R.A.T.T.S.A Strategy for Answering Open-ended

Questions using the 3 E’s

R.A.T.T.S.

Restate the question (opinion/thesis)

Answer the question (example)(The first two are often combined.)

Text support #1(evidence) explained

Text support #2 (evidence) explained

Summarizing or closing sentence

Question

Why it is easier to turn a truck when it’s empty

than when it is carrying a heavy load?

Sample It is easier to turn a truck when it is empty

because the truck has less inertia. Newton’s first law states that an object in motion will stay in motion unless acted on by an unbalanced force. Newton explained that heavier things have more inertia – this means that the truck with the heavy load has a greater tendency to keep moving at the same speed and in the same direction. The truck needs more force when it is full to make the same change in motion (turning) as when it is empty. As an example, if I was in the supermarket, it is easier to turn a cart that is empty than it is at the end of the trip when the shopping cart is full of groceries. As seen in both situations, the heavier object is harder to maneuver because it has more mass and therefore more inertia.

Restate & Answer

Evidence #1

Evidence #2

Summary / Closing