How to De-Code School Assignment Sheets

An Activity to Help Students Understand Writing Projects

Feb 4, 2009 Anna Kendall

The task of writing a school paper often creates a series of challenges for students. Students often struggle with not understanding their paper's assignment sheet.

Assignment sheets created for school writing projects may seem confusing to some students. These students might not understand how to interpret the language of these sheets. Therefore, students can learn how to “de-code” their papers’ assignment sheets to eliminate this confusion. De-coding assignment sheets involves identifying the key sentences that contain relevant information for the writing task and identifying the “strategy words” in those sentences.

Identify Key Sentences

Once a student is given an assignment sheet for a writing project and has read over the assignment, he or she can use a highlighter to mark the key sentences in that sheet. Key sentences are those sentences that describe the parameters of the assignment – how many pages, how many sources, what types of sources, etc. A key sentence is also one that tells the student what kind of action he or she will need to take in order to write the paper – students should look for the verbs.

The sentences that should remain unmarked are those that provide background information on the assignment and the teacher’s own thoughts and commentary. These sentences are often irrelevant to the writing task, and excess verbiage often confuses struggling writers.

Examples of sentences to highlight:

  • For this paper, you should use at least five secondary sources.
  • This paper should be 3-4 pages and it should describe the character development of Juliet in Romeo and Juliet.

Examples of sentences to not highlight:

  • This topic of study is gaining popularity in the world of biology.
  • You might learn something new about European history as you research this paper.

Identify “Strategy Words”

Once a student has identified and highlighted the key sentences in the assignment sheet, he or she should then underline the verbs, or “strategy words,” in those sentences. Strategy words, as described by The St. Martin’s Guide to Writing, are the verbs that tell students what kind of action they need to take in order to write their papers.

The verbs most commonly used in assignment sheets include the following: discuss, analyze, compare, contrast, define, describe, evaluate, explain, and summarize. Once the strategy has been identified, the student can assess the corresponding format for the paper, as well as the topic for the paper.

Examples of sentences with “strategy words:”

  • Using the handouts from this semester, argue whether or not the cafeteria should offer soft drinks. (Argue signifies that the student must write a persuasive essay that either argues for or against the cafeteria offering soft drinks.)
  • Describe your favorite place to visit in your hometown – provide vivid details. (Describe signifies that the students must write an expository essay that describes, using vivid details, his or her favorite hometown place to visit.)

Additional De-Coding Help

Once students identify the main strategy word in their assignment sheets, they can review the type of writing that relates to that specific strategy word. They can review the styles and formats for those specific papers (e.g. a persuasive essay requires a thesis statement). Students can also perform prewriting activities, such as brainstorming, to begin thinking about the topic they have been instructed to write about.

Learning to de-code school assignment sheets, through identifying key sentences and identifying strategy words, will not only help students to better understand writing projects but also help students to better understand projects in their other courses.

Reference:

Glenn, Cheryl; Goldthwaite, Melissa A.; Connors, Robert. The St. Martin’s Guide to Teaching Writing. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2003.

The copyright of the article How to De-Code School Assignment Sheets in Teacher Tips/Training is owned by Anna Kendall. Permission to republish How to De-Code School Assignment Sheets in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
Highlighters Help to Decode Assignments , jdurham, morgueFile Highlighters Help to Decode Assignments
   
What do you think about this article?
NOTE: Because you are not a Suite101 member, your comment will be moderated before it is viewable.
post your comment
What is 8+8?