| Viewing, Reading, Listening, Note Taking and Writing Skills can be enhanced by using mass media and the resources of Newsday. The N.I.E. Multimedia Program will post a lesson every Tuesday designed to improve E.L.A. skills. |
ELA Multimedia Program - Lesson 2
Basement beatings suspect arraigned
Ben Amato | Educational consultant
Expository Writing - ELA Standards 1, 3 and 4
“Parents are often so busy with the physical rearing of children
that they miss the glory of parenthood,
just as the grandeur of the trees is lost when raking leaves.”
Marcelene Cox
How to raise a child is the right of every parent. Corporal punishment as a method of discipline while once accepted is now
considered a matter of child abuse and assault. Today's lesson looks at an incident of domestic violence as an example of
parenting gone wrong.
Television Component
News 12 has the story of a child being beaten by his step-father.
View the video twice and then answer the Multiple Choice questions.
Newspaper Component
Today's Newsday contains the article "Basement beatings suspect arraigned."
Read the story and then using the facts and details within,
complete the Comprehension Crossword Puzzle.
Radio Component
National Public Radio has a story titled "To Spank or Not To Spank."
Before starting your essay, listen to this radio program to broaden your
understanding on the topic of corporal punishment.
Language Arts Component Critical Lens
"Children today are tyrants. They contradict their parents, gobble their food, and tyrannize their teachers.”
Socrates (469 BC - 399 BC)
Stretching from the Stone Age to today’s Cyberspace world, the act of raising children has been an eternal duty, privilege and
battleground.
Situation
Based upon the details in the article, the video clip and your own feelings about discipline,
write an EXPOSITORY ESSAY about Corporal Punishment as a method of raising children.
The Nature and Structure of an EXPOSITORY ESSAY
An EXPOSITORY ESSAY is a form of writing in which things are explained and described. The goal of this style is to inform the
reader of some event, issue or discovery. Typical of all formal styles of writing, this essay will follow a set pattern of 3 paragraphs.
INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH
Expository essays begin with the TOPIC, where in short, direct sentences the issue or event is explained. Details about the
SETTING and CAST are presented next. These sentences tell WHO the major players are and WHERE the story is being played
out. The final sentence of this section is where the writer presents his/her OPINION on the issue. This is a "grabber" that makes
the reader want to read the rest of the essay.
BODY PARAGRAPH
This section concerns the details of the story. Using the information from the article and the video, the writer should present the
facts in a strong, direct manner. It is best to arrange details in an ORDER OF IMPORTANCE. Place the more significant details at
the start of the essay and the lesser ones later in the paragraph. The aim of an expository essay is to inform the reader, but the
writer should also try to bring the reader to their opinion by using logic and the evidence.
CONCLUSION
The final section of an expository essay should drive home the opinion of the writer. Repeat the TOPIC in a short, clear phrase
and then answer a few questions expressing your own thoughts on the situation. Do parents have the right to use corporal
punishment? Who should set the limits on parental control? End this section with a look to the future. How will you raise your
children?
Basement beatings suspect arraigned
Ben Amato | Educational consultant
Expository Writing - ELA Standards 1, 3 and 4
“Parents are often so busy with the physical rearing of children
that they miss the glory of parenthood,
just as the grandeur of the trees is lost when raking leaves.”
Marcelene Cox
How to raise a child is the right of every parent. Corporal punishment as a method of discipline while once accepted is now
considered a matter of child abuse and assault. Today's lesson looks at an incident of domestic violence as an example of
parenting gone wrong.
Television Component
News 12 has the story of a child being beaten by his step-father.
View the video twice and then answer the Multiple Choice questions.
Newspaper Component
Today's Newsday contains the article "Basement beatings suspect arraigned."
Read the story and then using the facts and details within,
complete the Comprehension Crossword Puzzle.
Radio Component
National Public Radio has a story titled "To Spank or Not To Spank."
Before starting your essay, listen to this radio program to broaden your
understanding on the topic of corporal punishment.
Language Arts Component Critical Lens
"Children today are tyrants. They contradict their parents, gobble their food, and tyrannize their teachers.”
Socrates (469 BC - 399 BC)
Stretching from the Stone Age to today’s Cyberspace world, the act of raising children has been an eternal duty, privilege and
battleground.
Situation
Based upon the details in the article, the video clip and your own feelings about discipline,
write an EXPOSITORY ESSAY about Corporal Punishment as a method of raising children.
The Nature and Structure of an EXPOSITORY ESSAY
An EXPOSITORY ESSAY is a form of writing in which things are explained and described. The goal of this style is to inform the
reader of some event, issue or discovery. Typical of all formal styles of writing, this essay will follow a set pattern of 3 paragraphs.
INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH
Expository essays begin with the TOPIC, where in short, direct sentences the issue or event is explained. Details about the
SETTING and CAST are presented next. These sentences tell WHO the major players are and WHERE the story is being played
out. The final sentence of this section is where the writer presents his/her OPINION on the issue. This is a "grabber" that makes
the reader want to read the rest of the essay.
BODY PARAGRAPH
This section concerns the details of the story. Using the information from the article and the video, the writer should present the
facts in a strong, direct manner. It is best to arrange details in an ORDER OF IMPORTANCE. Place the more significant details at
the start of the essay and the lesser ones later in the paragraph. The aim of an expository essay is to inform the reader, but the
writer should also try to bring the reader to their opinion by using logic and the evidence.
CONCLUSION
The final section of an expository essay should drive home the opinion of the writer. Repeat the TOPIC in a short, clear phrase
and then answer a few questions expressing your own thoughts on the situation. Do parents have the right to use corporal
punishment? Who should set the limits on parental control? End this section with a look to the future. How will you raise your
children?
