Writing Tips and Reminders Beginning Middle End The beginning of your essay, which can be more than one paragraph, should do the following: Entice/hook the reader Introduce the main focus or idea of your essay Types of Introductions (see your notes for details): Anecdotal Factual/Statistical Quotation Question The middle of your essay, which will usually require several paragraphs, should logically organize your main points, arguments, relevant evidence, and counterarguments. Five Things You Can Do To Improve Your Writing Body Paragraph Reminders: Use topic sentences to clarify your main ideas. Provide relevant evidence from the text. Explain all textual evidence clearly and concisely in your own words. The end of your essay, which can be more than one paragraph, should do the following: End with a hooking strategy Leave your reader with a memorable thought, anecdote, quotation, or question Types of Conclusions (see your notes for details): Repetition Anecdotal Quotation Question 1. Read more. People who read more write better. As a teacher, I can always tell when I am reading an essay written by a reader. Readers write essays that have longer development, more mature vocabulary, and better and more diverse sentence structure. 2. Write more. Writing is a skill, like running or playing an instrument. You have to do it a lot to get good at it. 3. Don t fall in love with your first draft. Get used to the idea that your first draft will almost always need work. If your writing is going to improve, you will have to move past the I wrote it; I m done mentality. 4. Get feedback. Sharing your writing with others is essential if you want to move it to a better place. Receiving meaningful feedback on your writing will help you catch errors and craft better final drafts. 5. Notice what other writers are doing. We learn best when we stand next to someone who knows how to do the skill we are working on and observe how it is done. Learning to write is no exception. Rather than reading only to learn what a writer is saying, skilled writers also pay attention to how the writing is constructed.
MLA Checklist 12 point Times New Roman Font Entire paper is double spaced Header: Last Name and Page Number MLA heading Title centered under MLA heading no extra spaces MLA in-text citations MLA works cited page Avoid contractions ( didn t should be did not ) Common Problems: 1. Wordiness. When you revise your writing, watch for unnecessary or repetitive phrases. When you see them, get rid of them! Saying the same thing repeatedly does not strengthen your argument. In fact, it can make you sound like you aren t sure what else to say. 2. Letting evidence run your writing. This is your essay. The strongest arguments and the most memorable statements should be yours. Textual evidence is crucial in backing up your ideas, but quotes cannot speak for you. Every time you use a quotation, it should be to emphasize or prove a point that you make clear in your own words. 3. Lack of evidence. On the other hand, a lack of evidence significantly limits the strength of your writing. If you make a connection to the text to prove a point, you must provide a quote. For example, stating that Pearl is a child of nature is not enough. Go a step further and show me where Hawthorne made this connection. 4. Spelling errors. You have spell check and you should use it. Failing to do so shows a serious lack of effort. On a similar note, when writing about literature be sure to spell characters names correctly. Not doing so leads me to question if you honestly read the work. 5. Missing transitions. For an essay to be effective, the writer must connect his/her ideas clearly. Show me why your main points matter, and how they work together to prove your thesis. Work Cited: Gallagher, Kelly. Write Like This: Teaching Real-World Writing Through Modeling and Mentor Texts. 1. Portland: Stenhouse, 2011. Print.
Introductions A strong introduction gives the reader a good initial impression and entices him/her to read on. It also introduces the topic and explains what the essay will be about. An essay introduction contains three features that usually appear in the following order: an attention-getter, some background information, and a thesis. Attention-getters Anecdotes recount a brief story related to the subject of the essay Facts/statistics begin with interesting facts that may surprise the reader Quotations choose an engaging quotation that connects to the topic Questions pose a central question that will be answered in the essay Background Information Background information in an essay serves as a bridge to link the reader to the topic of the essay. Provide enough information for the reader to understand the issue being discussed and appreciate its importance. Thesis Statements Thesis statements are generally one or two sentences long and tell the reader what the whole essay is going to be about. A strong, direct thesis gives a specific argument and outlines the essay to follow. What Not To Do The following list includes common mistakes that students make in their introductions. Do not make your introduction unnecessarily long. Don t write like you are talking casually to the reader. Use third person. Do not refer directly to your essay with statements like, In this essay Do not forget to mention the title and author of the work you are writing about. Conclusions A good conclusion is an integral part of every strong essay. The conclusion is your last chance to persuade your reader that your point of view is best. A conclusion should stress the importance of the thesis, give the essay a sense of completeness, and leave a final impression on the reader. Restate the Thesis Do not simply copy your thesis into your conclusion. Rephrase it using concise and effective language. Summarize the Sub Points After restating your thesis, you should also reiterate your main arguments. Do not copy your topic sentences into your conclusion. As with the thesis, you will need to rephrase your arguments. Types of Conclusions Just as there are several ways to capture a reader s attention with an introduction, there are many effective ways to organize a conclusion. Repetition conclude by linking the last paragraph to the first. Try reusing a key word or phrase to tie everything together Question ask a question that provokes thought or ask a rhetorical question that makes clear your point of view Quotation finish with a quote that amplifies your argument Anecdotal wrap up the anecdote you began with your introduction or simply tell a story that ties in with your main idea What Not To Do The following list includes common mistakes that students make in their conclusions. Do not simply summarize your essay. Leave your reader with something to think about. Avoid phrases like in conclusion, to conclude, in summary, and to sum up. Do not present new information. If you have more to say, find a place to present it within the body.
