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WRITING 2 – NOTES

Exercise One: Where to Start – Generating Ideas Through Pre-writing Prewriting strategies help you develop your ideas on a topic.  They are useful in helping you narrow down a topic that is too big or broaden a topic that is too small.  There are several different, and useful, pre-writing techniques.  Two of the simplest types are brainstorming and clustering.

(1)  Brainstorming: Brainstorming is simply writing on paper all the ideas that come to mind about a topic.  There is no right or wrong way to brainstorm.  You just write anything you think of on your paper in no particular order or sequence.

How to Brainstorm a Topic: Step 1 -- Choose the topic you’re interested in writing about and write it at the top of your paper. Step 2 -- Write down as many words, phrases, or sentences as you can think of underneath the topic. Step 3 -- Once you’ve finished writing down as many ideas as you can, examine your ideas to see if any of them have anything in common. Step 4 -- You are likely to see that some of your ideas are related and do, indeed, have things in common.  Identify these relationships, or similarities, and create several categories for your ideas.  Write those on the backside of your paper. Step 5 -- Look at your brainstorming list and lump your ideas into the categories you’ve created as you see fit.

 (2)  Clustering:  Basically, clustering is an idea web.  Once you have your topic, clustering can help you generate ideas about that topic and recognize relationships between your ideas.  These relationships become categories which eventually could make up the bulk of your essay (the essay body, see exercise ).  Clustering will also help you weed out ideas that are weak and spotlight ideas that are strong.

How to Cluster a Topic: Step 1 -- Write your topic on the top of your page. Step 2 -- Generate ideas by writing down everything that comes to mind about that topic and circle those ideas.  They should be scattered over your page. Step 3 --  Once you’ve finished generating ideas, examine what you’ve written and draw lines between those ideas that share a connection.  Any connection will do, and you may add new ideas to the cluster if you come up with more while you make connections. Step 4 --  Single out those ideas that have the most lines connecting them to other ideas.  You should aim for three or more. Step 5 --  Ask yourself what the relationships or connections are between the ideas you chose in step 4.  These become categories.  Aim for three or more categories and write them on a separate page. Step 6 --  Beneath each category on the page you started in step 5,  write the ideas that you felt fell into each category.  These categories and ideas can be used later to make up the paragraphs of your essay.

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ACTIVITY 1 Working individually, students are to brainstorm or cluster any four topics from the list below:  

Travel Divorce Peer pressure Television and violence Discipline

Drugs Family  Family planning Friends Sports

Jobs and school Loyalty School

uniforms Suicide Underage drinking

   

 Exercise Two: Determining your Audience

Who is your audience and why are they important? It is important to keep your audience in mind when you write.  Your audience is the person or persons who will read your essay.  As a writer you need to keep them in mind because how you say what you want to say will depend on who your audience is.

Knowing your audience will help you determine how much knowledge they have for the subject you will be discussing, the terminology you use, and how simple or complex your writing needs to be.

Considering your audience also affects the tone you will use when you write.  Tone, in writing, refers to how something is said. Will you be writing seriously, sarcastically, humorously, or conversationally?  Chances are you wouldn’t write a letter to your best friend and your great aunt using the same tone.

**Tip** When writing for school assignments it is very useful NOT think of your audience as your teacher.  If you do this, you are much more likely to leave out important information you assume the teacher knows - the very information part of your grade may depend on!

Exercise Three:   Your Writing Style

Just as each of us has our own unique hairstyle or style of dressing, so does our writing.  Unlike hair and clothing, however, writing style has only two main categories: formal and informal.

Formal writing is very precise and the language, or wording in formal writing, is carefully chosen.  Also, no personal references (I, me, we, etc.) are used.  Informal writing is more relaxed and has a conversational tone to it.  It is more lively and personal and uses personal references.

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The style you chose to use when writing an essay will depend on your audience and purpose.  For most school essays the appropriate style is formal.

Exercise Four: Creating Your Thesis Statement

Once you have chosen a topic and generated a list of ideas to discuss in an essay, you have to create your thesis statement.

What is a Thesis Statement? A thesis statement expresses your opinion about a topic.  It is the basis of the introductory paragraph of your essay. · It should be a single complete sentence. · You must be sure you can support the opinion in your thesis.

