8.3 Helping Students Write for Different Audiences and Purposes

8.3 Helping Students Write for Different Audiences and Purposes

Effective writing is not just about using correct grammar and mechanics; it is also about communicating a message that is tailored to a specific purpose and a targeted audience. In school, students are asked to write for many reasons—to share a personal experience, explain how a process works, or convince others to agree with their opinion. Additionally, the tone and style of their writing must adapt depending on who will read it. Paraprofessionals play an important role in helping students recognize these different writing contexts and structure their paragraphs to suit their writing goals.

The Four Primary Writing Purposes

Students must learn to identify the purpose of their writing assignment, as this dictates the structure, tone, and types of details they will include. Paraprofessionals should be familiar with the following four primary modes of writing:

Paraprofessional Strategies for Supporting Writing Purposes

• Purpose Check-In: Before a student begins writing, the paraprofessional can ask, "What is your main goal in writing this paper? Are you trying to tell a fun story, or are you trying to teach the reader something?"
• Analyzing Exemplars: Look at model texts with the student. For example, if writing a persuasive letter, read a short sample letter together and highlight where the author makes their opinion clear.

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Tailoring Writing to Specific Audiences

The audience is the person or group of people who will read the writing. The audience determines the writer's tone (the attitude expressed by the writing) and formality (the level of professional language used).

Level of Formality

Students often default to writing the same way they speak to their peers, using slang, contractions, and casual phrasing. Paraprofessionals can guide them to adjust their tone:

• Casual (Peer-to-Peer): "Hey, you guys should totally stop littering because it's super bad for the planet."
• Formal (Academic/Professional): "Citizens should stop littering because waste is highly detrimental to the environment."

Paraprofessional Scaffolding for Audience Awareness

To help a student adapt their writing, the paraprofessional can ask:

• "Who is going to read this?"
• "If the principal reads this word, will she understand it, or is it too casual?"
• "What does your reader already know about this topic? Do you need to explain this term first?"

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Assisting with Paragraph Structure

Regardless of the purpose or audience, strong writing depends on solid paragraph structure. A standard academic paragraph is built of three essential parts:

1. The Topic Sentence

The topic sentence is the foundation of the paragraph. It states the main idea clearly, telling the reader what the paragraph will be about.

• Paraprofessional Role: Help students write a strong opening by asking, "What is the single most important point you want to make in this paragraph?"

2. Supporting Sentences

Supporting sentences build upon the topic sentence. They provide details, examples, facts, explanations, or evidence that support the main idea.

• Weeding Out Off-Topic Information: Students often drift to other topics. A paragraph about training a dog shouldn't include details about a cat. Paraprofessionals can help students identify and delete off-topic sentences.

3. The Concluding Sentence

The concluding sentence wraps up the paragraph. It restates the main idea in a new way, summarizes key points, or provides a smooth transition to the next paragraph.

• Paraprofessional Role: Prompt the student with, "How can you sum up what you just wrote for the reader so they know you are finished with this point?"

The Visual Model: The "Hamburger" Paragraph

To teach this structure visually, paraprofessionals can use the hamburger model:

• Top Bun: The Topic Sentence (holds everything together).
• Fillings (Lettuce, Tomato, Meat): Supporting Sentences (the substantial details that give the paragraph substance).
• Bottom Bun: The Concluding Sentence (seals the paragraph so the contents don't fall out).

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Worked Scenarios in the Classroom

Scenario 1: Adjusting for Audience

• Context: A fifth-grade student is writing a letter to the cafeteria manager requesting healthier lunch options. Their draft reads: "The food here sucks and we want pizza with real cheese."
• Paraprofessional Action: The paraprofessional asks, "If the cafeteria manager reads that the food 'sucks,' will they want to help us?" The student admits they might get offended. The paraprofessional asks, "How can we say the food is not meeting our needs in a polite, professional way?" Together, they rewrite it to: "Many students feel that the current lunch options could be improved by adding fresher ingredients, such as real cheese on the pizza."

Scenario 2: Maintaining Paragraph Focus

• Context: A third-grade student writes a paragraph: "Apples are a very healthy fruit. They have vitamins in them. My favorite fruit is actually strawberries because they taste sweet. Red apples are my favorite type of apple."
• Paraprofessional Action: The paraprofessional reads the paragraph aloud and asks, "What is the main topic of your paragraph?" The student replies, "Apples." The paraprofessional asks, "Is there a sentence in here that is about a different fruit?" The student points to the strawberry sentence. The paraprofessional prompts, "To keep your paragraph focused on apples, what should we do with that sentence?" The student decides to erase it.