10 Things Sample

As students work on their 10 Things project, they may need some guidance from you (and me) as they get closer to being "done." Now our slogan in class whenever we're writing anything is "When you're done, you've just begun." Students, no matter what their age or where they live, tend to want to rush through things just to get them done. I try to push them to go beyond that--to strive to create the best possible work that they can. 

So here are a couple of ways you can help them do that...

• Check out my Sample 10 Things Project. This is one that I'm making. I only have 7 things so far, but when you see it, it will be clear what kinds of things they should be trying to do with theirs. CLICK HERE to see it.
• We used a checklist in class to help us peer edit each other's paragraphs. This checklist tells you exactly what each of the 10 paragraphs should have. Here it is...

_______ The paragraph has a topic sentence.  (One thing I love is…)

_______  There are 3 facts about the topic.

_______ There are 3 reasons why the person loves this thing

_______  Each reason has at least one sentence of explanation.

_______  The paragraph has a concluding sentence that restates the topic.

_______  At least 3 Linking words/phrases are used (In conclusion, in addition, also, another, etc.)

_______  Paragraph has at least 10 sentences

_______  Paragraph is indented

_______  No spelling errors

_______  No capitalization errors

_______ No punctuation errors

_______ NSTSWTSW (Sentences begin in different ways)

_______ OAPS (One AND per sentence)

The last two are little codes we use in class. Your child will know what they mean. And if you really want to freak them out, just use my "When you're done, you've just begun" quote on them!

Happy writing! And if you have any questions, be sure to let me know.