ESSAY GUIDE
Teaching it
- Either give the students a topic/prompt to write about or give them time to choose one on their own.
- Give the students time to write. Encourage them to reference materials and resources from previous activities.
- Have the students share what they wrote.
Length and format: Keep in mind that the length and format of essay activities can vary. Short answer essay assignments (1-3 pages long) give students a chance to share what they have learned, but they don’t take as long to complete. At the same time, some topics cannot be sufficiently explored in just a few pages. In addition, some essays require research, but others merely require students to use materials, resources, and knowledge gained during previous lessons.
Sharing: Students can share the contents of their essays in a variety of ways. In most cases, students will be required to turn in their essays for grading. Beyond this, however, students can summarize their essays for a partner or small group. They can also give presentations, or read a few of their classmates’ essays and give feedback. You could even have an essay contest; students could read each other’s essays and vote to decide which of them should be published in the school newspaper.
Peer review: Between drafts, consider having the students read each other’s essays and provide constructive feedback. This practice puts the learning, and even the teaching, back into the hands of students. It also reinforces the democratic concept of community, as students are encouraged to pool their knowledge to produce better essays as a class.
Click here to access peer review resources:
ASSESSING IT
Essays may be used to measure students’ mastery of the knowledge and/or skills they were meant to obtain during a lesson or lesson activity. They make great summative performance tasks. They also give students a chance to practice making arguments supported by evidence.
Content-based criteria for specific essay activities can be found within the Protecting Our Waters lesson plans.
This detailed guide outlines strategies for grading essays. It contains general assessment criteria and sample rubrics, as well as a section about allowing students to create their own rubrics.