Writing with “The Urgency of Your Pen”

Editorial*
Paper due date:
Monday, March 1st at 11:59pm (1st & 3rd block)
Tuesday, March 2nd at 11:59pm (4th, 5th, & 6th block)

Multimodal piece due date:

Sunday, March 7th at 11:59pm

“When the whole world is silent, even one voice

becomes powerful.”
~ Malala Yousafzai

Throughout this unit, we will learn about changemakers that are constantly
working to make positive change and improve the world. We will also question how
we can work to make the world a better place. One of the many important steps in
becoming a changemaker is making oneself aware about the current issues that
exist in our world, educating ourselves, taking a stance, and writing for change so
that we can help raise awareness about the issues that are most important to us.

If you so choose, you can submit your editorial to the New York Times Student
Editorial writing contest which opens on February 23rd, 2021!

Directions:
Part 1: “The Urgency of Your Pen” Editorial
You will write a 450-500 word evidence-based editorial, like the editorial pieces
published in the New York Times, about an issue that you believe is urgent that more
people should know more about that is in need of change to create a more just
world.

Part 2: A Multimodal Piece to Accompany the Essay

You will create a zine, podcast, poem, video, painting, drawing, collage, poster, t-shirt
design, TikTok, Instagram post, digital story, or other creative project that you can use
to help others visualize your writing piece.

*Editorial: A research-based opinion essay

 Writing with “The Urgency of Your Pen” Editorial and
Multimodal Piece: Checklist

Areas to Improve in Learning Targets Areas to Celebrate

the Future

I wrote a lead that interests the reader

by:
❏ Explaining the importance of my
topic.
❏ Including a fact, statistic, or
anecdote.
❏ Previewing the parts of the topic
included in my text.
❏ Including a clear simple claim

I included varied kinds of information like:

❏ Facts
❏ Quotes
❏ Examples
❏ Definitions

❏ I can explain how the information fits

with my key points.

I used/And
❏ Trustworthy sources
❏ Cited my sources based on the NYT
requirements

I used a formal tone that engages my

reader by:
❏ Keeping a neutral tone to my word
choices
❏ Using topic specific language
❏ Using correct grammar, spelling, and
punctuation
I wrote a conclusion (ending) that:
❏ Restated the importance of the topic
❏ Talked about challenges or
implications connected to my topic.
❏ Reviewed the key points

I wrote my paper:
❏ Free of grammatical errors
❏ In 12 pt. Font, Times New Roman,
with one-inch margins, MLA Format
❏ And reached the required 450-500
word count

I created my multimodal piece:

❏ To thoughtfully accompany my paper
❏ With creativity and purpose for how I
might raise awareness about my
topic in a different form
❏ In a way that it is clear that I put time
and effort into it
❏ And accompanied with a brief
caption explaining what it is, why I
produced it the way I did, and how it
works to raise awareness about the
topic I address in my paper.