From the Florida Department of Education
Description of FLORIDA WRITES!
The FLORIDA WRITES! requires students to produce a piece of writing within
established guidelines and specific parameters.
Each student receives a writing folder containing one writing prompt (topic) with two lined pages for
the written response.
Students are given 45 minutes to read the prompts independetly, plan their responses, and write
their responses in the folders. A separate sheet is provided for planning or prewriting activities.
The responses are scored by trained readers using the holistic method to evaluate a piece of writing
for its overall quality. The readers consider 4 elements: FOCUS ORGANIZATION SUPPORT and
CONVENTIONS.
FOCUS: how clearly the paper presents and maintains a main idea, theme, or unifying point. Papers
representing the higher end of the point scale demonstrate a consistent awareness of the topic and
do not contain extraneous information.
ORGANIZATION: the structure or plan of development (beginning, middle, end) and whether the
points logically relate to one another. Organization also refers to (1) the use of transitional devices
to relate the supporting ideas to the main idea and (2) the evidence of a connection between
sentences. Papers representing the higher end of the point scale use transitions to signal the plan of
development and end with concluding statements.
SUPPORT: the quality of details used to explain, clarify, or define. The quality of support depends on
word choice, depth, and thoroughness. Papers representing the higher end of the point scale
provide examples and illustrations in which the relationship between the supporting ideas and the
topic is clear.
CONVENTIONS: punctuation, capitalization, spelliing, and variation in sentence structure. These are
basic writing skills included in Florida's Minimum Student Performance Standards. Papers
representing the higher end of the point scale follow the conventions of punctuation, capitalization,
and spelling and use a variety of sentence structures to present ideas.
POINTS
6 points:
The writing is focused, purposeful, and reflects insight into the writing situation. The paper conveys
a sense of completeness and wholeness with adherence to the main idea, and its organizational
pattern provides for a logical progression of ideas. The paper demonstrated a commitment to and an
involvement with the subject and may use creative writing strategies appropriate to the purpose of
the paper. The writiing demonstrates a mature command of language. Sentence structure is varied,
and sentences are complete except when fragments are used purposefully. Few, if any, convention
errors occur in mechanics, usage, and punctuation.
5 points:
The writing focuses on the topic, and its organizational pattern provides for a progression of ideas,
althouth some lapses may occur. The paper conveys a sense of completeness. The support is ample.
The writing demonstrates a mature command of language, including precision in word choice. There
is variation in sentence structure, and sentences are complete. The paper generally follows the
conventions of mechanics, usage, and spelling
4 points:
The writing is generally focused on the topic but may include loosely related material. An
organizational pattern is apparent, though some lapses may occur. The paper exhibits some sense
of completeness. The support is adequate, althouth development may be uneven. There is little
variation in sentence structure, and most sentences are complete. The paper generally follows the
conventions of mechanics, usage, and spelling.
3 points:
The writing is generally focused on the topic but may include loosely related material. An
organizational pattern has been attempted, but paper lacks a sense of completeness. Development
is erratic. Word choice is adequate but may be linited, predictable, or vague. There is little, if any
variation in sentence structure. Knowledge of the conventions of mechanics and usage is
demonstrated, and commonly used words are spelled correctly.
2 points
The writing is related to the topic but includes loosely related material. Little evidence of an
organizational pattern is demonstrated and the paper lacks completeness. Development of support
is inadequate. Word choice is limited, inappropriate, or vague. There is little, if any variation in
sentence structure. Errors in basic conventions may occur and commonly used words may be
misspelled.
1 point:
The writing only minimally addresses the topic. The paper is an incoherent listing of related ideas or
sentences or both. Little, if any, development of organization is apparent. Limited word choice may
obscure meaning. Gross errors in sentence structure may impede communication. Commonly used
words may be misspelled.
Unscorable:
The response is not related to what the prompt requested the student to do
The response is simply a rewording of the prompt
The response is a copy of a published work
The student refused to write
The response is illegible
The response is incomprehensible
The response contains an insufficient amount of writing to determine if the student was attempting
to address the prompt
The writing folder is blank