1. Today’s goals Continue discussion of informative writing skills
Consider how to increase audience interest in informative writing
Practice informative writing organizational strategies

2. Class discussion- wti essays
How long should our informative essays be?
Are our informative essays open or closed form prose?
What are the 5 informative writing skills we have discussed in class?
What are the main organizational strategies for news writing?
What is the difference between a hard and soft lead?

3. Informative writing skills
Verify your facts and data
Use specific facts, details, and examples
Make the information interesting
Organize information appropriately
Be concise; do not include unnecessary information

4. Class discussion- engagement and reader knowledge
When you read news or web articles, what do you consider to be interesting or engaging?
How will you make your informative essays interesting to your audience?
What are some of the obvious differences between bats and birds that you already know?
If you were writing to inform your audience about bats and/or birds, what kinds of details would you look for to make a comparison more interesting and engaging?

5. Group activity- engagement and reader knowledge

6. Informative writing – engagement strategies
Consider your audience’s knowledge and attitudes before reading
Focus on information that is new or surprising
Make analogies and comparisons to things your readers are familiar with
Support your claims with powerful evidence

7. Informative writing skills- organization
Main strategies –
Old to new (aka chronological)
General to specific (Often used in informative essays but more rare in news writing)
Inverted pyramid (Most common news writing strategy)

8. Group Activity- organize informative essays
In your unit 2 groups
Do exercise 8.3 on pages
For each of the two examples, develop a theoretical outline that organizes the information presented according to the strategies in the reading

9. Group activity- organize informative essays
In your unit 2 groups
Organize the following points following general to specific and chronological order formats
Seasonal Allergies essay
Worst time of year for allergies
Different kinds of allergies in my family
How drowsy allergy medications make me
Other allergies that could make studying difficult
What might be making pollen counts rise
Allergy symptoms
Dangers-overmedication and trigger asthma
Treatments – medication and non-medication
What causes these allergies
How I did poorly on final exams because my allergies were so bad

10. Group activity- organize informative essays
In your unit 2 groups
Organize the following points following general to specific and chronological order formats
Comic collecting essay
Buying and selling comics
Protecting
Why collect comics
How I got started collecting
Famous comic book artists
Which comics are the most desirable
Comic book collecting association (CBCA)
The history of comic books
Grading scale for comic book condition
My favorite series
Where to find comics
Stereotypes of comic book collectors
Conventions examples of valuable comics

11. Note: Activities adapted from Ideas & Aims p. 226 and 234

12. WTR Outline Introduction: Supporting evidence Conclusion Sources Hook:
Thesis:
Lead strategy: (soft, hard, or buried lead)
Supporting evidence
Organization strategy: (chronological or inverted pyramid)
3+ quotes
2+ data or statistics (if available)
Conclusion
Clincher
Sources
List the article names and websites of the 2 sources you will be using

13. homework WTR Outline: Due Monday 10-30 typed and brought to class
Should include key informative writing elements (see previous slide)