five rules for writing good answers

Five Rules for Writing

Good Answers “SLAMS Rules”

Read “The Giant Wrestlers of Japan”

• All the questions in this lesson are about this reading selection. You may come back and read it as often as you like.

Write your answers in complete sentences.

Suppose you were asked this question on a test:

Dana answers:

no hair pulling, choking, punching, eye poking

This answer is correct, but Dana probably would not

get a good score on the test. Her answer is not

written in complete sentences.

According to the selection, what rules

must a sumo wrestler follow in the ring?

Rule #1:

• Answers to open-ended questions should always be written in complete sentences.

(Exception: when you fill out a chart.)

Dana’s answer would have been better if she

had written it like this:

There are rules a sumo wrestler has to follow in the

ring. There is no hair pulling, choking, punching, or eye poking.

Now suppose a test question asks:

Jeremy answers:

No, some are not.

Rewrite Jeremy’s answer so that it would get a better

score.

Are all sumo wrestlers Japanese?

When you come across an open-ended question on a test, you probably wonder how much you should write.

Rule #2: • The number of lines on the test is a rough

guide to how long your answer should be.

• An ordinary sentence takes up about one and a half lines if you have big handwriting. If you have small handwriting, an average sentence fills up a line.

• So, if you see 4 or 5 lines, you should probably write about 3 or 4 sentences.

• If you are given a whole page of lines, you should probably write 1 or 2 paragraphs.

• If you are given 2 pages full of lines, you should write at least 3 paragraphs and probably more.

Val got this question on a test:

How many sentences should her answer be?

How do Japanese boys become sumo

wrestlers?

_______________________________________________

_______________________________________________

_______________________________________________

_______________________________________________

_______________________________________________

Val wrote:

Japanese boys have to do a lot of things if they want to be sumos.

Val’s answer is correct, but it is not very

good, and it is not long enough.

Use Val’s sentence to start your own answer.

Give more details that tell what Japanese

boys must do to become sumo wrestlers.

Remember to write in complete sentences.

•This may seem easy to do, but you must be careful. •Answer what the question asks. •Don’t give lots of information about other things if they don’t help answer the question.

For example, look at this question:

The selection says that sumo wrestling is

more than a sport; it’s a way of life. What

do you think that means?

Look at these answers: Gerard wrote: Kenny wrote:

It’s like the way our wrestlers make a living on TV. The Rock is even in movies. Sometimes they can even be politicians like Jesse Ventura. He got elected governor of Minnesota.

Sumo wrestling is about more than just winning. You have to devote your whole life to it. You have to practice every day and learn the rituals and ceremonies. You learn from your sumo master.

The information in both answers is true. But Gerard’s paragraph doesn’t answer what the

question asks.

Gerard’s facts are not in the selection. The question has nothing to do with The Rock or Jesse Ventura.

Kenny answers the question better. His answer uses information from the selection.

Try it Yourself.

Answer the question using information

in the selection:

What must a sumo wrestler do in order to

win a match?

• “Mechanics” means capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.

• “Mechanics” also means correct grammar and good word choice.

Rule #4: • You won’t get a low score on open-ended

questions if you write good answers with just 1 or 2 minor mistakes in spelling or usage.

• If you get careless and have several mistakes, you’ll lose points.

For example…Look at Ally’s answer:

Akobono worked hard to prove himself in Japan becuz he was a forener most japanese people don’t think he would ever be the champ. So Akebono studied every day, and he exercises, and he practiced with a sumo master. He also became a citizin of Japan.

What did Akebono do to prove himself in Japan?

Ally’s answer has…

• 4 spelling errors (including the name of the grand champion!)

• 1 run-on sentence

• 2 mistakes in capitalization (1 because of the run-on sentence – and she did not remember to capitalize “Japanese”)

• 2 mistakes in verb tense

Rewrite Ally’s answer with no

mistakes:

Akobono worked hard to prove himself in Japan becuz he was a forener most japanese people don’t think he would ever be the champ. So Akebono studied every day, and he exercises, and he practiced with a sumo master. He also became a citizin of Japan.

Hint: All the misspelled words can be found in the selection, spelled correctly!

This is the most important rule!

“Support” means to add information that explains or gives information about your answer.

Rule #5: • Some or all of the support for your

answer MUST come from the selection you are reading.

• For some questions it’s okay to add your own opinion, but you MUST use some information from the selection in whatever you write.

For example…

Look at the answers to this question:

What was the significance of the rituals

Akebono performed before each match?

Support your answer with details

from the selection.

Yasmine wrote:

Every time Akebono wrestled, he had to do certain things to please the Shinto gods.

Hank wrote:

Like all the other sumo wrestlers, Akebono performed certain rituals. These rituals were supposed to call the attention of the Shinto gods, drive evil from the ring, purify the ring, and show he was not carrying any weapons other than his hands.

Len wrote:

The sumo rituals were important to Akebono. Since he learned about them, he had to do them. He was trying to set a good example for the other Hawaiian kids who might want to become sumo wrestlers.

What was the significance of the rituals Akebono performed before

each match? Support your answer with details from the selection.

Match the student with the description

of his or her answer.

__ Yasmine a. WEAK: Supporting details don’t come from the selection

__ Hank b. WEAK: Does not support answer.

__ Len c. GOOD! Supports answer with details from the selection

c

c

a

A Good Answer SLAMS the Question!

S Write your answer in complete SENTENCES!

L Use all the LINES!

A Answer the question!

M Mechanics are important!

S Support your answer with details from the text!

Try it Yourself. Write your answer to this question.

Look back at the selection for the details

you need to support your answer.

There are 6 lines for your answer.

After 1500 years of sumo wrestling, why

was it especially exciting when Akebono

became a yokozuna in 1993?

Trade Papers

• Use SLAMS rules to evaluate the person’s answer:

▫ Is the answer in complete Sentences?

▫ Does the answer use 6 Lines?

▫ Does it Answer the question?

▫ Are there more than 2 errors in Mechanics? (capitalization, usage, punctuation, and spelling)

▫ Are there details from the selection to Support the answer?

Trade Back

• Have a conversation with your partner about your evaluations.

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Reflect on Your Learning Today

• How can using SLAMS rules help you better answer questions about what you read?

• Where can you begin using SLAMS rules on a regular basis?