Page 95 - The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 9 and 10: English, 2007 (Revised)

Grade 10, Applied
4. Reflecting on Skills and Strategies
THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 9 AND 10 | English
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Publishing
3.6 use several different presentation features, including print and script, fonts, graphics, and layout, to improve the clarity and coherence
of their written work and to engage their audi- ence (e.g., select appropriate visuals, graphics, and typefaces for an advertisement; format a letter to the editor of a newspaper; create a new book cover for a text)
Teacher prompts: “What should your letter look like, in order to create a good impres- sion?” “How does changing the font size make the book jacket more ‘reader friendly’?”
Producing Finished Works
3.7 produce pieces of published work to meet criteria identified by the teacher, based on the curriculum expectations (e.g., adequate development of information and ideas, logical organization, appropriate use of form and style, appropriate use of conventions)
Teacher prompt: “Did you find an organiza- tional pattern for your opinion piece that allowed you to include most of the information from your brainstorming?”
By the end of this course, students will:
Metacognition
4.1 describe several different strategies they used before, during, and after writing; explain which ones they found most helpful; and identify several specific steps they can take to improve as writers (e.g., compare the process used in different types of writing and discuss which they found easier and why; share what they have learned about one form of writing that they could transfer to another form)
Teacher prompts: “What similarities did you notice between the process of writing a nar- rative and the process of writing a news story?“ “What type of feedback did you find most helpful?” “Identify a specific area of weakness in your writing and suggest how you could improve your skills in this area.”
Interconnected Skills
4.2 identify several different skills they have in lis- tening, speaking, reading, viewing, and repre- senting and explain how the skills help them write more effectively (e.g., explain how talking through their thinking on a topic with a partner or in a small group has helped them organize their ideas for writing)
Teacher prompt: “Can thinking ‘on your feet’ as you explain something to another person help you distinguish between more impor- tant and less important ideas?”
Portfolio
4.3 select several examples of different types of writing that they think most clearly reflect their growth and competence as writers and explain the reasons for their choice (e.g., identify work that tested their writing skills in new ways and explain how they successfully met the challenge)
Teacher prompts: “How did you determine what was your best work?” “What piece are you most proud of? Why?”