Students create a vignette with a focus on writing that is brief, descriptive, and set in one point in time. They should not be concerned with plot. As the emphasis is on quality rather than quantity, students need to show a controlled and elegant skill in writing, and to use figurative language to 'show' rather than 'tell'.
Assessment focus: ability to critically analyse and interpret a visual text, based on individual perception and the use of descriptors (visual/verbal/sound etc) to illustrate interpretation.
Students prepare a 2 to 3 minute speech, to inform, persuade, or entertain. Topics suitable for secondary students are provided. Assessment guides A, B, and C are suitable for this task.
Students first do the science activity Throwing balloons 3 or Throwing balloons 4 where they predict, observe, and explain what will happen when a balloon containing another balloon filled with water is thrown. Then the students do this resource's writing task where they describe the balloon and what happens when it is thrown, and explain why they think it moved the way it did. Six annotated exemplars of student scripts (writing) are included under the "Working with Students" tab.
This task assesses the initial understanding needed to punctuate direct speech, by asking students to re-write words in speech bubbles as direct speech and insert the necessary punctuation.
Students create simple and compound sentences to go with given photos. The focus is on combining sentences, using simple conjunctions. A peer sharing task completes the resource.
A report about a topic of local, national, or international interest is prepared. The assessment focus is on opinions and information from the media. ARB scoring guides A and B are suitable for this task.