In right now’s world, it’s extra vital than ever for college students to have the ability to articulate their ideas clearly and concisely by means of the written phrase. One straightforward means to assist them strengthen their abilities is by utilizing the RACE writing technique. This structured technique guides writers by means of creating a powerful response to studying comprehension and different short-answer questions, together with these discovered on standardized exams. Right here’s the way it works and how one can educate it.
Don’t neglect to seize our free printable set of graphic organizers. We’ve included choices for each RACE and RACES, in colour and black-and-white. Plus, get printable photos for a straightforward RACE/RACES anchor chart!
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What’s the RACE writing technique?
This easy technique is one in all many writing methods educators use to assist college students guarantee they’re answering questions and writing prompts clearly, concisely, and completely. It’s mostly used with studying comprehension short-answer essay questions, nevertheless it works for any state of affairs the place college students want to offer a written response in paragraph kind.
The simple-to-remember acronym breaks the method into 4 components, and the easiest way to clarify it’s to see it in motion. To discover how the technique works, we’ll use this passage about penguins:
“Penguins have particular methods to stay of their chilly environments. Their easy our bodies and flippers assist them swim quick to catch fish, squid, and krill. Their thick, waterproof feathers maintain them heat and dry, and a layer of fats, known as blubber, provides them further heat and helps them float. Penguins have particular behaviors too, like huddling collectively to remain heat and defend their eggs and infants from the chilly. Their black-and-white feathers assist them conceal from predators by mixing in with the ocean. All this stuff assist penguins survive and do effectively in very chilly locations.”
Query: How do penguins’ our bodies assist them survive their surroundings?
Restate
First, college students flip the query into an announcement, to make sure they absolutely perceive what’s being requested. The assertion is normally open-ended, as a result of they’ll full the sentence within the second step.
RACE Writing Technique Instance: “Penguins’ our bodies assist them survive their surroundings as a result of they …”
Reply
Then, college students reply the query with a transparent, succinct response. Basically, they full the sentence they started within the “Restate” step with a direct reply.
RACE Writing Technique Instance: ” … assist them swim quick, defend them towards the chilly, and conceal them from predators.”
Cite
On this key step, college students again up their solutions by pointing to proof from the textual content itself. They might quote or paraphrase what’s written to show their level.
RACE Writing Technique Instance: “As an illustration, penguins have easy our bodies and flippers, together with thick black-and-white feathers and blubber.”
Clarify
Now, college students increase on their quotation in their very own phrases, in order that they’re not simply parroting again what they’ve learn. They clarify how the information they’ve cited assist to reply the query.
RACE Writing Technique Instance: “Their our bodies and flippers assist them swim quick to catch their favourite meals, and their waterproof feathers and blubber maintain them heat within the chilly climate. Predators have a tough time seeing them as a result of their black-and-white feathers mix into the panorama.”
How is the RACES writing technique completely different?
Some lecturers add an S to the RACE technique, which stands for “Summarize.” That is the conclusion sentence on the finish of the response that reinforces the details within the reply. A whole reply utilizing the RACES technique would possibly appear to be this:
“Penguin our bodies assist them survive their surroundings as a result of they assist them swim quick, defend them towards the chilly, and conceal them from predators. As an illustration, penguins have easy our bodies and flippers, together with thick black-and-white feathers and blubber. Their our bodies and flippers assist them swim quick to catch their favourite meals, and their waterproof feathers and blubber maintain them heat within the chilly climate. Predators have a tough time seeing them as a result of their black-and-white feathers mix into the panorama. All of those physique components assist penguins survive in chilly and harmful environments.”
How To Educate the RACE/RACES Writing Technique
Most lecturers start introducing this technique within the mid-elementary years, usually round third grade. Proceed to make use of and reinforce it all through the remainder of the elementary years and into the center grades. By highschool, college students needs to be very comfy with RACE/RACES and contemplate it an vital a part of their writing methods toolbox.
Attempt these actions and instructing strategies to introduce and use this worthwhile technique together with your college students.
Anchor Chart
Create and grasp an anchor chart college students can refer again to all through the varsity 12 months. Make issues even simpler on your self by utilizing our free printables to create your chart very quickly flat!
Modeling and Guided Observe
As with almost any technique, it helps to mannequin the right habits in your college students first. Use the paragraph above about penguins, or select another studying passage you want. Then, stroll by means of the steps collectively, demonstrating the pondering course of and writing out the responses.
Subsequent, present college students with one other studying passage (AI is usually a actual assist right here, and quick tales work too) and a comprehension query. Ask them to work in teams to check out the RACE/RACES mannequin. Share every group’s response with the category, then work collectively to guage, appropriate, and strengthen them as wanted.
Graphic Organizers
This organizational instrument is right for RACE/RACES. Use our free printables (see under), or encourage children to attract their very own easy chart. They will use these organizers to make notes and sketch out their responses earlier than finalizing their reply in paragraph kind.
Coloration Coding
Pull out your highlighters! After college students write their responses utilizing the RACE/RACES technique, ask them to focus on the varied sections that match every letter of the mannequin (e.g., orange for Restate, yellow for Reply, and many others.). This ensures they don’t miss any of the steps in writing an entire response. We’ve included color-coded variations in our graphic organizer set to make the method even simpler.
Sentence Starters
Soar-start the method by offering a listing of sentence stems and starters. These are particularly useful for the Cite, Clarify, and Summarize sections. Attempt these examples:
Cite
- The passage says …
- As famous within the textual content …
- The author tells us that …
- Based on the creator …
- As talked about within the article …
Clarify
- This exhibits that …
- The creator means …
- This instance demonstrates …
- That is how we all know that …
- The proof helps the thought as a result of …
Summarize
- In abstract …
- Total …
- In conclusion …
- Primarily based on these information …
- For these causes …
Discover extra conclusion sentence starters right here.
RACE Writing Technique Free Printables Bundle
