Students will take the first few writing steps in this unit. At the end of this lesson, students are going to:
- produce ideas with a target audience and goal in mind.
- determine the aim of their writing.
- decide who their writing is intended audience.

- To what extent does the writing process influence writing quality?
- How can we become proficient writers?
- How does writing function in our daily lives?

- Expository writing: A piece of writing meant to explain, inform, clarify, instruct, or define. 
- Topic: The subject the writer chooses to address in his or her writing. 
- Purpose: The writing intends to inform or teach someone about something, to entertain people, or to persuade or convince the audience to do or not do something. 
- Audience: The intended readers of a particular piece of writing.

- a board or large screen to put up examples, student responses, and class notes 
- access for students to research information in the media center and/or on the Internet 
- sample of expository writing from Student Models.
- copies of expository writing graphic organizers. 
- copies of a KWL graphic organizer.
- computer, Internet connection, and media projector 
- a variety of informational pieces: podcasts, webcasts or videos from TeacherTube or YouTube, newscasts, etc. for student models

- Identify the different levels of learners' comprehension by moving around during peer inquiry and small-group brainstorming sessions.
- Work with students who are having difficulty when they are in small groups or participating in class discussions to address key terms or refine their topics and thesis statements. Concentrate on one method or brainstorm at a time. Reiterate that writing is an ongoing process, “One step at a time.”

Explicit instruction, modeling, scaffolding, and active engagement 
W: Using a range of real-world techniques, students will compose an expository essay of their own choosing and be introduced to the genre. 
H: Students can relate to the work because they are writing on a topic of their own choosing, commenting on other students' writing, looking at outside examples of expository writing, and presenting their own writing in a genuine manner. 
E: Students will recognize the range of expository texts that they encounter every day via various media. After producing their own explanatory essay, students will look for a legitimate way to present their findings to the class. 
R: After analyzing and being exposed to a variety of exposition formats, students get the chance to reflect on what they have learned. Students reflect on this knowledge as they apply it to their own expository writing. Students select the best method to present their information to the class based on their knowledge of expository organizational strategies, audience, purpose, and topic. 
E: As a final project, students will present their explanatory knowledge to the class using a range of real-world media. 
T: The subject matter for the explanatory essay will be up to the students to decide. Additionally, students will choose a legitimate presentation style—oral, technological, visual, etc.—to deliver this material to the class. 
O: An overview of expository writing and its forms opens the lesson. Students will talk about how they are exposed to information and expository writing in different contexts. The next lesson will teach students how to arrange the material in an exposition so that it best serves the piece's intended audience and goal. To help students prepare for their own writing, examples of various expository pieces will be shown to them. After composing a brief expository essay, students will authentically present the material to the class. 

Focus Question: What is the process for determining the subject, goal, and target audience of an explanatory essay?

An explanatory essay that the students will share with the class will be the focus of their initial work.

Part 1

Inform the students: "We're going to concentrate on writing that serves as an explanation, guide, clarification, instruction, or definition. This type of writing is known as expository or informational writing. Expository writing, or exposition, is all around us every day and comes in many forms. How do you obtain information in this information-rich world?" Ask students to list the various media they use to obtain information, such as computers, phones, magazines, books, and television. Next, find out more about the precise channels that are used to share information, such as blogs, podcasts, tweets, videos, messaging, etc. Then state, "The majority of you read expository writing from nonfiction textbooks, periodicals, technical or informational manuals, guidebooks, and websites. You write research papers, reports, and explanatory essays for school."

Inform students: "We will examine a range of expository texts in the upcoming lessons and discover how information can be arranged to best meet the needs of each topic's target audience. Next, on a topic of your choosing, you will compose an explanatory essay. Your classmates will be the audience since a two- to five-minute presentation based on the content of your essay will be made. To effectively share your knowledge with your peers, you can use PowerPoint presentations, videos, podcasts, speeches, or any other format."

"Now let's examine an example of expository writing." Present a copy of a sample expository essay to the class. You have the option of using a student-written example from a prior class or one of the student models from ThinkQuest.org or The Write Source.

Give students the following questions and give them time to respond:

"What's the subject?"
"What is the article's purpose?"
"To whom is this intended?"
"What is the article's structure?"
"Thus, how does a writer decide what to write about? To begin, ask yourself what you enjoyed or found interesting to do in the last few days. Have you read, watched, or heard anything that, in either case, strongly resonates with you? Are there any skills or places you've always wanted to visit or learn? You can find topic ideas everywhere."

