Continuum for Assessing Opinion/Argument Writing - The Reading ...

Elaboration/
Development
Craft
• Amount and variety of details
o The writer at this level uses a wider variety of information to
support his or her opinion. The writer may include personal
anecdotes, facts, explanations, or draw relevant information
from social, print and digital sources.
o
At this stage the writer may begin to make more clearly stated
connections between facts or evidence presented and the
relationship of this evidence to the topic or opinion.
Sometimes this may appear as causal relationships (If we did
X, than of course Y would happen...) or as a restatement of
the main point (This shows you how...).
• Authority of information
o Writers at this level are beginning to include more
specialized, domain-specific information (e.g. “Many animals
are killed to make only one fur coat.”
• Selectivity of information
o As in previous levels, the writer demonstrates awareness that
they are addressing one slant on a topic. The writer’s opinion
is becoming more nuanced and specific.
o There is a sense that the writer has selected information
specifically in order to support his or her opinion and that the
writer understands that certain examples will better support
the opinion given. These examples will be more elaborate
and detailed.
• Elaboration
o After introducing each reason for his or her opinion, the
writer produces substantially more supportive text than at
previous levels, demonstrating an understanding of the layers
of elaboration of an opinion piece. He or she may give
several examples to support a reason or elaborate on one
example with great detail.
o
The writer gives more than one reason for his or her opinion.
The reasons are mostly equal in weight and/or treatment.
• The writer links opinions and reasons using transitional words and
phrases (for instance, in order to, in addition).
• The writer will continue to demonstrate an awareness of audience. He or
she may continue to use the word “you” or pose rhetorical questions (e.g.
“Do you like dogs Well I think people should take better care of their
pets.”)
• The writer will utilize known craft moves for the purposes of persuading
his or her reader, and will do this with more consistency than at previous
levels. For instance, when seeking to prove that people should take
better care of their pets, the writer might use descriptive detail to recount
the sight of a dirty, unkempt dog or dialogue to show the way a dog
K-8 Continuum for Assessing Opinion Writing - TCRWP 2011
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DRAFT
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