It occured to me that the 2006 summer vacation plan travel writing contest is perfect for giving students a writing task with an authentic context.
They have an audience: entries get published on www.travel-plan-idea.com which gets thousands of visitors daily.
They have something to write about: even if they haven't traveled, they can come up with a vacation plan for their own country.
They have a reason to write: 1,000 dollars in prizes from 500.00 for first place, to 250 for second, to 150 for third, to 50.00 each for the two honorable mentions.
They have a meaning focus: The contest entries are evaluated on content, not grammar.
1. The vacation plan includes a daily itinerary: 0-10 points6. They have models: other contest entries can be found on the 2006 Summer vacation plan page.
2. The vacation plan discusses possible accommodations: 0-10 points
3. The vacation itinerary includes detailed information on activities (e.g. the attractions of a museum, the best hiking trail, the best restaurants, must see architecture, etc.): 0-20 points
4. The vacation itinerary estimates the cost of activities (e.g. museum admission price, cost for dinner in a recommended restaurant, etc.): 1-5 points
5. The vacation itinerary generated discussion on www.travel-plan-idea.com (readers left comments regarding the vacation plan): 1-5 points
Now the deadline is May 17, but if you or your students want to submit vacation plans (each person can submit more than one), I'll be looking forward to reading them and sharing them with travelers.
Posted by James Trotta at March 1, 2006 3:11 PMESL blog is one of many Blogs for learning English & teaching English. Translation services information.