Thesis Rules A thesis statement should: · Never be an open-ended question · Be limited to mentioning only those points you plan to discuss in your essay · Never be so broad that it’s difficult to discuss all relevant information · Only present one specific idea; not multiple ideas · Not contain two conflicting ideas

ACTIVITY 4A Identify the problems in the following thesis statements using these categories: (a) conflicting ideas   (b) open-ended question  (c) too broad   (d) not limited

1.  The World’s Fair in New Orleans was a disaster because of the way the press criticized the way it was run, but it was exciting for little children and had many good food booths.

2.  TV commercials are obnoxious to the person who is intent on watching a good show; on the other hand, they provide entertainment in the antics of the performers and they provide a good opportunity to take a snack break.

3.  Since politicians are constantly bombarding each other, how do they expect anyone to know who is right and who is wrong?

4.  Rap music is a popular form of art because it is creative and original and because it follows the traditions of other spontaneously developed music like jazz.

5.  Unless people are conscious of pollution, the world will be destroyed by the year 2050  

How to write a thesis statement To create a thesis statement simply follow this formula:

TOPIC  +  OPINION  =  THESIS STATEMENT

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Examples:  

TOPIC + OPINION = THESIS STATEMENT

Animals + Dogs make better pets than cats = When it comes to animals, dogs make

better pets than cats.Movies and emotions + Titanic ignited many

emotions = The movie "Titanic" ignited many emotions in an audience.

Gangs and identity in the story "On the Sidewalk Bleeding".

+The boy lost his personal identity and was only seen as a gang member.

=

In the story "On the Sidewalk Bleeding", the boy loses his identity and is only recognized as a gang member.

ACTIVITY 4B Write thesis statements for the topics you chose in Activity 1.  Make sure your statements meet the Thesis Rules.  

Exercise Four: Creating Your Thesis Statement

Once you have chosen a topic and generated a list of ideas to discuss in an essay, you have to create your thesis statement.

What is a Thesis Statement? A thesis statement expresses your opinion about a topic.  It is the basis of the introductory paragraph of your essay. · It should be a single complete sentence. · You must be sure you can support the opinion in your thesis.

Thesis Rules A thesis statement should: · Never be an open-ended question · Be limited to mentioning only those points you plan to discuss in your essay · Never be so broad that it’s difficult to discuss all relevant information · Only present one specific idea; not multiple ideas · Not contain two conflicting ideas

ACTIVITY 4A Identify the problems in the following thesis statements using these categories: (a) conflicting ideas   (b) open-ended question  (c) too broad   (d) not limited

1.  The World’s Fair in New Orleans was a disaster because of the way the press criticized the way it was run, but it was exciting for little children and had many good food booths.

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2.  TV commercials are obnoxious to the person who is intent on watching a good show; on the other hand, they provide entertainment in the antics of the performers and they provide a good opportunity to take a snack break.

3.  Since politicians are constantly bombarding each other, how do they expect anyone to know who is right and who is wrong?

4.  Rap music is a popular form of art because it is creative and original and because it follows the traditions of other spontaneously developed music like jazz.

5.  Unless people are conscious of pollution, the world will be destroyed by the year 2050  

How to write a thesis statement To create a thesis statement simply follow this formula:

TOPIC  +  OPINION  =  THESIS STATEMENT

Examples:  

TOPIC + OPINION = THESIS STATEMENT

Animals + Dogs make better pets than cats = When it comes to animals, dogs make

better pets than cats.Movies and emotions + Titanic ignited many

emotions = The movie "Titanic" ignited many emotions in an audience.

Gangs and identity in the story "On the Sidewalk Bleeding".

+The boy lost his personal identity and was only seen as a gang member.

=

In the story "On the Sidewalk Bleeding", the boy loses his identity and is only recognized as a gang member.

ACTIVITY 4B Write thesis statements for the topics you chose in Activity 1.  Make sure your statements meet the Thesis Rules.

An essay is composed of three parts: 1. The opening paragraph or introduction 2. The body 3. The conclusion

Developing your topic and beginning your essay Since the body of the essay is the biggest part it is often the best place to start.  That way, the bulk of your essay is completed first.

