Writing and Multimedia Presentation Assignment

Expository Essay Assignment Overview
Instructions
This document provides an overview of the tasks and time line for completing this semester’s expository essay. You will complete this project over the course of two units. Keep in mind that the project has been broken into two units to give you more time to complete the final essay. As necessary, use time during other units to work on your essay.
Planning
Review the assignment instructions and grading criteria thoroughly. Keep in mind that the expository essay is divided into two units and includes a multimedia presentation.
Choose a topic for an expository essay.
Develop ideas and information about the topic.
Create a plan for your essay, including a thesis, a pattern of organization, and a paragraph outline.
Submit the Expository Essay Planning Assignment to your teacher. Your teacher will give you feedback on how suitable your plan is and whether you need to make changes in it before beginning to draft.

Drafting
Write the first draft of your essay. Use your planning assignment and the feedback that you received from your teacher.
Review the First Draft Checklist and the Final Draft Rubric, which appear later in this document. Your first draft will be graded against the checklist, so be sure that your essay contains everything that the checklist requires. Keep the rubric in mind as you draft because your final paper will be graded against the rubric.
Submit the Expository Essay First Draft Assignment to your teacher. After reading your essay, your teacher will give you feedback on areas to revise.

Finalizing
Revise your essay. Use the feedback that you received from your teacher, your mentor, and other readers. Also review the criteria in the Revising an Expository Essay Checklist before revising and as you revise.
Keep the criteria listed in the rubric in mind as you revise your paper. The final paper will be graded against this rubric, which assesses the essay in the following five categories: purpose and voice; ideas and content; structure and organization; language, word choice, and tone; and sentences and mechanics. The rubric appears at the end of this document.
Proofread your essay. Review and use the criteria in the Proofreading an Expository Essay Checklist.
Make a clean, final copy of your expository essay and submit it to your teacher.

Multimedia Presentation
Develop a multimedia presentation based on your expository essay. Review the criteria for the presentation in the Multimedia Presentation Assignment.
Deliver your presentation. Be sure to review the criteria for the delivery of your presentation, also found in the Multimedia Presentation Assignment. Your teacher will give you instructions for submitting and/or delivering your presentation and your presentation materials.
Complete the reflection section in the Multimedia Presentation Assignment and submit the assignment to your teacher. Your teacher will give you feedback on how well you met the criteria for developing and delivering your presentation.

Time Line
Remember you will be working on this project over the course of two different units. The following due dates reflect this schedule.
Task
Start
Complete
Complete the Planning an Expository Essay unit. Submit the Expository Essay Planning Assignment.
Day 101
Day 105
Start the Writing an Expository Essay unit. Submit the Expository Essay First Draft Assignment.
Day 114
Day 115
Continue the Writing an Expository Essay unit. Develop the multimedia presentation.
Day 117
Day 118
Revise and proofread the expository essay. Submit the Expository Essay Final Draft Assignment.
Day 119
Day 120
Complete the Writing an Expository Essay unit. Finalize and deliver a multimedia presentation.
Day 121
Day 124
Grading/Point Values
Planning Assignment: 50 (Due 2/13/2014)
First Draft: 100 (Due 3/4/2014)
Multimedia Presentation: 100 (Due 3/10/2014)
Final Draft: 200 (Due 3/12/2014)

Required Final Draft Length
Pages: 1½ – 3 pages
Word Count: 500–900

Grading Criteria – First Draft
Your first draft will be evaluated against this checklist. Each checked item is worth 10 points.
The purpose of the expository essay—to convey information—is evident.
The voice sounds like a real person.
The topic is appropriate for an expository essay.
The essay has a thesis—either stated or implied.
The ideas and content of the essay support a main idea.
The essay has a clear beginning, middle, and end.
The essay has a logical progression of ideas.
Both the language and tone are appropriate for an expository essay.
The essay has a variety of sentence beginnings, lengths, and structures.
The essay has at least 500 words.

Total possible points for first draft: 100 points
Grading Criteria—Final Draft
The final draft of your essay will be graded according to this rubric.

EXPOSITORY ESSAY Grading Rubric
Criterion
4
3
2
1
Purpose and Voice
The purpose of the writing—to convey information—is evident. The writer's voice is engaging and sounds like a real person.
The purpose of the writing—to convey information—is evident. The writer's voice varies between sounding engaging and sounding artificial.
The purpose of the writing—to convey information—is usually evident. The writer's voice sounds inconsistent.
The purpose of the writing is difficult to determine. The writer's voice is hard to find.
Ideas and Content
The topic is engaging, and the content is consistently compelling and appropriate. The ideas are focused on a thesis—either stated or implied—and are well developed and creative.
The topic is engaging, and the content is somewhat compelling and appropriate. The ideas are focused on a thesis—either stated or implied—and are well developed and mostly interesting.
The topic and content are somewhat interesting and mostly appropriate. Some ideas are focused on a thesis and are developed well, but others are not.
The topic is not appealing, and the content is not always appropriate. The ideas are not focused on a thesis, and the ideas are largely undeveloped.
Structure and Organization
The writer does an excellent job in the structure and organization of the essay. The essay begins with a hook that draws in the reader. The body provides details that develop the thesis, and the conclusion satisfies the reader. The organization is clear, and the essay has unity and coherence. Transitions help ideas flow smoothly.
The writer does a good job in the structure and organization of the essay. The essay has an introduction, a body that provides details that develop the thesis, and a conclusion that generally satisfies the reader. The writing is organized well and is easy to understand, although some ideas may be misplaced or not flow smoothly because of a lack of transitions.
The writer does a fair job in the structure and organization of the essay. The essay may be missing an introduction or a conclusion, leaving the reader feeling dissatisfied. The writing is difficult to follow and ideas do not flow well. There is no clear pattern of organization, and transitions are few.
The writer does a poor job in the structure and organization of the essay. There may be only one long paragraph with no clear introduction, body, or conclusion. The writing is disjointed and difficult to follow. There are few, if any, transitions connecting ideas.
Language, Word Choice, and Tone
The language and word choice fit the topic. The writer makes excellent use of vivid and precise words. The tone is appropriate for the purpose and audience.
The language and word choice mostly fit the topic. The writer uses some precise words, but sometimes lapses into vague language, affecting the clarity of the essay. The tone is mostly appropriate for the purpose and audience.
The language and word choice are inconsistent for the topic. Vocabulary consists largely of ordinary words, and the tone is mostly inappropriate for the purpose and audience.
The language and word choice are not appropriate for the topic. The language is vague, flat, and dull. The tone is unrecognizable.
Sentences and Mechanics
The writer uses a variety of sentence beginnings, lengths, and structures. Any fragments are clearly intentional. There are few, if any, errors in grammar, usage, or mechanics.
The writer uses some sentence variety. An occasional unintentional fragment or run-on might creep in, but there are few errors in grammar, usage, or mechanics, and these errors do not interfere with understanding. The writer uses unvarying sentences. Unintentional fragments, run-ons, and other grammatical and mechanical errors sometimes interfere with understanding.
The sentences all seem to follow the same pattern, and the essay contains many errors in grammar, usage, and mechanics that make the writing difficult to understand.