The purpose of a RAFT project is to help children understand the relationship between literature and its historical, social and cultural contexts. It helps students process information they read and increases their analytical skills.
Role is the person the student becomes for the project. It can be a book character, historical figure, celebrity or themselves. Audience is the person or people that will see or read the project. This can be a fellow student, parent, community member, historical figure or book character. Format is the genre of the project that the students create. It can be a letter, brochure, cartoon, article or poster. The topic is the subject of the project, usually an issue related to the text that they just read.
Start by choosing a concept that you want your students to learn as they read a passage. With the students, brainstorm possible roles that the students can assume. Have the children choose an audience and writing format. You can assign students the same role or have each one choose a different one. Once children are finished, ask them to share what they did with the class.
One example is to have a student assume the role of Ben Franklin and write a "Dear Abby" letter about the independence of the United States. Another idea is to have a student assume the role of Alexander the Great and write a letter to his mother about what he has seen in his journeys. A third idea is to have students assume the role of a bird and write a complaint to the Wright brothers about how their new invention disrupts their flying.