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In order to begin writing the body of your essay, you need to develop your topic.  This involves closely examining your thesis statement.  The first question you need to ask yourself is: how do I plan to support the opinion in my thesis?

Well, you begin by making a list of reasons or examples that support your opinion.  You need a list of, at least, three strong reasons.  For example, if we look back at the thesis statement in Exercise four, we can easily create a list to support the opinion stated in the thesis:

Thesis – When it comes to animals, dogs make better pets than cats.

Reasons/Examples to support opinion –   1) Dogs are fun                                                                2) Dogs help you exercise                                                                3) Dogs are loyal                                                                4) Can you add any other reasons?

Once you have your reasons/examples, putting the body of the essay together becomes very simple by following these steps:

Step 1 – Examine your first reason/example.  I.e.  “dogs are fun” Step 2 – Explain what you mean (why are dogs fun?) and use examples to back up your ideas.  In this instance you might               explain that it’s fun to teach dogs games and tricks, or that dogs like to play. Step 3 – Put your ideas together in step two to create a paragraph.  Keep in mind that there should be only one main topic in a               paragraph.  If you find yourself wanting to branch off of a topic onto another related one, begin a new paragraph to               discuss that idea. Step 4 – Repeat steps 1 – 3 for the second and third reasons/examples.  Once you have the minimum three paragraphs written               to support your thesis, the body of your essay is complete.

Remember, the body of your essay must have at least three paragraphs.  Additional paragraphs, however, can help strengthen your essay if they help reinforce your ideas.

ACTIVITY 5A Look back at the four thesis statements you created in Activity 4B and fine tuned in activity 4C.  Make a list, for each of those statements, of at least three reasons/examples that support your opinion in each thesis.

ACTIVITY 5B Choose one of the thesis statements and lists of reasons/examples you worked on in the previous activity.  Following steps 1 – 4 of exercise five, use your list of reasons to write the paragraphs to make up the rough copy of the body of an essay.

Exercise Six: Writing the Introduction and Conclusion of an Essay

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So you know how to write the body of your essay, but do you know how to begin your essay? As explained in exercise five, there are three parts of an essay: the introduction, body, and conclusion.  You CANNOT begin an essay by simply stating the thesis of your essay.  You must begin an essay with an introductory paragraph, or introduction.  This introductory paragraph is the first paragraph of your essay.  It should announce your topic to the reader, include the thesis statement, and, hopefully, get your reader’s attention.

Writing the introductory paragraph of an essay is quite easy.  There are a variety of ways to write an introductory paragraph, but, for the purpose of simplicity, we are going to look at the thesis-statement-last introduction.

Writing your introduction 1.  Write the thesis of your essay ¼ of the way down your page (leaving several empty lines above it). 2.  Using the empty lines before your thesis lead your readers to your thesis. This means you need to discuss things related to the topic in your thesis.

How do I lead my reader to the Thesis statement? There are several ways to begin your essay, and more specifically, your introductory paragraph.  The following are some options: - Begin your essay by asking a question - Begin your essay by telling a very brief story - Begin your essay by using a quote - Begin your essay by stating an interesting fact - Begin your essay by telling a joke - Begin your essay by offering a description

Examples: (Using a question) Have you ever wondered why we have a legal drinking age?  Many underage teens will argue that having a legal drinking age is useless.  Teens will drink when and if they feel like it.  Alcohol is easily accessible, so why bother with an age restriction?  Perhaps it is because underage drinking may create such serious problems.  There are many serious issues associated with underage drinking.

(Using a description) Krista and I have been best friends for a long time.  We have been through thick and thin.  Good times and bad times, and our friendship has experienced many changes in between.  “Best friendship” is a very special relationship that requires many different characteristics to be successful.

ACTIVITY 6A Write a rough copy of the introduction for the essay body you completed in Activity 5B.

Writing the Conclusion

OK, two out of three parts completed!  Now for the last part – writing the conclusion.

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The concluding paragraph of an essay, or conclusion, is your last say on your essay topic.  This is where you wrap your ideas up and close the essay.  Essentially, the conclusion of your essay need only be one paragraph; it is not limited to that, however.   In your conclusion you may - Restate your thesis - Summarize the main points of your essay - Draw a final conclusion about your topic - Leave your reader with a memorable statement or quote

Most importantly you want to leave your reader feeling something and offer them closure.

