Explaining with Clarity: Writing Explanations that Engage and Inform

Explaining with Clarity: Writing Explanations that Engage and Inform

Learning Objective

At the end of the lesson, you will be able to write a clear and concise explanation that engages and informs your audience.

Introduce the learning objective to the students to focus their attention on what they will be able to do at the end of the lesson.

What do you already know about writing explanations?

Purpose of Writing Explanations

Explanations are used to inform, persuade, or instruct. They should be clear, concise, and engaging.

Explain the purpose of writing explanations to the students to give them an understanding of why it is important to write a good explanation.

Identifying Your Audience

Before writing an explanation, it is important to identify your audience. Who are they? What do they already know about the topic? What do they need to know?

Explain to the students the importance of identifying their audience to ensure that their explanation is tailored to their audience's needs.

Organizing Your Explanation

A good explanation should be organized with a clear introduction, body, and conclusion. It should also be broken down into clear and concise sections.

Explain to the students the importance of organizing their explanation to make it easy to follow and understand.

Using Clear and Concise Language

When writing an explanation, it is important to use clear and concise language. Avoid using technical terms or jargon that your audience may not understand.

Explain to the students the importance of using clear and concise language to ensure that their explanation is easy to understand.

Providing Examples

Providing examples can help to clarify your explanation and make it more engaging.

Explain to the students the importance of using examples to make their explanation more engaging and to help clarify their points.

Checking for Understanding

Before submitting your explanation, it is important to check for understanding. Have someone else read your explanation to make sure it is clear and easy to understand.

Explain to the students the importance of checking for understanding to ensure that their explanation is clear and easy to understand for their audience.

Practice Writing an Explanation

Now it's time to practice writing an explanation. Choose a topic and write a clear and concise explanation that engages and informs your audience.

Give the students time to practice writing an explanation based on the information they have learned in the lesson.

Write down 3 things you learned in this lesson.

Have students enter three things they learned in this lesson. With this they can indicate their own learning efficiency of this lesson.

Write down 2 things you want to know more about.

Here, students enter two things they would like to know more about. This not only increases involvement, but also gives them more ownership.

Ask 1 question about something you haven't quite understood yet.

The students indicate here (in question form) with which part of the material they still have difficulty. For the teacher, this not only provides insight into the extent to which the students understand/master the material, but also a good starting point for the next lesson.