Focus Question: How do we analyze an expository essay?
During this lesson, students revisit the expository model from Lesson 2. Through the class discussion about the expository model, students engage in critical thinking about the techniques and terms they’ve learned. Students will also add to their understanding of tone and audience as those terms relate to expository writing.
Part 1
“Now, I’d like to share a quick proverb before we get started today. I know writing can be more or less difficult for any one person. It is work, even for the talented, professional writer. This ancient African proverb reads, ‘How do you eat an elephant? …One bite at a time.’ This seems a very simple and slightly comical notion, but it’s a good reminder. Through diligence and attention to your work, you can see your writing develop in much the same way—one step at a time.”
Tell students, “Over the past few lessons, we have looked at a variety of expository pieces and learned how information can be organized to best serve each topic’s purpose and audience. You have done much of your prewriting and now you will begin writing the first draft of your expository essay. Once you have completed your final draft, you will use the information from your essay to create a 2 to 5 minute presentation. Your presentation can be a speech, video, podcast, PowerPoint presentation, or other method that will allow you to effectively share your information with your peers.”
Before students begin their first draft, discuss how audience and tone considerations affect students’ decisions about not only WHAT they say but also HOW they say it. “Now that you’re thinking of how you’re going to write your expository piece, this is a good time to look more critically at audience and tone. Tone is the author’s attitude regarding the subject, and it is created by the writer’s choice of words. The tone of a piece could be serious, humorous, mocking, satiric, disdainful, appreciative, etc. This term goes with audience. Consideration of audience and tone will affect how you should be writing. Keep asking yourself, ‘Does the tone I’m using show the feeling or effect that I want?’ ‘Am I writing to my audience in a way that will make them want to continue reading?’ If you were writing a paper for an employer or a teacher, how does that affect your writing? You might ask yourself, ‘Will he or she feel as though I’m writing in a professional and polished manner?’”
“Remember the expository piece on searching for a new apartment, using process analysis? Who do you think is the intended audience for this piece of information?” (People who are also searching for apartments.) “My writing is going to be a sort of ‘Apartment Search Guide’ for newcomers to apartment living. I know I should be respectful, clear, and formal. I will avoid using humor or negative language because my goal is to empower those people and give them confidence in using this information.”
There is a nice excerpt from The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr. and E. B. White (70) that can serve as a useful guide for using tone in comparison to audience:
Write in a way that draws the reader’s (audience’s) attention to the sense and substance of the writing, rather than to the mood and temper of the author. If the writing is solid and good, the mood and temper of the writer will eventually be revealed and not at the expense of the work… As you become proficient in the use of language, your style will emerge, because you yourself will emerge.
“At your desk, write down five possible writing topics off the top of your head. These topics can be completely unrelated or have commonalities. Once you have five, write down what you think the tone should be for each. Consider the emotion, attitude, and word choices that would be appropriate. Finally, follow up your notes on tone with what your audience might be for each of the five topics. Is your audience a fan base for a sports team? Would senators or delegates be interested? Is it concerned with pop culture, music, the environment, etc.? Who is reading your writing? It’s always an important question to ask. Once you’ve completed this task, turn to the classmate beside you to compare findings. Ask these questions:
- How did you decide on the tone for your topics?
- How do you think the writing would be received by your intended audience?
- Are there other choices for tone or audience that you might consider, and how would that change the writing?”
Have students share some of their findings with the whole class. After this discussion, ask students if they have any questions about tone with regard to their topic.
Part 2
“At this point you’re almost done with the prewriting activities necessary to write your first draft of your expository piece. There are brainstorming notes, notes about possible topics, and then you have your final selection of topic, purpose, audience, and an organizational strategy. Now tone needs to be considered. Take the next few minutes to write down what your tone should be in your writing as dictated by your audience. Of course, your classmates and I are a part of your audience, but you can think outside of the classroom. What group of people might be interested or curious about your topic? Who would benefit from this information?” Have students add this prewriting to their writing portfolio.
“Before you begin your initial draft of your expository paper, let’s examine the draft of an expository piece about searching for a new apartment. You will all have a chance to apply the terms and strategies you’ve been learning to examine the writing. Studying other writers is always helpful in understanding your own writing. In this way we can learn from what others have done.” Hand out the expository writing piece “Finding a New Apartment” and display it on the overhead (L-C-4-2_Finding a New Apartment.doc).
“The handout is a draft of an expository piece ‘Finding a New Apartment.’ After making notes on the topic, organization, details, and tone/audience, the writer attempted a draft. We’ll go through the piece as a class and discuss it afterward. I’ll read the opening paragraph, and then we’ll need some readers.” This example essay serves as a diagnostic, a way for students to consider the methods and terms of expository writing from an objective point of view. Their own writing is often so close to them it is difficult to regard it with an impersonal eye. By working with them in examining writing that is not their own, they can begin to feel more comfortable applying that same “editorial eye” to their own writing. Read through the example essay so they can hear the progression. Afterward, ask questions to dissect the writing.
“Now that you’ve heard the essay, I’d like to hear from you.”
- “First, can someone tell us what the topic is?” The process involved in finding the right apartment to fit your needs.
- “Does this essay use the process/analysis organizational strategy? How do you know?” Yes, because it uses sequence and order of action to explain the process or series of steps involved in finding an apartment.
- “What are some of the key details?” You need to gather information, develop contacts, and be proactive in your search. You need to find out what types of apartments are in your area and in your price range. You should visit the apartment and talk with the caretaker or property manager. Get enough information about the property to make an informed decision before you sign a lease.
- “Is there a tone that we recognize? How would you describe it?” Although the essay is formal in nature, it hints at a personal approach to the audience.
- “Are there changes we might make? How would that affect the essay?” If you changed the tone to very formal and impersonal, it would read much more like a how-to paper, but it would lose the narrator’s connection to the audience.
- “Is there another organizational strategy that might be useful? Would that change the essay greatly? How so?” If you changed this into a problem-solution essay, it would provide a different perspective on the issue. The information provided might include some of what is in the essay now, such as cost and location, but it would take into consideration other aspects of apartment hunting. In addition, you would lose the information about the process of finding an apartment.
Part 3
Have students complete an appropriate graphic organizer that fits the chosen organizational strategy for the topic. Then have students begin a first draft of the expository essay, suggested length: 500–700 word or two-page minimum. Once students have had an opportunity to complete this initial draft, have them engage in a peer-editing review. Students should then have time for a revision of this draft to apply peer feedback and make any other changes needed prior to turning it in for your review and feedback.
While students await your feedback on their initial drafts, provide time to work on presentations. These should be approximately two to five minutes in length, using whatever medium students feel best presents the information to the class. Students should be encouraged to be creative, but not at the expense of the information they are providing. Provide students with a variety of informational models to help them see the power of quality presentations.
Suggestions:
- clips from sites such as NPR’s ”Wait, wait…don’t tell me!”
http://www.npr.org/templates/rundowns/rundown.php?prgId=35
Since presentations will vary from class to class, it would be beneficial to have students help develop a presentation-specific scoring guide to use for evaluations. This will help to provide students with a reminder of what elements are important for a skillful presentation. Upon completion of the scoring guide, let students work on their individual presentations and then set adequate time aside for students to complete their presentations and student evaluations.
Extension:
- If students have decided to write two topics or to approach their expository topic from two organizational strategies, they will turn in the notes, prewriting, and final drafts as one finished project. Also, if students feel inclined to do more extensive research on their topic(s), they may provide source material and/or a bibliography page.
