Mechelle Reynolds and Beth Rackliffe

Goals:

The focus for our Moodle Course is designed to introduce some of the 4th grade California writing standards. Through the various tasks on Moodle, we hope to have distance students create and edit various, coherent compositions; including narratives, literary responses, and summaries. They will received feedback from the instructors and fellow classmates about proper organization and structure.

Objectives:

1.0 Writing Strategies
Students write clear, coherent sentences and paragraphs that develop a central idea. Their writing shows they consider the audience and purpose. Students progress through the stages of the writing process (e.g., prewriting, drafting, revising, editing successive versions).

1.1 Select a focus, an organizational structure, and a point of view based upon purpose, audience, length, and format requirements.
1.2 Create multiple-paragraph compositions:
a. Provide an introductory paragraph.
b. Establish and support a central idea with a topic sentence at or near the beginning of the first paragraph.
c. Include supporting paragraphs with simple facts, details, and explanations.
d. Conclude with a paragraph that summarizes the points.
e. Use correct indention.

2.0 Writing Applications (Genres and Their Characteristics)
Students write compositions that describe and explain familiar objects, events, and experiences. Student writing demonstrates a command of standard American English and the drafting, research, and organizational strategies outlined in Writing Standard 1.0.

Using the writing strategies of grade four outlined in Writing Standard 1.0, students:

2.1 Write narratives:
a. Relate ideas, observations, or recollections of an event or experience.
b. Provide a context to enable the reader to imagine the world of the event or experience.
c. Use concrete sensory details.
d. Provide insight into why the selected event or experience is memorable.

2.2 Write responses to literature:
a. Demonstrate an understanding of the literary work.
b. Support judgments through references to both the text and prior knowledge.

2.4 Write summaries that contain the main ideas of the reading selection and the most significant details.