Assignment Prompt: Letter to Department Head

After spending the semester reading a number of texts, anything from poems and
lyrics and short stories and novels, and articles in between, decide which text was the
most critical or influential to you as a person (learner, student, human-being) and how
can it be critical/influential to future classmates?
Draw upon the following to create an argumentative letter to the head of our
department (the person who makes decisions on the texts we read):
Reflect upon your personal experiences in 10th grade with the text you chose.
How does your personal experience with the text support your argument for the
text?
Explain your basis/standard for an influential text (what does the text do/how is
the text made up that makes it critical or influential for future 10th graders)
Draw upon literary elements that make the text influential for future readers. How
do the elements work to form a critical or influential text? (character, plot, setting,
context, language etc.)
Explain how the text supports you as a learner and your future learning
endeavors
Explain how the text supports you as an individual within a given context (school,
work, future, with family/friends, etc.). Be sure to include how the text influences
you in the given context
Once you have devised your argumentative letter, we will send in your work to the
chair head so he/she can evaluate and potentially decide which text seems most
critical or influential for future 10th grade students in our school.
Included is the MAPS to help you write most effectively
M- an argumentative letter
A- the head of the department
P- the argue for a text is being most influential or critical to future 10th grade students
S- our school and the future grades

Rubric for Letter to Department Head:

Excellent

Competent

Emerging

Personal Experience

You have included your

personal experience in
10th grade to support
your argument for your
chosen text

You have included

minimal evidence from
your personal
experience in 10th
grade which begins to
support your argument
for your chosen text

Your writing is
independent of your
personal experiences in
10th grade

Standard/Criteria for
Influential Text

You have clearly

articulated the standard
of an influential text.
Your standard of the
text supports your
argument for your
chosen text

You begin to articulate

the standard of an
influential text. Your
standards of the text are
inconsistent with your
argument for your
chosen text

Your standard of an
influential text is
independent your
argument for your
chosen text

Uses Literary
Elements

You engage in literary

elements such as
character, plot, setting,
context, language, etc.
to support your
argument. You use
literary elements to
support your argument
for your chosen text

You begin to engage in

literary elements from
the text to support your
argument for your
chosen text

You have used limited

literary elements from
the text to support your
argument for your
chosen text

Text to learner

You identify your need

as a learner in 10th
grade. You clearly argue
to show how the text
supplements your
growth as a learner

You begin to identify

your need as a learner
in 10th grade. Your
argument lacks clarity to
show how the text
supplements you as a
learner

You have yet to identify

your need as a learner
in 10th grade. Your
argument does not
show how the text
supplements you as a
learner

Text to Context

You identify a given

context of your life to
use as evidence. You
clearly argue to show
how the text supports
your context

You begin to identify a

context of you life to use
as evidence. You begin
to argue to show how
the text supports your
context

You have yet to identify

a context of you life to
use as evidence. You
have yet to argue how
the text supports your
context