Give every student three sheets of paper. "I want you to write "Topic Search" at the top of a piece of paper at this point. Take a few minutes at your desk to jot down potential discussion points. Please write as much as you wish, addressing as many topics as you like. There are no wrong answers." Let students take some time to write and list potential topics. Go around the classroom and ask any students if they have any questions or need assistance getting started.

As you write the topics on the whiteboard or overhead projector, invite students to share a few of the topics they came up with after they have had some time to create their lists. Ask, "Do you have any other items that you would like to add to your own list that you might not have considered yet? Please feel free to jot down any items from the overhead list that catch your attention." Allow students enough time to complete their lists. Say, "Now that you have some potential topics, go back over what you wrote and highlight two or three that really catch your attention." For every topic circled, have students write down their responses to the following questions:

"What piques your interest in this subject?"
"Who else might find this topic interesting?"
"Do you have any particular expertise or experience with this topic?"
"What are your thoughts or feelings regarding this topic?"
"What information about this topic would you like others to know?"

Part 2

"At this point, you should have a short list of ideas and be able to focus on one subject to write and think about for some time. What specifics and knowledge about this subject do you already possess? What data are you looking for to compile your paper?" Give students a KWL graphic organizer to complete to help them arrange their thoughts on the subject.

Next, pose the question, "What would be the purpose of your paper? " to the pupils. "Would you be defining, characterizing, or providing an explanation of your subject? You are aware that your classmates are the target audience for this paper. If students in elementary schools were your audience, what would you do differently in your writing?" Ask students to consider how altering the audience could impact their writing style and how their papers might be different if the goal of the assignment were to change. Consider the following question: "If the subject of my essay were skateboarding, what potential objectives might I choose for an informational piece?" (Explain the basics of skateboarding and what it's like to learn the sport, or share a story about one of your students' most thrilling rides. You should also define terms and techniques related to skateboarding.) "How would the writing need to change if the target audience shifted from adults to kids or from a group of inexperienced riders to those who understand everything about the sport?" Encourage students to talk about how audience and purpose impact their writing.

Showing a recent podcast, webcast, YouTube video, or newscast would be a good way to demonstrate how information is disseminated across various media platforms, provided you have access to a computer and a media projector. As part of the unit's final performance evaluation, students should start considering how they can best present their topic to the class. After watching each video (or just one, depending on time), ask students to discuss the subject, the goal, and the target audience in pairs or as a large group.

After the discussion, ask the students to write down the reason behind their topic on their KWL sheet. Students already know what vocabulary level and sentence structure would be appropriate for their writing because they are aware that their peers are their intended audience. In addition, students ought to ascertain the audience's potential unique selling points concerning their subject matter. What degree of expertise or familiarity do they possess? Ask them to include this in their KWL sheet as well. Once the students have discussed their topics with a partner, ask them to briefly share their thoughts on the partner's topic, purpose choice, and audience awareness. The students should make any further modifications to the subject, objective, and target audience.

Part 3

"It's time to consider the supporting details for your topics. Opinions are not expressed here. An opinion statement expresses a viewpoint without providing specifics about supporting data or analysis. Your in-depth understanding of the subject should be cited in your expository essay. The proof, or research, you require is contained in these specifics. Consider these as supplementary information that you can utilize to construct sentences in your explanatory essay." Assign students a range of graphic organizer options to document the supporting information they want to include. Ask students to spend some time writing down any observations, ideas, or specific details they may have regarding the subject matter.

Once they're finished, ask each student to turn to a classmate and pose multiple questions: "Note any new ideas or information that emerges during the conversation as you ask each other the following questions. You will be able to see HOW you can use your details by answering these questions."

"Do your details indicate thoughts or actions?"
"Do the specifics come from outside knowledge or your personal experiences?"
"Which details have the most impact?"
"Do your details address all aspects of your topic?"
Let students write down any more information they may require about their topic after they have had some time to consider these questions. Students may need to use the media center/computer lab for research to obtain this information. For future reference, have students place their KWL sheet, topic selection paper, and any related research materials in their writing portfolio.

Extension:

Students should pay attention to what they learn after class, share what they learn, and discuss it the following day. Which media - TV, computer, video, music, textbook, magazine, etc.—was employed, along with the subject, target audience, and goal?
Another activity that you can assign to your students is mapping. To determine the direction and potential order of the student's writing, mapping makes use of the most significant points. This is a useful tool for brainstorming ideas. Ask students to draw lines that connect one idea or detail to another, starting with the topic at the top. Give them the task of arranging their ideas in a way that makes sense. This is similar to a domino effect. Part one precedes part two. Because it keeps the information consistent and flowing, as the reader would expect, this logical order is crucial for exposition.