Grade by Grade
D. Composition: Expressing Ideas and Creating Texts · Composing Complex Texts: Research, Story, Argument, Analysis and Media

Organizing Content and Evaluating Planning Tools

D1.4 D1.5 A1.2About 50 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can classify and sequence ideas and research notes using effective strategies and tools.
  • I can test each piece of content for relevance and cut what doesn't serve my focus.
  • I can re-evaluate my choice of form, genre and medium once my content is organized, and consider alternatives.
  • I can evaluate which planning strategies and tools helped me most and set a next step as a text creator.

Words to know

classify
Sort ideas or notes into groups that belong together.
sequence
Put ideas or groups in an order that makes sense for the reader.
relevant
Directly connected to your focus or thesis.
thesis
The main point or claim that a whole text supports, usually stated in one sentence.
card sort
Writing one idea per card or sticky note and moving the cards into groups.
concept map
A diagram that shows ideas as boxes and the links between them as labelled lines.
formal outline
A plan using Roman numerals, capital letters and numbers to show main points and supporting details.
evaluate
To judge how well something worked, using evidence and criteria.

Remember from Grade 7

In Grade 7 you organized notes by idea, not by source, matched a text structure to your purpose (such as problem and solution or compare and contrast), and organized content for different media with a formal outline, a site map, a run sheet and a storyboard.

In Grade 8 you'll choose the right tool for the job, test your content for relevance against a thesis, and step back to ask: Now that I see my content, is my form still the best choice? You'll also evaluate your planning tools so you know which ones to use in high school.

A toolbox for classifying and sequencing

  • Card sort: one idea per card or sticky note. Move cards into groups, then name each group. Great when you have many notes.
  • Concept map: boxes for ideas, labelled lines for links (causes, leads to, is an example of). Great for cause and effect or complex topics.
  • Timeline or flowchart: for events in order, steps or narratives.
  • Formal outline: for essays and reports. It shows the thesis, main points and supporting details.
  • Storyboard or run sheet: for video, audio and presentations.
  • Digital tools: a spreadsheet for sorting survey data, a mind-mapping app, or slide sorter view to reorder slides.

The relevance test

Write your thesis (or focus) at the top of the page. Hold each note against it and ask: Does this help prove or explain my thesis? If not, cut it, even if it's interesting. Keep cut notes in a parking lot file; they might fit a different text.

Notes(cards)Group 1Group 2Cut:not relevantOutlineI. ...II. ...III. ...
From notes to plan: classify into groups, cut what isn't relevant, then sequence the groups into an outline.
Worked example

Let's classify, cut and sequence

Thesis: Our school can make clubs more welcoming by advertising them all year, scheduling some at lunch and checking that every club room is accessible. Here are eight pretend notes:

  1. 12 of 30 students surveyed didn't know which clubs exist.
  2. Bus students must leave at 3:15, when most clubs start.
  3. The robotics club won a regional prize in 2019.
  4. The art room is up a flight of stairs and the school has no elevator to that floor.
  5. A new student said club posters came down in October.
  6. Lunch clubs at another school doubled their members.
  7. The chess club's favourite opening is the Sicilian Defence.
  8. A student who uses a wheelchair said she'd join art club if it met on the main floor.
  1. Classify into groups that match the thesis: Advertising: notes 1, 5. Scheduling: notes 2, 6. Accessibility: notes 4, 8.
  2. Relevance test: notes 3 and 7 are true and interesting, but they don't help prove the thesis. Cut them.
  3. Sequence the groups: order of importance, saving the strongest for last? Or easiest fix first? The writer chooses easiest to hardest: advertising (cheap), scheduling, then accessibility (needs a room change), so the reader sees quick wins first.
  4. Build the formal outline: I. Introduction and thesis. II. Advertise all year (notes 1, 5). III. Schedule some clubs at lunch (notes 2, 6). IV. Make every club room accessible (notes 4, 8). V. Conclusion: a welcoming club program by next September.

Six notes kept in three groups, two notes cut, sequenced from easiest to hardest change, with a reason for the order.

Worked example

Let's re-evaluate the form and consider alternatives

The writer first planned a written report for the principal. Looking at the organized content, they notice: there is survey data, a map problem (where rooms are) and student voices. Is the report still the best form?

  1. List alternatives: a report; a slide presentation; an infographic; a short video with student interviews.
  2. Look at the content: Survey data would be clearer as a graph. The stairs problem would be clearer on a floor plan. Student voices are powerful heard aloud.
  3. Look at the audience again: the principal and staff meeting, where there is a screen.
  4. Decide and justify: I'll switch to a 5-minute slide presentation with a graph, a floor plan and two short recorded quotations (with permission), and give the principal a one-page summary. The content is too visual for a plain report.

Re-evaluating after organizing is not wasted work. The content showed the writer a better form.

