Megan Wyatt

Dr. Leslie Cook

English 3580
8 December 2015
Annotated Bibliography
Akhondi, Masoumeh, Faramarz Aziz Malayeri, and Arshad Abd Samad. "How to Teach
Expository Text Structure to Facilitate Reading Comprehension." Reading Teacher 64.5
(2011): 368-372. Academic Search Complete. Web. 12 Nov. 2015.
The article discusses the importance of reading comprehension in regards to
understanding expository texts and writing. The article encourages the use of graphic
organizers when teaching writing. Specific word phrases are also included to help
students to write using description, sequence, compare/contrast, cause/effect, and
problem/solution. The authors claim that teaching students how to read and understand
expository texts is the first step in teaching expository writing. After students are familiar
with expository texts, they will know what information needs to be included in their own
writing. I think this would be a great method for teaching grades 3-5 how to write.
Chandler-Olcott, Kelly, and John Zeleznik. "Narrative Plus: Designing and Implementing The
Common Core State Standards with The Gift Essay." Language And Literacy Spectrum
23.(2013): 85-100. ERIC. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
In Chandler-Olcotts and Zelezniks article students are given an assignment called The
Gift Essay where they go into the community and ask the question, How do our
relationships help and hinder us? The project helped students to be involved in the
community by talking to family members and community members. This experience
allowed students to write about important aspects of their life. With this essay, students
show pride by writing about the positives of their community. At the end of the
assignment, students shared the essays with their family members and mentors. The
family members and mentors that were moved by the students writing. This showed
students the impact of their writing and why writing is important. I think this would be a
great tool to use in a middle school or high school writing class when teaching narratives.
The projects allows the students to practice social skills as well as writing skills. An
alteration to this project would be to post the students essays in the local or school
newspaper.
Chandrasegaran, Antonia. "Secondary School Students' Stance-Support Strategies in Online
Discussion: Implications for the Composition Classroom." English in Education 40.2
(2006): 22-39. Education Source. Web. 18 Oct. 2015.
Chandrasegarans article describes an online school-administered forum as a tool to teach
writing to secondary school students. The forum asks the students to have a friendly
argument in an informal manner where students provide evidence to back up their stance.
The informal manner makes students feel more comfortable with their writing because it

is not harshly graded. The students may choose topics to debate that they feel strongly
about. This activity helps with the development of students claims and helped them to
gain command of the language necessary for argument writing. I think this type of
activity could be useful in a high school writing classroom as an introduction to a unit
about teaching argumentative writing.
Gardner, Traci. Lesson Plan: Spend a Day in My Shoes: Exploring the Role of Perspective in
Narrative. ReadWriteThink. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
In Gardners writing activity students explore the role of perspective in Harper Lees To
Kill a Mockingbird. The students are asked to think about Atticus quote, "You never
really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view...until you
climb into his skin and walk around in it". Next the students are asked to examine
different shoes and choose one pair of shoes to write a short story about. After the activity
have students share with a partner and compare. I think this is a good activity because it
promotes creativity while teaching students the meaning of perspective. This activity can
be used in any high school or middle school English class to explore perspective.
Examples can be used from any book, not just To Kill a Mockingbird.
Montelongo, Jos, et al. "A Lesson Cycle for Teaching Expository Reading and Writing."
Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy 53.8 (2010): 656-666. Academic Search
Complete. Web. 12 Nov. 2015.
Montelongos article is a great resource for teaching expository writing. This article
includes several examples of different types of expository writing including compare and
contrast, cause and effect, and problem and solution. Montelongo proposes a four part
lesson cycle to teach expository writing. The four part cycle includes the introduction of
vocabulary related to expository writing, understanding different types of text sturctures,
a modified sentence completion activity where students organize the information, and
finally rewriting the text into original compositions. I think that this four part plan could
be useful but only in the younger stages of learning expository writing like elementary
school.
Petit, Angela, and Edna Soto. "Already Experts: Showing Students How Much They Know
About Writing and Reading Arguments." Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy 45.8
(2002): 674-682. Education Source. Web. 18 Oct. 2015.
Petits article describes the fact that many students find the genre of argumentative
writing to be intimidating. The countless rhetoric terms involved with persuasion and
argumentative writing can be overwhelming. To show students how much they already
know about argument writing, the article says to have a work shop where students work
together in groups to create arguments and then present them to their peers. The
workshop progresses from informal oral arguments to informal analyses of the
arguments, and then finally to formal writing assignments. The workshop makes students

realize that they have been dealing with persuasion their whole lives. This serves to make
writing not seem so intimidating. I think this activity could be used in an English
classroom as an introduction to teaching argument writing. I like that the assignments go
up in steps from simple to more complex.
Radcliffe, Barbara J. "Narrative as a Springboard for Expository and Persuasive Writing: James
Moffett Revisited." Voices from the Middle 19.3 (2012): 18-24. ERIC. Web. 12 Nov.
2015.
Radcliffes article describes ways in which narrative writing can be used to facilitate in
teaching expository writing. The article claims that the switch in middle school from
narrative writing to a more academic writing like expository writing can cause negative
effect on student writing. This switch can cause student writing to become plain,
uninvolved, and formulaic. Radcliffes solution to the problem is to use narrative writing
as a springboard, or a starting place, for expository writing. In the article, the author gets
students to write a narrative about a very serious topic, teen violence. Then the students
writing is scaffolder through progression from narrative to expository writing. I think
Radcliffes method of teaching expository writing would be a great idea because it allows
students to use what they already know in order to develop a new way of writing. I would
use this in my classroom during a transition between narrative and expository writing.
Smith, Gilly. "Dream Writing: A New Creative Writing Technique For Secondary Schools?."
English in Education 3 (2013): 245. Academic OneFile. Web. 21 Sept.
2015.
Smiths article describes a technique called dream writing where students use automatic
writing inspired by the surrealists to get ideas out of their heads and onto paper. The
dream writing aims to teach the power of students own dreams by harnessing day dreams
and imagination into topics for creative writing. In the activity students sit without talking
and write whatever comes to their mind. I think this activity would be helpful as a free
write activity before writing a narrative. This activity is useful because students are
relaxed and there are no rules. Dream writing can be used to promote voice and create
feeling and description in students writing.

Stygall, Gail. "Toulmin and the Ethics of Argument Fields: Teaching Writing and Argument."
Journal of Teaching Writing 6.1 (1987): 93-107. ERIC. Web. 18 Oct. 2015.
Stygalls article describes the importance of teaching the Toulmin Model. It describes the
four parts to argument writing, data, warrant, backing, and claim. The importance of
multiple viewpoints when forming and defending an argument is also discussed in the
article. I think that the Toulmin Model is a great way to teach argument writing. I would
use it in my class room as a tool to help students develop their arguments. Activities to
practice writing warrants can be used when teaching the Toulmin Model. I really liked the

part of this article about seeing multiple viewpoints because it is important for students to
develop a counter claim.