Sample Tasks/ Scoring Guides - Writing

For the OSSLT, writing is defined as a constructive process of communicating in the forms in which students are expected to write according to the expectations in The Ontario Curriculum across all subjects up to the end of Grade 9.

Through a combination of short- and long-writing tasks, the OSSLT focuses on three writing skills:

• developing a main idea with specific supporting details;

• organizing information and ideas in a coherent manner and

• applying conventions (syntax, spelling, grammar, punctuation, usage) in a manner that does not distract from clear communication.

The lined space provided for written work indicates the approximate length of the writing expected.

There are two long-writing tasks: a news report and a series of paragraphs expressing an opinion.

• Students are required to write a news report based on the picture and headline provided. Students must find a link between the headline and the photograph that could be used as an event for a report that would appear in a newspaper. Students are given one lined page for their written work.

• A news report usually answers the questions who, what, where, when, why and how.

Note: Students should not write an advertisement, a television or radio report, a dialogue or a report about an event that will take place in the future. They should write about an event that has occurred in the past in order to inform readers about the event.

Students must make sure that

• the response is related to the picture and headline;

• the response contains sufficient and specific information and facts related to the event;

• the response is coherent and organized;

• the response is written in the third person with a reportorial tone and

• the grammar, spelling, punctuation and sentence structure are correct.

• The topic will be current and familiar to teenagers.

• The student must write a minimum of, but is not limited to, three paragraphs, which include an introduction, development (may include more than one paragraph) and a conclusion. Students are given two lined pages for their written work.

• The student must express an opinion and support it with details. The opinion must be stated clearly at the beginning or end of the response.

• The student must adequately support the opinion with reasons, examples or facts.

Students must make sure that

• the opinion is clearly stated;

• they have provided enough specific detail to

support it;

• the response is coherent and organized and

• the grammar, spelling, punctuation and sentence

structure are correct.

These tasks will give students the opportunity to demonstrate their writing skills using their knowledge and personal experience. Responses must be written in complete sentences. Students are given six lines for their written response.

There are three types of writing questions on the OSSLT: long-writing tasks, short-writing tasks and multiple-choice questions.