AASA Writing
These are the steps you need to complete, in order, when writing an essay.
Read and TAP-F prompt, read and annotate sources, complete flee map (starting with the thesis), rough draft, color code, revise and edit, type, read through finished essay again.
In the sentence The students finished their project quietly, what part of speech is "quietly"?
Adverb
What type of figurative language is used in this sentence?
The classroom was a zoo during the last five minutes of school.
Metaphor
"The kitten was so famished that it ate its food in seconds."
Name a synonym of the word "famished"
Starving, hungry, ravenous
A story in which the plot revolves around a natural disaster contains which type of conflict?
Man vs. Nature
When color-coding your rough draft, which colors will you need (list ALL possible)? Double points if you can say what part of the essay each color is for.
Correct this sentence:
A. There's so many cats in this room!
There are so many cats in this room!
What type of figurative language is used here?
The leaves danced across the sidewalk.
Personification
The professor’s lecture was so monotonous that several students struggled to stay awake.
What does monotonous mean? Bonus points: What part of speech is it?
Adj. Extremely dull or boring
What three things are introduced in a story's exposition?
Character, setting, and conflict
If you are stuck on the spelling of a word when taking the AASA writing test, how can you try to find the correct spelling? List all possible ways.
Use a dictionary, a thesaurus, or look in the prompt or sources for that word.
The students were excited about Spring Break.
Subject: students
Verb: were
What does the idiom “hit the books” mean?
To start studying
"The magician used sleight of hand, moving his fingers so quickly that the audience couldn’t see the trick."
What does sleight most nearly mean?
Skilled, clever hand movements
Throughout the story, clues slowly reveal that the friendly neighbor might actually be the thief.
Which part of the plot is this most likely part of?
Rising Action
While revising and editing, you notice that your elaborative techniques are repetitive and do not fully explain your evidence, so you make some changes to them. Should you use a red or blue pen to make these changes?
Red pen (revising)
In the sentence, "I hate waking up early; therefore, I think that schools should start 30 minutes later!" What part of speech is "therefore"?
Conjunctive adverb
What figurative language is used in this sentence?
After studying all night, Jake said the test would be a piece of cake.
Idiom
"The valley was arid, meaning it received almost no rain during the year."
What type of context clue is used?
Definition context clue
The author hints several times that the old bridge might collapse later in the story.
What literary element is this?
Foreshadowing
On the AASA writing rubric, what are the main things that students are graded on in the Purpose, Focus, and Organization category?
Thesis statement (clear controlling idea), smooth transitions, logical progression of ideas from beginning to end, appropriate style and tone
Correct the error(s) in this sentence:
everyone in the class have there chromebook but susy forgot theres..
Everyone in the class has their Chromebook, but Susy forgot hers.
When the teacher announced a surprise quiz, the room went dead silent.
Hyperbole
"The instructions were ambiguous, leaving several students confused about what they were supposed to do."
What type of context clue is used to help you understand "ambiguous"? Bonus points: What does it mean?
Example context clue
Ambiguous: adj. unclear, vague, confusing
A story begins with a student nervous about giving a speech. In the middle of the story, the student practices, gets advice from a teacher, and gains confidence. At the end, the student gives the speech successfully and realizes they are braver than they thought.
What is the theme of this story?
Facing your fears, practice builds confidence, or people can grow braver by trying.