Teacher Notes on Instruction-Writing Exercises

Exercise 10: How to make an oval template

Context for this case:

Prerequisites:

Scaffolded illustrated instructions (with flaws).
Improved version of text and pictures.

Cognitive Apprenticeship Features:

Models editing technical art as well as text.
Reveals "the magic" behind making useful technical art.

Supporting References:

Good instruction guidelines.
Edward Tufte's Envisioning Information book.

Relevant CA Content Standards

Goal:

To let students assess and improve draft instructions that involve graphics by editing the graphics as well as the text.

Strategy:

This unworked but scaffolded exercise puts to use what students have learned about the role of well-designed (Exercise 8) and poorly designed (Exercise 9) technical illustrations in crafting effective instructions.

Once again, the most helpful figures here are those that suggest relevant actions, while those that merely picture things are less helpful. And once again, there is a hidden step (making the oval) that needs added figures to support it. So improving these draft instructions involves improving the figures along with the text by applying the lessons learned from Exercises 8 and 9 (the annotated version shows one way to do this).

Note that the last two called-out problems in Exercise 10 concern troubleshooting and the need for overt warnings to help the reader avoid known pitfalls when following the steps. Some students might need to revisit Exercise 3 to review the writer's role in warning readers about impending trouble.

(This exercise has been generously adapted for this project by artist Brett S. Clark from an idea on p. 120 of Bill Gray's influential Studio Tips, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 1976.)

Case:

Student version:

(10) How to make an oval template.

After cutting an oval hole in a sheet------PROBLEM:
    of cardboard, sand its edges with      SOLUTION:
    a small piece of sandpaper (Fig. 1).


          |
          ---------------------------------PROBLEM:
                                           SOLUTION:

Smooth the curve but don't overdo it-------PROBLEM:
    or you may distort the shape           SOLUTION:
    (Fig. 2).



Spray both sides with varnish to
    protect the template.

Place small strips of cardboard or
    tape around the bottom side of
    the oval so that ink will not
    blot when you draw (Fig. 3).



If you use a technical pen, be sure--------PROBLEM:
    to hold it vertically against          SOLUTION:
    the edge of the oval (Fig. 4).

Annotated version:

(10) How to make an oval template.

After cutting an oval hole in a sheet------PROBLEM: COMPLEX STEP
    of cardboard, sand its edges...        SOLUTION: subdivide, add
                                                     details with diagrams


          |
          ---------------------------------PROBLEM: USELESS DIAGRAM,
                                                    LIKE IRRELEVANT TEXT
                                           SOLUTION: omit it
     (a) Draw an oval on one side of a sheet
         of stiff cardboard (Fig. A).


     (b) Cut carefully around the drawn curve
         to make an oval hole (Fig. B).



Smooth the curve but don't overdo it-------PROBLEM: WARNING NEEDED
    or you may distort the shape...        SOLUTION: signal clearly

     WARNING: work gently so you smooth the
     curve without distoring it (Fig. C).



Spray both sides with varnish to
    protect the template.

Place small strips of cardboard or
    tape around the bottom side of
    the oval so that ink will not
    blot when you draw (Fig. D).



If you use a technical pen, be sure--------PROBLEM: WARNING NEEDED
    to hold it vertically against...       SOLUTION: signal clearly

     WARNING: always hold your technical pen
     vertically against the edge of the
     oval (Fig. E).

Note:

This exercise most closely supports the following 1998 California English-Language Arts content standard(s).
Reading:
Grade 5--"Understand how text features (e.g., format, graphics, sequence...) make information accessible and usable" (p. 28).
Grade 9/10--"Analyze the structure and format of functional workplace documents, including graphics..." (p. 56).
Writing:
Grade 8--"Write technical documents...identifying the activities needed to operate a tool...use formatting techniques [and graphics] to aid comprehension" (p. 51).
Grade 11--"Enhance meaning by employing rhetorical devices, including...the incorporation of visual aids" (p. 69).

Contact: T. R. Girill trgirill@acm.org