Mrs. Cotton s Tips on Quality Quotes When quoting passages from a text, select quotations carefully and quote them concisely. Always remember that your essay is your argument. Too many quotes can overpower your voice. Be sure your reader knows the speaker and context (situation) of the quotation so that its significance will be clear. Your words should always link a quotation with the rest of your essay; a quotation should not stand alone. Never end a paragraph with a quotation. 1. Use a comma with a direct quotation and such expressions as he said, she writes, he believes, and she asserts. Try to be creative with these speaker tags. The quotation should be a complete thought. Begin the quotation with a capital letter. Scout astutely notes, Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing (Lee 18). 2. As often as possible, build the key quoted words into your own sentence structure. Punctuate your sentence according to usual rules, but put quotation marks around the quoted words. When Scout overhears her Aunt Alexandra and Atticus talking about her, she feels the starched walls of a pink cotton penitentiary closing in (Lee 155). 3. Use the ellipsis mark to show that you have skipped some words inside a quotation. Atticus patiently explains, You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it (Lee 33). 4. Use brackets ([ ]) for any words you have to add inside a quotation to make it fit your own sentence. Miss Maudie quietly observes, Have you ever thought of it this way, Alexandra? Whether Maycomb knows it or not, we re paying [Atticus] the highest tribute we can pay a man. We trust him to do right. It s that simple (Lee 269). 5. Use single marks to enclose a quotation within a quotation. The tired young girl explains that the misunderstood character in her novel is much nicer than people think and Atticus adds, Most people are, Scout, when you finally see them (Lee 323). 6. Be sure to follow the guidelines for parenthetical documentation. For quotations of 4 lines or less, provide the author s last name and page number within parentheses. Follow the citation with a period. There is no punctuation at the end of the quotation unless the original quote is an exclamation or a question. For quotes of more than 4 lines, double indent the long quote, and do not use quotation marks. Place a period at the end of the quote (before the citation). 7. Judge your sentences with quotations by the usual punctuation rules. A comma splice or a fragment with quotation marks is still a comma splice or a fragment. 8. Avoid using the word quotation or quote. Never say this quote means that or he/she is trying to say
Common Problems 1. Follow directions. When teachers give specific directions, they expect those directions to be followed. 2. Remember basic MLA rules. Italicize titles of longer works (books, long essays), and put titles of shorter works (articles, poems) in quotation marks. 3. Include a works cited page. Failing to do so is essentially plagiarizing. Remember to alphabetize the entries on your works cited page. 4. Watch subject-verb agreement. Singular subjects need singular verbs. Plural subjects need plural verbs. 5. Proofread, proofread, proofread. The majority of writing mistakes are a result of carelessness. 6. Use third person in academic writing. Skip I believe and just make the argument. This is your paper. I know it s what you believe. On a similar note, don t use you unless you are referring to your reader. 7. Watch for run-on sentences and sentence fragments. 8. Pay attention to proper document formatting (double spaced, appropriate font, header, etc.). 9. Include an original title. Research Paper is not acceptable. The title of the novel has already been taken. Use something new. 10. Delete any extra spaces between paragraphs and after your title. 11. Pay close attention to capitalization and punctuation. 12. Watch for wordiness. 13. Review the preceding pages closely and follow all guidelines. 14. See me before the due date for extra help if necessary. 15. Do not procrastinate.