ACTIVITY 6B Write a rough copy of the conclusion for the essay body you completed in Activity 5B.

ACTIVITY 6C Connect your introduction, body and conclusion together to form your completed (rough) essay.  

Exercise Seven:   Connecting the Ideas Within Your Essay

One of the biggest problems seen in essays is the lack of flow between ideas.  That is, the writing seems choppy.  Because, essentially, each paragraph in an essay deals with its own topic, the paragraphs don’t connect easily and ideas may be difficult to follow.  A writer needs to help the reader follow along by using signal words, or transitions.

Transitions are words or phrases that link one idea to the next; they are signals which help the reader follow your thoughts.  Transitions are used to connect ideas within paragraphs and when leading from one paragraph to the next.

Transitions fall into several categories.  The following seven categories list transitions for some of the most common situations in writing:

 1.  To show a time relationship:  first, second, third, next, before, during, after, now, then, finally, last.  2.  To add an idea or example:  in addition, also, another, furthermore, similarly, for example, for instance.  3.  To show contrast:  although, but, however, instead, nevertheless, on the other hand, in contrast, on the contrary.  4.  To show comparison:  in the same way, similarly, likewise, as, also.  5.  To show cause-effect:  as a result, consequently, because, since, therefore, thus.  6.  To show conclusion:  as a result, therefore, finally, last, in conclusion, in summary, to sum up, all in all.  7.  To clarify:  in other words, for instance, that is, put another way.

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ACTIVITY 7B Review your essay completed in activity 6C and add transitions where necessary.  

Exercise Eight: Polishing Your Writing – correcting wordiness and misused words

Wordiness occurs when unnecessary words are included in a person’s writing.  These unnecessary words may have been added to impress the reader or “bulk-up” a paper. Regardless of the reason, wordiness should be avoided as it is often useless and repetitive information that readers prefer not to have to read!

Sentences should be clear and concise; that is, your writing should express your ideas in as few words as possible (without sacrificing information).  The following is a list of wordy phrases.  Note how, in some instances, two different words are used together which have similar meanings.

Wordy Phrases

Absolutely complete  Absolutely nothing  Green in colour Final conclusion

I personally feel... In my opinion, I think... Circled around  At that point in

time 

Collect together  In this day and age Entirely eliminated Personal friend

Exactly identical Real, genuine leather Small in size True factExact same Combined together Young in age  Long length of time

 ACTIVITY 8A Complete the activity below.  Some wordy phrases are listed above, while others require your skill at finding and fixing them.  Rewrite the sentences below editing for wordiness.  How concise can you make the following sentences without changing the information contained in each?

1.  My final conclusion concerning the real, genuine value of Bargain Barry’s reduced price sale goods is exactly identical with yours.

2.  Small in size as he was, and surrounded on all sides by strange children he didn’t know, the uniquely courageous seven-year-old challenged the class bully to a fight.

3.  The sergeant repeated again to the brand new recruits, “You will be called at 5:30 A.M. in the morning, and you will have circled around the barracks on the double by 5:45.  You will at that point in time be completely free until 6:00, when you will continue on to the barracks mess for breakfast.

4.  The new recruits disappeared from view after the 7:00 A.M. breakfast, to discuss what they could do to get even with a sergeant who woke them up one full hour before the necessary time.

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5.  They personally thought that the sergeant would probably repeat the same obnoxious behaviour again, each day, so they decided to proceed ahead with a new, innovative plan as an appropriate response.

6.  In my opinion, I must admit that I thought their plan was absolutely and completely foolproof, and that it was a great idea.

Abused Words Language is continually evolving.  As time goes by, new words are developing and old words are changing, but not necessarily for the best.  Incorrect usage and pronunciation in speech can lead to misused, misspelled and made-up words.  These words are ABUSED.

Examine the following list of abused words.  Are you guilty of using any?  Complete the activity that follows by rewriting and correcting any abused word errors.  Some commonly abused words are listed while others require your skill to find and fix them.

