Middle School English Language Arts Instructional Guide

Standard: Writing 4

Learning Intentions and Success Criteria

Learning Intentions: ●​ Students will be able to understand how to conduct short research projects effectively. ●​ Students will be able to learn how to gather and synthesize information from credible sources. ●​ Students will be able to generate ideas to demonstrate understanding of the topic under investigation. ●​ Students will be able to avoid plagiarism by properly quoting or paraphrasing and providing bibliographic information for sources. ●​ Students will be able to interact and collaborate with others throughout the research and writing process. Success Criteria: ●​ I can conduct a short research project to craft an argument or answer a question. ●​ I can gather and synthesize information from credible sources. ●​ I can generate ideas to demonstrate my understanding of the topic under investigation. ●​ I can avoid plagiarism by properly quoting or paraphrasing and providing bibliographic information for my sources. ●​ I can interact and collaborate with others throughout the research and writing process.

Conduct short research projects to craft an argument or answer a question. a. ​ Gather, synthesize , and use information from credible sources on the topic. b. ​ Generate ideas to demonstrate understanding of the topic under investigation. c. ​ Avoid plagiarism by quoting or paraphrasing and provide basic bibliographic information for sources. d. ​ Interact and collaborate with others throughout the writing process.

Nouns (Know)

Verbs (Do)

●​ Research Process ●​ Argument ●​ Question ●​ Information ●​ Source ●​ Plagiarism ●​ Quote ●​ Paraphrase ●​ Bibliographic Information ●​ Writing process

●​ Generate Ideas ●​ Research ●​ Cite ●​ Synthesize ●​ Evaluate ●​ Collaborate

Sample Question Stems and Prompts for Discussion ●​ "What strategies can you use to gather and synthesize information from credible sources?" ●​ "Why is it important to provide proper attribution for sources to avoid plagiarism?" ●​ “What steps do you take to avoid plagiarism when using sources in your writing?” ●​ “How do you determine if a source is credible and reliable for your research project?” ●​ “What strategies do you use to gather information from a variety of sources on a given topic?”

Last Updated September 23rd, 2024 Middle School ELA, Page 116