1. Imagine that you have just come into your kitchen and that the poem below is a note left for you on the kitchen table. Who wrote the note? How do you feel? What do you do?
Write a story about what happens next.
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THIS IS JUST TO SAY I have eaten the plums that were in the icebox* and which you were probably saving for breakfast Forgive me they were delicious so sweet and so cold |
*”Icebox” is another word for refrigerator.
“This is Just to Say” by William Carlos Williams, from Collected Poems: 1909-1939,
volume 1. Copyright (c) 1938 by New Directions Publishing Corp. Reprinted by permission of New Directions Publishing Corp.
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Scoring Guide
| Score & Description |
| Excellent
• Tells a clear story that is consistently well developed and detailed; details enhance story being told. • Is well organized; integrates narrative events into a smooth telling; effective transitions move the story forward. • Consistently exhibits variety in sentence structure and precision in word choice. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation are few and do not interfere with understanding. |
| Skillful
• Tells a clear story that is well developed and elaborated with details in much of the response. • Is well organized with story elements that are connected across most of the response; may have occasional lapses in transitions. • Exhibits some variety in sentence structure and uses good word choice; occasionally, words may be used inaccurately. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation do not interfere with understanding. |
| Sufficient
• Tells a clear story that is developed with some pertinent details. • Is generally organized, but transitions among parts of the story may be lacking. • Sentence structure may be simple and unvaried; word choice is mostly accurate. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation do not interfere with understanding. |
| Uneven
May be characterized by one or more of the following: • Tells a story that may be clear and developed in parts; other parts are unfocused, repetitive, or minimally developed OR response is no more than a well-written beginning. • Is organized in parts of the response; other parts are disjointed and/or lack transitions. • Exhibits uneven control over sentence boundaries and sentence structure; may exhibit some inaccurate word choices. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation sometimes interfere with understanding. |
| Insufficient
May be characterized by one or more of the following: • Attempts to tell a story, but is very undeveloped, list-like, or fragmentary. • Is disorganized or unfocused in much of the response OR the response is too brief to detect organization. • Minimal control over sentence boundaries and sentence structure; word choice may often be inaccurate. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation interfere with understanding in much of the response. |
| Unsatisfactory
May be characterized by one or more of the following: • Responds to prompt but provides little or no coherent content OR merely paraphrases the prompt. • Has little or no apparent organization. • Minimal or no control over sentence boundaries and sentence structure; word choice may be inaccurate in much or all of the response. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation severely impede understanding across the response. |
2. Many people in this country care more about the way they look and having a lot of nice things, like cars and clothes, than about the problems of society. They do not pay enough attention to problems such as crime, poverty, or unemployment.
Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Write an essay in which you explain your opinion.
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Scoring Guide
| Score & Description |
| Excellent
• Information is presented effectively and consistently supported with well-chosen details. • Is focused and well organized, with a sustained controlling idea and effective use of transitions. • Consistently exhibits variety in sentence structure and precision in word choice. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation are few and do not interfere with understanding. |
| Skillful
• Information is presented clearly and supported with pertinent details in much of the response. • Is well organized, but may lack some transitions. • Exhibits some variety in sentence structure and uses good word choice; occasionally, words may be used inaccurately. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation do not interfere with understanding. |
| Sufficient
• Information is presented clearly and supported with some pertinent details. • Is generally organized, but has few or no transitions among parts. • Sentence structure may be simple and unvaried; word choice is mostly accurate. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation do not interfere with understanding. |
| Uneven
May be characterized by one or more of the following: • Information is presented clearly in parts; other parts are undeveloped or repetitive OR response is no more than a well-written beginning. • Is organized in parts of the response; other parts are disjointed and/or lack transitions. • Exhibits uneven control over sentence boundaries and sentence structure; may exhibit some inaccurate word choices. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation sometimes interfere with understanding. |
| Insufficient
May be characterized by one or more of the following: • Provides information that is very undeveloped or list-like. • Is disorganized or unfocused in much of the response OR the response is too brief to detect organization. • Minimal control over sentence boundaries and sentence structure; word choice may often be inaccurate. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation interfere with understanding in much of the response. |
| Unsatisfactory
May be characterized by one or more of the following: • Responds to prompt but may be incoherent OR provides very minimal information OR merely paraphrases the prompt. • Exhibits little or no apparent organization. • Minimal or no control over sentence boundaries and sentence structure; word choice may be inaccurate in much or all of the response. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation severely impede understanding across the response. |
3. The twentieth century has given us inventions that have changed our lives in many ways. Big inventions, like television, computers, or microwave ovens, have had such a great impact on our culture that they seem to overshadow the small ones, like ballpoint pens, headphones, or calculators.
Write an essay in which you argue whether the “big” inventions or the “small” ones play a more important role in your daily life and provide reasons to support your position. You may use the examples of inventions given above or come up with some of your own. Give as many examples as you feel necessary to support your position.
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Scoring Guide
| Score & Description |
| Excellent
• Takes a clear position and supports it consistently with well-chosen reasons and/or examples; may use persuasive strategy to convey an argument. • Is focused and well organized, with effective use of transitions. • Consistently exhibits variety in sentence structure and precision in word choice. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation are few and do not interfere with understanding. |
| Skillful
• Takes a clear position and supports it with pertinent reasons and/or examples through much of the response. • Is well organized, but may lack some transitions. • Exhibits some variety in sentence structure and uses good word choice; occasionally, words may be used inaccurately. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation do not interfere with understanding. |
| Sufficient
• Takes a clear position and supports it with some pertinent reasons and/or examples; there is some development. • Is generally organized, but has few or no transitions among parts. • Sentence structure may be simple and unvaried; word choice is mostly accurate. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation do not interfere with understanding. |
| Uneven
May be characterized by one or more of the following: • Takes a position and provides uneven support; may lack development in parts or be repetitive OR response is no more than a well-written beginning. • Is organized in parts of the response; other parts are disjointed and/or lack transitions. • Exhibits uneven control over sentence boundaries and sentence structure; may exhibit some inaccurate word choices. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation sometimes interfere with understanding. |
| Insufficient
May be characterized by one or more of the following: • Takes a position but response is very undeveloped. • Is disorganized or unfocused in much of the response OR clear but very brief. • Minimal control over sentence boundaries and sentence structure; word choice may often be inaccurate. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation interfere with understanding in much of the response. |
| Unsatisfactory
May be characterized by one or more of the following: • Attempts to take a position (addresses topic) but position is very unclear OR takes a position, but provides minimal or no support; may only paraphrase the prompt. • Has little or no apparent organization. • Minimal or no control over sentence boundaries and sentence structure; word choice may be inaccurate in much or all of the response. • Errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation severely impede understanding across the response. |