Writing Skills

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Writing Skills

• PDP Research Social Science
• Ms. Goggins

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Parts of an Essay

• Introduction
• Opening Statement
• Context
• Roadmap
• Thesis
• Supporting Body Paragraph 1
• Main Idea
• Evidence
• Analysis
• Tie back to Thesis
• Supporting Body Paragraph 2
• Supporting Body Paragraph 3
• Conclusion
• Thesis
• Recap
• Closing Statement

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Introduction Paragraphs Thesis Statements

• Lets Talk About

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Parts of an Essay

• Introduction
• Opening Statement
• Context (details that build up to thesis)
• Roadmap (indicates structure and/or methodology)
• Thesis

The Introduction is the readers first
impression, and first impressions can be lasting
impressions
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Introduction

• Opening Statement
• first thing
• interesting while still indication the subject of
  the paper.
• Context
• Briefly set the general historical scene
• period of time or significant events relevant to
  your paper.
• Roadmap / Preview
• highlight and inform the reader about what
  topics/main ideas will be discussed later in the
  paper.
• Thesis
• tells your reader what the essay is going to be
  about.
• take a position or develop a claim about a
  subject.
• should be clear and concise.

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Introduction Checklist

• Appropriate for the prompt / topic
• Establishes who, and what the paper is about
• Describes when and where the idea or topic
  occurred
• How the event(s), technique(s), idea(s)
  transpired
• Significance of the topic
• MUST contain the THESIS

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Things NOT to do in an Introduction Paragraph

• Use Personal Pronouns. I, me, my, we, us, and our
  dont belong in your paper
• No Rhetorical Questions. Its a cheesy tactic,
  often used in intros. Dont do it.
• Apologize. In my humble opinion . . .
  suggests you don't know what you're talking about
• Use a dictionary or encyclopedia definition.
  Avoid using overdone beginning a to an essay,
  such as According to Merriam-Webster's
  Dictionary, a widget is . .
• Dilly-dally. Get to it.
• Many writers find it useful to write a
  warm-up paragraph to get them into the essay, to
  sharpen their own idea of what they're up to, and
  then they go back and edit their first attempts.

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A Note About Style

• Attention Grabber or Opening Statement.
• Contrary to popular belief, the term,
  attention-getter does not mean one has to write
  this paragraph in a tone of mystery, intrigue,
  drama to grasp the readers attention.
• This only applies to creative or expository story
  writing (English class).
• This style is inappropriate for writing formal
  papers, such as history, research, education,
  science, and literature.

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Opening Statement

• It is impossible to say or do or write anything
  that will interest everybody.
• What can a writer do that will secure the
  interest of a fair sized audience?
• Professional writers use five basic patterns to
  grab a reader's interest
• historical review
• anecdotal
• surprising statement
• famous person
• declarative

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Historical Review

• Some topics are better understood if a brief
  historical review of the topic is presented to
  lead into the discussion of the moment. It is
  important that the historical review be brief so
  that it does not take over the paper.
• Example
• The victory brought pure elation and joy. It was
  May 1954, just days after the Supreme Court's
  landmark ruling in Brown v. Board of Education of
  Topeka, Kansas. At NAACP headquarters in New York
  the mood was euphoric. Telegrams of
  congratulations poured in from around the world
  reporters and well-wishers crowded the halls.
• from "Integration Turns 40" by Juan Williams
  in Modern Maturity, April/May, 1994. After
  reaching back forty years ago to bring up the
  landmark Supreme Court decision that started
  school desegregation, this article discusses
  school segregation in the present time.

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Anecdotal

• An anecdote is a little story. Everyone loves to
  listen to stories. Begin a paper by relating a
  small story that leads into the topic of your
  paper. Your story should be a small episode, not
  a full blown story with characters and plot and
  setting. One caution be sure that your story
  does not take over the paper. Remember, it is an
  introduction, not the paper.
• Example
• Mike Cantlon remembers coming across his first
  auction ten years ago while cruising the back
  roads of Wisconsin. He parked his car and
  wandered into the crowd, toward the auctioneer's
  singsong chant and wafting smell of barbecued
  sandwiches. Hours later, Cantlon emerged lugging
  a 22 beam drill-for constructing post-and-beam
  barnsand a passion for auctions that has clung
  like a cocklebur on an old saddle blanket. "It's
  an addiction," says Cantlon, a financial planner
  and one of the growing number of auction fanatics
  for whom Saturdays will never be the same.from
  "Going, Going, GONE to the Auction!" by Laurie
  Goering in Chicago Tribune Magazine, July 4,
  1994. This is an anecdote, a little story about
  one man and his first auction, that is the lead
  to an article about auctions. In this article the
  author explains what auctions are, how to spot
  bargains in auctions, what to protect yourself
  from at auctions, and other facts about auctions
  and the people who go to them.

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Surprising Statement

• There are many ways a statement can surprise a
  reader. Sometimes the statement is surprising
  because it is disgusting. Sometimes it is joyful.
  Sometimes it is shocking. Sometimes it is
  surprising because of who said it. Sometimes it
  is surprising because it includes profanity.
• Example
• Have a minute? Good. Because that may be all it
  takes to save the life of a childyour child.
  Accidents kill nearly 8000 children under age 15
  each year. And for every fatality, 42 more
  children are admitted to hospitals for treatment.
  Yet such deaths and injuries can be avoided
  through these easy steps parents can take right
  now. You don't have a minute to lose.
• from "60 Seconds That Could Save Your Child" by
  Cathy Perlmutter with Maureen Sangiorgio
  in Prevention, September, 1993. This article
  begins with a surprising, even shocking,
  statistic, 8000 children die each year from
  accidents. The article then lists seven easy
  actions a person can take to help guard a child
  against accidents. These range from turning down
  the water heater to 120 degrees Fahrenheit to
  putting firearms under lock and key.

