Planning our Writing - Power Outlines

4th grade is a big year for writing

We use graphic organizers for all of our pre-writing steps.

These graphic organizers help us to organize our thoughts so we are ready to write. We start out with the basics, a power outline, which is a twist on the traditional outlining process. Below is an explanation and an example of how it is used.

Power Outlines (from Step-Up to Writing)

Organize your ideas for writing

T = Topic (What is the main idea)

RDF (Reasons, Details or Facts about your topic)

E – explain more

E- explain more

RDF (Another Reason, Detail or Fact)

E- explain more

E-explain more

RDF (Another Reason, Detail or Fact)

E- explain more

E- explain more

CS – Concluding sentence (restate the topic)

Example

T = McDonald’s

D – Milkshakes

E – creamy

E – chocolatey

D- Cheeseburger

E- juicy

E- mouth-watering good

D- French Fries

E-soft in the middle

E –crispy on the outside

E-salty goodness