Grades 2–3 Level 3 Writing Assessment Exemplar

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Look at the pictures. Write a story.
Student Example

Student writing assessment exemplar:

Once upon a time there was a fish
that lived in a bowl. The bowl was
small and dirty. It had a signe
that said “No Fishing”. The fish
felt safe with that signe.

The fishes familie also had a cat.
The cat was always trying to get
the fish. He waited quietly to see
if the familie was watching. He
was a super smart cat and he
watched then creept up to the
bowl. Next, he slowly put his paw
in and tried to catch the fish. The
fish looked at the sign. The cat
could not read.

Since the cat was hungry he ate
the fish. The cat smiled at the
familie but the familie did not
smile at the cat. They were very
mad. So they sent the cat out!

 

Level 3: Uses some low-frequency subject-specific words (signe [sign], fishing, familie [family], paw), descriptive words (small, dirty, safe, quietly, hungry, creept [crept], slowly, mad), instructional words (sent, catch), and words with multiple meanings (time, lived)

Level 3: Uses a variety of simple (The cat was always trying to get the fish.) and familiar compound sentence types (He was a super smart cat and he watched then creept [crept] up to the bowl.) Attempts complex sentences (Since the cat was hungry he ate the fish.)

Level 3: Uses some low-frequency connector and transition words and phrases to compare (also, next) and contrast (but)

Use the checkboxes below to display the corresponding Benchmarks 2.0 indicators.

 
 3
 
 3
 
 3
Writing Benchmark Level
3

Next Steps

Once a student consistently demonstrates most Benchmarks 2.0 indicators at the advanced level for their grade across strands (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) and competencies (vocabulary, sentence structure, and connections and transitions) in a variety of subjects, they may no longer require English language development supports and instruction to achieve grade-level English proficiency.


How to Use This Writing Assessment Exemplar

This collection of writing assessment exemplars provides teachers of English as an additional language (EAL) learners with examples of student writing at each English proficiency level and grade range.

Teachers can use these interactive exemplars to build their understanding of Benchmarks 2.0 competencies (vocabulary, sentence structure, and connections and transitions) and proficiency levels in writing.

  1. Click on “View full size” to see the original student writing.
  2. Select the competency you wish to view. Boxes in the corresponding colour will highlight the text in the exemplar and display an explanation of the competency below.
  3. Click on one or more competencies to view at a time.
  4. Review “Next Steps” for examples of how to use the Benchmarks 2.0 writing assessment to inform programming and instruction in all subject areas.

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