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What is a Thesis Statement?

• Your thesis statement tells the reader or viewer
  in 1-2 sentences what your paper or project will
  attempt to prove or analyze.

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Thesis Checklist

• Do I address the prompt?
• Clear and Concise. The thesis should be narrow
  and specific.
• Makes a claim. Have I made a point that will be
  backed up by evidence?
• Is presented as a statement, not a topic or
  question. Check for wishy-washy wording, overly
  broad arguments, and simple statements of fact.
• Expresses one main idea.
• Show historical Significance. Why does the topic
  matter? Should answer So what?

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Thoughts on Thesis Writing

• Formulating a thesis is not the first thing you
  do after reading an essay assignment. It is the
  result of a lengthy thinking process. First, you
  have to collect and organize evidence and think
  about its significance. Once you do the
  thinking, you will have a working thesis, a
  basic argument that you think you can support
  with evidence, but that may need adjustment along
  the way.

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How to Generate a Thesis Statement (using
assigned prompt)

• Almost all assignments, no matter how
  complicated, can be reduced to a single question.
  Your first step, then, is to distill the
  assignment into a specific question.
• For example, if your assignment is, Write a
  report to the local school board explaining the
  potential benefits of using computers in a
  fourth-grade class, turn the request into a
  question like, What are the potential benefits
  of using computers in a fourth-grade class?
• After youve chosen the question your essay will
  answer, compose 1-2 complete sentences answering
  that question.
• Q What are the potential benefits of using
  computers in a fourth-grade class?
• A The potential benefits of using computers in
  a fourth-grade class are . . .
• OR
• A Using computers in a fourth-grade class
  promises to improve . . .
• The answer to the question is the thesis
  statement for the essay.

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Read thisIs it a strong thesis?
The North and South fought the Civil War for many
reasons, some of which were the same and some
different.
What about this?

• While both Northerners and Southerners believed
  they fought against tyranny and oppression,
  Northerners focused on the oppression of slaves
  while Southerners defended their own right to
  self-government.

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Read thisIs it a strong thesis?
Lizzie Black Kander used her cooking classes and
The Settlement Cookbook to teach Milwaukees
Jewish immigrants about American culture.
What about this?

• Through her cooking classes and The Settlement
  Cookbook, Lizzie Black Kander introduced
  Milwaukees Jewish immigrants to American
  culture, which helped them assimilate and learn
  how to avoid ethnic discrimination.

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Check these theses

• After the 1919 riot the means of enforcing
  segregation became more accepted, more formal,
  often more violent, and completely legal.
• Pesticides kill thousands of farmworkers and must
  be stopped.
• How did The Jungle make an impact on the foods we
  eat?
• The Juvenile Court system was established to
  remove children from the adult criminal justice
  system and help them reform, but over the years
  it became a source of punishment and
  imprisonment.
• Richard J. Daley died in 1976.

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• Judge your own thesis statement! Does it
• Answer the prompt
• Is the topic narrow?
• Is the thesis clear and specific?
• Make a claim that others might refute?
• Can the assertion be backed up by evidence?
• Does it express one main idea?
• Is it presented as a statement, not a topic or
  question?
• Does it answer so what, why and how?

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Body Paragraphs

• The M.E.A.T. of the Essay

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Parts of an Essay

• Body Paragraph
• Main Idea
• Evidence (information that helps prove your
  thesis)
• Analysis (your interpretation of evidence as it
  relates to thesis)
• Tie Back to Thesis

A strong thesis is useless without evidence to
support it and a clear, logical explanation of
your reasoning.
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Body Paragraph

• Main Idea
• Stated in the first or topic sentence
• Indicates what the paragraph is about and how it
  relates to thesis
• Evidence
• Without evidence, your thesis is merely an idea
  or opinion
• Use evidence to persuade reader to accept your
  claim
• Always fully explain and cite your evidence
• Analysis
• Explains in your own words why the evidence you
  chose proves the point you made in the topic
  sentence
• Answers the questions why? how? or so what?
  because the reader cant read your mind.
• Tie Back to Thesis
• Remind your reader of the papers purpose and
  serves as a transition

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Evidence Checklist

• Is my evidence relevant to the paragraphs main
  idea and the overall thesis of my essay?
• Have I explained where this evidence comes from,
  if necessary?
• Have I cited the evidence?
• Have I explained for clarity any quotes,
  vocabulary, or statistics? (not for analysis)

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Analysis Key Terms

• Analysis key terms and phrases are used to signal
  to your reader/listener that you are about to
  analyze a point, document, evidence, etc. Think
  of them like a clue for your reader. Use
  Analysis Key Terms whenever you are about to
  insert your own perspective.

Highlights Illustrates Sheds light on Indicates
Depicts Portrays Significant because Implies
Reveals Exemplifies Demonstrates Symbolizes
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The Conclusion

• Finally.

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Parts of an Essay

• Conclusion
• Restate Thesis
• Restate Main Ideas
• Closing Statement (or further implications)

The conclusion is the last thing your audience
will read. If there is something you really want
them to remember, it should be in the conclusion.

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Conclusion

• Restate Thesis
• Remind the reader of your original claim
• DO NOT copy and paste, please rephrase
• Restate Main Ideas
• Pinpoint certain proofs to reinforce thesis
• No detail necessary
• Summarizes the highlights of each body paragraph
• Closing Statement
• Should provide a fluid ending doesnt need to be
  mind-blowing.
• You cant use personal pronouns, but this is an
  appropriate place to discuss further questions,
  implications, or personal opinions.