Elements of Good writing

1. Elements of Good writing Chapter 2, pg 20

2. The Subject • What is writing all about? A TOPIC! • Tell a personal story (Narration) • Provide information (Information) • Discuss the effects (Cause/Effect) • Explain how to do something (Process) • Take a stand (Persuasion) • Convince you (Persuasion)

3. Purpose: The Writer’s Intention • Entertainment • Inform – present facts • Persuade • Activity 2 (pg 22)

4. Purpose in Writing- Activity 2, pt 22 • The cost of iPods • My cell phone nightmare • Why everyone needs e-mail • How to send a text message • Why our company should upgrade now information entertainment persuasion Information/process Persuasion

5. Audience: Intended Readers Authors should consider: • What do your readers already know? • What are their attitude? • What are the demographics? • Will the education level/ages all be the same? • Activity 3 (pg 23)

6. Voice: Attitude • Attitude towards the subject matter • Attitude towards the audience • 1st person – “I”, informal • 2nd person– “You” informal, persuade, instruct • 3rd person – “he, she, it, they” – formal

7. Unity • All parts relate to a central theme. EVERY SENTENCE SERVES THE SAME THEME. • Activity 6 (pg 26)

8. Unity – Activity 6 pg 26-27 On the other hand, when the right moment comes along and a teenager wants to talk, parent should not miss the opportunity to connect. Sometimes teenagers are their younger brothers and sisters fight continually over the most trivial things. Most important of all is the need for parents to be sensitive to the feelings of their teenagers. Remember, adolescence does not last for a lifetime, but a good relationship between parent and child can. Some conflicts, of course, are a sign of healthy development within the family. Psychologists say that parents should not be fearful when teenagers challenge authority. Challenging authority is a normal part of the maturing process. Adults without children have none of these concerns. The need for privacy is also normal during adolescence and should be respected rather than feared. Many parents fear the time when their children reach adolescence. When that time does come, some parents are afraid to give their children freedom to make choices. These same parents do not admit that their children have any ideas or feelings that are valid. Many adults like to look back at their own childhoods. Pets are often remembered fondly. Conflicts between parents and adolescents are bound to develop. to connect. Sometimes teenagers and their younger brothers and sisters fight over the most trivial things. feelings that are valid. Many adults like to look back at their own childhoods. Pets are often remembered fondly. Conflicts Adults without children have none of these concerns. The need for privacy is

9. Coherence • Clear and logical progression of thought • Key words • Careful pronoun reference and synonyms • Transitions • Activity 7 (pg 28)

10. Coherence- Activity 7 (pg 28) • More than one billion web pages currently exist online and are accessible to the public. These pages are not numbered. They are not organized. They do not come with a table of contents or an index. It is as if people all over the world took all their books and magazines, ripped out all the pages, and dumped them into one gigantic pile. In the past five years, that pile has grown bigger and bigger and bigger. • So how do you find your way through this maze of information? The answer is, search engines. As with any technology, some very smart people have devised new search engines for the Internet, based on the lessons of the previous generation. Names like Google, Yahoo! and Alta Vista have become well known. They will likely be your best bet for quickly finding what you need on the web. • So how do you find your way through this maze of information? The answer is, search engines. As with any technology, some very smart people have devised new search engines for the Internet, based on the lessons of the previous generation. Names like Google, Yahoo! and Alta Vista have become well known. They will likely be your best bet for quickly finding what you need on the web. • More than one billion web pages currently exist online and are accessible to the public. These pages are not numbered. They are not organized. They do not come with a table of contents or an index. It is as if people all over the world took all their books and magazines, ripped out all the pages, and dumped them into one gigantic pile. In the past five years, that pile has grown bigger and bigger and bigger.

11. Paragraphs Chapter 16, pg 316

12. Paragraphs • Paragraph: a groups of sentences that develops one main idea. A paragraph may stand by itself as a complete piece of writing, or it may be a section of a longer piece of writing, such as an essay.

13. Topic Sentences • Topic Sentence states the main idea of a paragraph • The most general sentence in a paragraph • All other sentences explain, describe, extend it • Is not always found at the beginning of the paragraph. • Contains the topic and the controlling idea. • Exercise 2 (pg 318)

14. Activity 2 pg 318 • We are the great “Let’s junk it” society! • Today the hospital nurse has one of the hardest jobs of all. • Anything can happen at a county agricultural fair. • This was one of the worst situations I had ever been in. • In order to shop wisely, several basic rules should be kept in mind.

15. Controlling idea (Pg 327) • The point the writer makes about the topic • Gives the author’s opinion or information on the topic. • Backpacking trips are exhausting. Topic Controlling idea _____________ exhausting.

16. Vocabulary Commonly-confused words hand out

17. Affect/Effect • Affect– to influence or alter in some way. • We have been badly affected by heavy rain. • Smoking will affect your health. • Effect – the result of being affected • The effect of the rain has been local flooding. • The effects of the hurricane were evident. • Remember that "affect" is a verb, so if the subject is taking action, use affect. (Remember: Action = Affect) • Remember that nouns usually are paired with "the." So remember "thE Effect" flows well together when said aloud.

18. All Ready / Already • All ready (two words) means "ready," with the word all. We were all ready to study grammar. • Already, an adverb, means "by now," "even now," or "by then." The plane had already left when we arrived. Tip: if 2 separate words then refers to All of us being ready.

19. Altar / Alter • Altarmeans a platform where sacrifices are made to a god or a platform at the front of a house of worship. • When it was time for the bride to walk the aisle to the altar, she began to tremble as she was so nervous. • Altermeans to change or amend. • My new jeans were too long, so I took them to a seamstress who altersall my clothes.

20. Amount / Number • Amount words relate to quantities of things that are measured in bulk; • Do not use up too great an amount of space. • Numberto things that can be counted. • I have a number of cakes to eat! • Tip: Numbers can be counted, amounts are measured in bulk.