Residential School Letters

Assessment

These letters will be assessed for all of the usual writing criteria:

  • content – includes details; ideas are developed, purpose is clear
  • style – uses a a broad and interesting vocabulary and a variety of sentence structures
  • form/organization – effective opening and closing; paragraph structure
  • conventions – spelling, punctuation, grammar, usage

In addition, the letters will be assessed for your understanding of life in the residential schools and how this affected children and families.

Letter home:

  • shows conditions in the residential schools
  • shows what it felt like to be there (emotion)
  • shows what students missed about home
  • sounds personal

Letter to government:

  • tells about children’s rights and how they were violated
  • suggests better ways to treat aboriginal children and families
  • tells the government what action to take

Sample Letter Format