OBJECTIVE: Learn what it takes to have a good short answer and apply it to your own. You will take a Short Answers Quiz Next Week!

Three Parts to a good short answer: In short answers, you are looking for three important parts. If it has all 3, it is a score 2! When we score short answers, look for these three parts in each one.

CLAIM Clearly and originally states your position Does not simply restate the question using the same words A good topic sentence or thesis statement must always make a claim. A claim is NOT an opinion; it is a position. Do not begin with “I think,” “In my opinion,” etc.

Write a CLAIM statement to answer the following question: What is the best food to eat for an after-school snack?

Assess the following CLAIM statements: I like ice cream. In my opinion, ice cream is the best. The best food to eat for an after school snack is ice cream. Ice cream is delicious and it contains a great deal of calcium, which is necessary for strong bones. Ice cream is the finest snack a student could have upon returning home from a long day at school.

EVIDENCE fact, statistic, example, quotation, or other factual information that specifically proves that you have this ability that you claimed

Now add EVIDENCE to your CLAIM. Which statement is the best EVIDENCE to support this CLAIM?  Ice cream is the finest snack a student could have upon returning home from a long day at school.  Ice cream is delicious.  Ice cream is difficult to make at home.  My grandma has an ice cream maker.  Ice cream is nutritious because it contains calcium and carbohydrates.

COMMENTARY explains the significance of the evidence and how it supports the claim

What COMMENTARY would be most useful to explain and connect the CLAIM and EVIDENCE? Calcium is also in cheese and yogurt, and since it has sugar in it too, ice cream has a lot of carbohydrates. Bread has carbohydrates, but it does not contain much calcium, so it would not be as good a snack as ice cream. Calcium builds strong bones, and the body converts carbohydrates into energy, so ice cream can be extremely beneficial to a growing body.

Now look at how the CLAIM, EVIDENCE, and COMMENTARY together make a strong and focused response to the original question… What is the best food to eat for an after-school snack?

How could we edit this so that it flows more smoothly?  Ice cream is the finest snack a student could have upon returning home from a long day at school. Ice cream is nutritious because it contains calcium and carbohydrates. Calcium builds strong bones, and the body converts carbohydrates into energy, so ice cream can be extremely beneficial to a growing body.

A Sample 2… This short answer is good because it has the three important parts: Proof and opinion. These two parts connect with similar words.

A Sample 2…

A Sample 2 crossover… This short answer is good because has an opinion, it makes a solid connection between the two stories and proves it good, connecting text. (opinion + proof + connection)

Let’s look at that sample again… Claim: Evidence: Commentary:

HOMEWORK Use CLAIM-EVIDENCE-COMMENTARY to answer the following question: What ability or talent do you have that makes you special?