1. ANSWERING EXTENDED RESPONSES Writing Better Answers

2. What is the question asking you to do?  Check the verbs!  How many parts does the question have?  How many pieces of information are expected?

3. Verbs tell you what to do  Analyze: separate into parts  Compare: examine similarities and differences  Contrast: examine differences only

4. Verbs tell you what to do  Define: identify the meaning of necessary qualities of something  Evaluate: judge according to appropriate criteria

5. Structure of response  TTQA  Gist statement  Details to support gist  Concluding statement

6. Turn That Question Around  Question: What did you do last night when you got home from school?  Last night when I got home from school I…

7. Turn That Question Around  Open: Last night when I got home from school I…  Closed: Last night when I got home I did several things.

8. What is a Gist Statement?  A general answer, a big idea, that does not contain important details.  Example: Last night when I got home from school I had fun. (What do you mean? How did you have fun?)

9. Details to support Gist statement  A Gist statement should raise questions that you should answer with appropriate details.

10. Details to support Gist statement  Last night when I got home from school I had fun.  I took my dog for a walk.  My best friend Matt and I rode bikes.  My family made homemade pizzas for dinner.

11. Concluding Statement  Brings all the ideas together and points back to the main topic.  After sharing an afternoon and evening with my friends and family, I went to bed tired and happy.

12. Now try one yourself!  Explain why Tris’ aptitude test showed she was Divergent. Take each scenario step by step to justify Tori’s conclusion.