Category Archives: Punchy Insights

PARCC Prep: Research Simulation Task Writing Lesson Cycle UPDATED 2-2-2020

Posted on February 2, 2020 by theliteracycookbook

[The original version of this post can be found here.] In New Jersey, where I live and work, the state’s most recent test specs for NJSLA (formerly known as PARCC and quite honestly the same test with a different name) … Continue reading →

Posted in Assessment(s), Close Reading, Compare and Contrast, DBQ Approach, Nonfiction, PARCC, Punchy Insights, Research Writing, Resources, Rubrics, Test Prep, Thesis Statements, TLC Website Resources, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

New TLC page: OPEN-ENDED RESPONSE WRITING!

Posted on June 17, 2013 by theliteracycookbook

In response to popular demand, I have added a new page to the TLC Website: Open-ended Response Writing!  No matter what grade or subject you teach, your students will benefit from the tools featured on this page. Check it out!

Posted in ELA Common Core Standards, Open-ended Response Writing, Punchy Insights, Quote Sandwiches, TLC Website Resources, Topic Sentences, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

OPEN-ENDED RESPONSE Care Package

Posted on March 20, 2013 by theliteracycookbook

As much as we would like to know what the PARCC Assessments are really going to look like, this year all we have to go on is what our State Department of Education tells us.  And in my home state … Continue reading →

Posted in Annotation, Assessment(s), Context, Evidence, Explanation, Open-ended Response Writing, Punchy Insights, Quote Sandwiches, Rubrics, The Literacy Cookbook BOOK, TLC Website Resources, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Punchy Insights, or How to Avoid Writing Like a Robot*

Posted on February 23, 2013 by theliteracycookbook

If you think about why we READ books, magazines, newspapers—really, anything other than a grocery list—it’s because we want to learn something.  We want to understand something we didn’t grasp before, or we want to know more about something, know … Continue reading →

Posted in Argument, Main Idea, Punchy Insights, The Literacy Cookbook BOOK, TLC Website Resources, Writing | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment