Schaeffer Writing Model Step 1 The Body Paragraph

Schaeffer Writing Model Step 1: The Body Paragraph

Directions For this presentation, you will be using the Schaffer Paragraph handout available at the courses site.

Frayer 1 – Topic Sentence • • 1 st sentence of a body paragraph Says what the paragraph will be about general statement, not a specific detail TS

Frayer 2 – Concrete Detail • • Fact, example, quotation, story, etc. Can be proven or found Often begins with “for example” Additional concrete details need to be introduced with transitions • CD

Examples of Concrete Details • For example, Mrs. Meeching is always wearing black. • Another example is that Mrs. Meeching is called “cold. ” • Finally, even the sound of her name, Meeching, is unpleasant. • For example, in seventh grade I made a C in math. • Also, when we would play family games, my brothers would never let me keep score. • Worst of all, in college, I was put into a remedial algebra class that was made up of the football team and me.

Frayer 3 – Commentary • Your analysis, opinion, or explanation of the concrete detail • Opinionated • “this shows that” / “this is important because” • Should take more than one sentence of commentary to explain • CM

Examples of commentary • This shows that the author probably chose Mrs. Meeching’s name in order to give us a clue about her creepiness. • Her name is used as foreshadowing because it makes us realize that she is scary even before she actually does anything.

Frayer 4 - Chunk • CD plus CM together • A chunk must be kept together and completed before moving on to a new idea • The ratio of a well-written chunk is at least 2: 1 (2 CM for every 1 CD)

Frayer 5: Concluding Sentence • Sums up the entire paragraph • Has the same idea as the topic sentence but in different words • A general statement, not a concrete detail • CS

Basic Body Paragraph Outline 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Topic sentence (TS) Concrete Detail (CD) Commentary (CM) Commentary(CM) Concluding Sentence (CS) Chunk One Chunk Two

You try it! • On the back of your paper, write a ONE CHUNK paragraph that follows the format • Use one of the following topics: How would you describe your personality? Why is _____ your best friend? Should kids under 16 be allowed to play violent video games? Why should we keep or abolish Beck Dress Code?

Check Your Neighbor! • Identify and label all sentences in the paragraph

Group Practice Follow directions according to your seat number. 1. Initial the topic sentence and concluding sentence. 2. Draw brackets around the three chunks. 3. Highlight all concrete details in one color. 4. Highlight commentary in another color. 5. Check over everyone’s work and make any change.

2 nd Sheet of Paper Topic: Choose EITHER: Which Learner Profile Characteristic do you demonstrate the most? Which Learner Profile Characteristic do you demonstrate the least?

Beyond the Basics – Your Paragraph Outline 1. TS 2. CD 1 3. CM 1 A 4. CM 1 B 5. CD 2 6. CM 2 A 7. CM 2 B 8. CD 3 9. CM 3 A 10. CM 3 B 11. CS

Getting Started • Brainstorm concrete details first (ask yourself, when was a time that I showed I was an inquirer, etc? ) • Try writing an outline – see example • Example will be posted online

REMEMBER • EXTRA SENTENCES ARE OKAY! • If it takes you more than one sentence to explain your concrete detail, that’s fine. Just don’t forget that you should still have multiple sentences of commentary. • If it takes you extra commentary to explain your details, fine!