                Abused Words                                            Explanation                                          Correct Use

alot There is no such word. a lot  (it is actually two words)anyways, anywheres and a long ways

There is no “s” on these words.  anyway, anywhere, a long way

could of, would of, might of, should of, and so on.

The “of” should be “have”.

Could have, should have, might have, etc.

off of Use off alone.  I fell off the step.“real” used as an adverb: real sad, real nice

“real” should not be used as an adverb.  Use really or very.

suppose to, use to Grammatically incorrect. Use supposed to and used to.themself, theirself, ourselfs, yourselfs, and themselfs

The plural of self is selves.Themselves, ourselves, yourselves.  Don’t use theirselves though, it’s not a word

For granit or graniteThere is no such term. This is a pronunciatio problem.

It is spelled “for granted”.

ACTIVITY 8B 1.  Nell should of gone with us to the beach; now she can’t go nowheres.

2.  I’m suppose to see whether the reason for the delay is because it’s raining.

3.  They are suppose to get the ball themselfs, irregardless of where it is when they come off the field.

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4.  If youse don’t do nothing about boarding the windows, you’ll have pieces of glass everywheres in the house.

5.  It’s real sad to see signs of prejudism in young children, who must have been influenced by their parents.

6.  It is irrelevant whether she fell off of or was pushed off of her bicycle; she is disqualified anyways.

7.  We should never take people for granite; when they are gone they can’t be replaced.

8.  They should of finished the race even though they were behind, since every entrant is suppose to finish unless disqualified or injured.

ACTIVITY 8C Revise your essay and correct for wordiness and abused words.  

ACTIVITY 2: Correcting Sentence Fragments

From Exercise 9 you should know the three ways to fix a sentence fragment:

1) Attaching the fragment to an indpendent clause before or after it. 2) Rewriting it as an independent clause. 3) Adding a comma before the independent clause if the subject and verb are not in it.

Activity: Examine the following sentences.  Correct the sentence fragment errors in your notes.

example:

When she is helping at home. The work is finished sooner. (fragment) When she is helping at home the work is finished sooner. (correct: dependent clause joined to an independent clause)

1.  The man gave him a deal on the price of the car. Because Grampa knew him. 2.  Our entertainment unit collapsed! While the television is on the table. We have to eat in the living      room. 3.  Since the earth goes around the sun. We have a sunrise and sunset. 4.  I couldn't find a job in Halifax. Then I decided to move to Toronto. 5.  Because the job opportunities were limited.

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For extra practice with sentence fragments, complete the quiz linked to the bottom of Exercise 9.  

WRITING WORKSHOP LESSON 11: THE COMMA

The comma is the most frequently used and the most frequently misused punctuation mark.  The omission of a necessary comma can distort the meaning of a sentence.  Unnecessary commas can distract the reader and give the sentence a jerky quality.  This handout will present the four rules that will give you a good indication of when to use commas.  If the sentence you are writing is not covered by one of these rules remember this: leave the comma out!

Four Comma Rules : 1.  Use commas to separate items in a series of three or more.  Examples: · Required subjects are math, English, bookkeeping, and business law. · Walk up the hill, turn left, go two blocks, and you’ll be there. · Henry went to the show, Joan went home in tears, Norah and Phil talked until dawn, and I went upstairs.

Try These Following rule number one, insert commas where necessary: 1. Be sure to pick up mik bread cheese and wine. 2. I am going to hire a cleaning man to clean floors dust furniture scour the oven and wash clothes. 3. Tim stomped into the room threw himself into a chair drained a six-pack of Keith’s and crushed the can against his forehead.

2. Use commas to separate from the rest of the sentence any word or expression that is not essential to the sentence’s meaning or that means the same as something else in the sentence. Examples: · Writing business letters isn’t difficult, if you’re careful. (The phrase “isn’t difficult” is not essential to the meaning of the sentence.) · Stephen Leacock, one of the world’s great humorists, was a professor of economies at McGill. (The phrase “ one of the world’s great humorists” means the same as “Stephen Leacock.”  The two expressions refer to the same person.) · If it were up to me, Judy, I’d hire you. (The word “Judy” is not essential, or necessary, to the meaning of the sentence.)