Tool I usedWhat it helped me doWhat was hardRating (1 to 3)Use it again for...
Card sortSee groups quickly; easy to cut notesTook a lot of cards3Any research text with many notes
Concept mapShowed that the bus schedule causes the low turnoutGot messy with too many links2Cause-and-effect topics
Formal outlineMade the order clear before draftingHard to start before sorting3Essays and reports, after a card sort
A tool evaluation table (a pretend student's reflection). Evaluating your tools tells you which to use next time.
Low clubturnoutClubs start at 3:15Bus students must leavecausesPosters come downNew students never hearleads toArt room is upstairsWheelchair users shut outcausesleads to
A concept map of the club notes. The labelled lines (causes, leads to) show how each problem connects to low turnout, which a plain list can't show.

Reflect like a text creator

The curriculum asks you to evaluate your planning strategies and tools, explain which were most helpful, and suggest next steps. Make your reflection specific:

  • Weak: The card sort was good.
  • Strong: The card sort helped most because moving cards showed me that two of my notes didn't fit my thesis. Next time I'll do the card sort before I write my outline, not after.
Just for fun

What if you ran the relevance test on your bedroom floor? Thesis: I need to find my gym shoes. One sock: not relevant. Three hoodies: not relevant. A granola bar from last month: very not relevant. Parking lot (also known as the laundry basket).

Hands-on activity

Sticky-note sort on the fridge

You need: sticky notes or small pieces of paper, a pen, a fridge door, wall or table.

  1. Choose a topic and write a one-sentence thesis. Put it at the top.
  2. Write 10 to 12 notes about the topic (facts you know, ideas, a quotation from a family member), one per sticky note.
  3. Classify: move the notes into 3 groups and give each group a label.
  4. Relevance test: move any note that doesn't help the thesis into a parking lot at the side.
  5. Sequence the groups and write a formal outline with I, II, III and A, B, C.
  6. Look at your outline and ask: Is my planned form still the best? Write one alternative and a sentence about which is better.
  7. Fill in a tool evaluation table for the card sort and the outline.

Your turn

1

What is the difference between classifying and sequencing?

2

What question do you ask in the relevance test?

3

Which tool best fits a topic about causes and effects: a concept map or a site map? Why?

4

Name the order in a formal outline: what do Roman numerals and capital letters show?

5

A student's thesis is about why the town should build a skatepark. One note says Skateboarding became an Olympic sport. Is it relevant? Explain.

6

Why might a writer change forms after organizing their content?

7

Turn this weak reflection into a strong one: The outline helped.

More practice: warm-up

1

What does relevant mean?

2

What is a thesis?

3

Which tool shows events in time order?

4

Where can you keep good notes that don't fit your thesis?

5

Name one digital tool for organizing.

More practice: on your own

1

Classify these notes for a report on winter safety into two groups and name them: wear a helmet tobogganing; never go on ice unless an adult says it's safe; check that the hill has no trees or fences at the bottom; stay away from open water near the edge of a lake.

2

Give two different reasonable ways to sequence the three groups of a persuasive report, and say when each works best.

3

Your content for a project on the local river includes old photos, an interview with an Elder about the river's importance to her community (with her permission), and water-level data. Suggest two alternative forms and which is best for a community audience.

4

A student's concept map has 40 links and they can't read it. What should they do?

5

What makes a next step specific? Give an example.

Challenge

1

Write a three-section formal outline (with at least two details each) for the thesis: Every Ontario student should learn to cook three simple meals before high school.

2

Evaluate two planning tools you have used this year (or the card sort and formal outline from this lesson): compare them and recommend when to use each.

3

A student planned a podcast but, after organizing, finds most of the content is maps and charts. Explain the problem and propose a solution that keeps some audio.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Which tool is best for sorting many research notes into groups?

2.

What should you do with an interesting note that doesn't support your thesis?

3.

In a formal outline, Roman numerals show…

4.

Which tool best shows cause-and-effect links between ideas?

5.

Why re-evaluate your form after organizing content?

6.

Which reflection best evaluates a planning tool?

For parents and teachers

Big ideas (D1.4, D1.5): Grade 8 students classify and sequence ideas and information using effective strategies and tools, identify and organize relevant content, evaluate their choices of form, genre and medium and consider alternatives, and evaluate which strategies and tools were most helpful, suggesting next steps. Reflecting on how they learn builds student agency (A1.2).

How to help at home:

  • Use sticky notes on the fridge for a real family plan (a trip, a party). Your child can model classifying and sequencing.
  • Ask How does this connect to your main point? when a draft wanders.
  • Encourage your child to keep a short list of planning tools that work for them.

Common difficulties:

  • Keeping everything because it took effort to find. Cutting is a skill.
  • Skipping organization and drafting straight from notes, which leads to repetitive writing.
  • Vague reflections. Ask for one reason and one next step.

All notes and survey numbers in this lesson are pretend.