Success Series Two Folders

The covers of thirty-six folders are drawn by elementary students to serve as prompts for the writing on the inside and back of each folder. I have written all the pieces based on the pictures on a secondary level.  Most of the folders are structured so that the left side are shorter pieces that exemplify writing that should be able to be done by students 6-12 with questions following.  The right side and the back are the "Challenge" sections, which are on a higher level in terms of elaboration, sentence structure, word choice, and voice.  They, too, are followed by questions.  While only some middle school students could write at such a higher level that the "Challenge" represents, they all should be able to answer the questions.  High school students should aspire to the level of the "Challenge."

Content includes some of the following skills:  character sketches, topic sentences & support, persuasive response to a famous quotation, persuasion—debating both sides, research facts used in narratives, word usage, voice, poetry analysis, expository / personification, expanded moment, various modes of writing, reading/ literature terms, personalized commas, dialogue, imagery, and more.

The folders can be used in the following ways:

1. Whole-Class Instruction: Any or all of the folders can be run off for use as teaching devices for the whole class.
2. Partner Work While Teacher Conferences: These exercises can serve as timed lessons to be graded orally after you conference with students about their writing.
3. Individual Extension or Target Exercises: If a student would like a follow-up to a certain skill because he/she has mastered the one being studied by the class or if a student needs extra practice in a certain aspect of an area, he / she can work on a folder throughout the week at his/her own pace.
4. Tests: Certain folders could serve as tests after a skill has been studied in class.