Try These  Following rule number 2, insert commas in the appropriate places: 1. What’s it all about Alfie? 2. The cheetah is of course the fastest animal on earth. 3. Many children in this school it seems are coming in the morning without having had an adequate breakfast.

3. Place a comma between independent clauses when they are joined by these linking words:  and, but, or, nor, for, so, yet. (coordinating conjunctions)

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Examples: · It was a good party, but last year’s was better. · I’m not speaking to her, so you’ll have to tell her. · I can’t make it to class, yet I feel I should go. · Ross is a good student, for he studies hard.

Try These  Following rule number three, insert commas where necessary: 1. I refuse to wear that turkey costume to the party nor will I go as a horse’s rear end. 2. Yesterday he broke up with her but today he’s begging for her forgiveness. 3. The day was clear and warm so we spent the afternoon on our sailboat.

4.  Put a comma after any word or group of words that comes before an independent clause. Examples: · Charley, you aren’t paying attention. (The second rule applies here to.) · Though tattered and torn, the book was a fortune. · Wherever you go, remember me. · If that’s all there is, we’d better buy more. · Until he got his promotion, he was quite friendly.

Try These  Insert commas where necessary: 1. Esmeralda please leave those plants on the table. 2. Third insert your finger into the electrical socket. 3. Overwhelmed by the generous offer we spent the evening watching Paul’s home movies.

ACTIVITY Copy the following sentences into your notes.  Using all four rules, insert commas into the following sentences where necessary:

1. His face turned purple when he saw the exam results but he said nothing. 2. Clarity conciseness and courtesy are important in both personal and business communication. 3. The Blue Jays in case you haven’t noticed have been playing better ball this season. 4. Unless you come with us now you won’t be able to get to the island tonight.

5. Samuel de Champlain Jacques Cartier and Etienne Brule were among the first Europeans to explore what is now Canada. 6. In spite of its reputation the Spadina Hotel is you know a good place to have a drink. 7. Adam and Eve are supposed to have been the first people on earth but they apparently ran into some trouble with their supervisor. 8. Cedric why are you wearing those nose plugs? 9. Running jumping and shouting loudly the hildren ran across the yard and into the house. 10. Unless I am sadly mistaken you now have a firm grasp of the intricacies of comma use.

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Italics & Underlining

Italics and underlining are like flashers on road signs. They make you take notice. Italics and underlining can be used interchangeably, although usually underlining is used when something is either hand written or typed; if using a computer you can italicize. If you start using italics, don't switch to underlining within the same document.

Italics or underlining are used most often: for titles of longer works: books, magazines, newspapers, films, TV shows, a complete symphony, plays, long poems, albums:

Albert Borgmann's book, Crossing the Postmodern Dividethe TV show Frasierthe film It Happened One Nightthe magazine Adirondack Lifethe newspaper The Miami HeraldLongfellow's poem Evangelinethe Beatles album Abbey Road

Italics or underlining are also used for titles of paintings, sculptures, ships, trains, aircraft, and spacecraft:

Van Gogh's painting Starry NightDaniel Chester French's sculpture The Spirit of LifeU.S.S. SaratogaOrient ExpressAir Force OneApollo 13Microsoft Word

Tip: Shorter works, such a book chapters, articles, sections of newspapers, short stories, poems, songs, and TV episodes are placed in quotation marks.

Neither italics nor quotation marks are used with titles of major religious texts, books of the Bible, or classic legal documents:

the BiblePentateuchthe TorahMagna Cartathe Koranthe Declaration of Independence

Use italics or underlining when using words from another language:

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YggdrasilavatarYahwehsabrajyotishbon vivant

Tip: Many foreign words have become absorbed into our language and should not be italized or underlined. When in doubt, consult the dictionary. Also, common Latin abbreviations should not be italicized or underlined:

etc. i.e. p.s. viz.

Use italics or underlining to emphasize, stress, or clarify a word or letter in a sentence or when using a word as a linguistic symbol rather than for its meaning:

It was the first time I felt appreciated by my children.

I asked you to articulate your findings, not create a flow chart.

He claimed his data to be accurate, but accurate is a word he often interprets loosely. My daughter's report card showed five B's, two B+'s and one glorious A.