12th Grade Exploration 3
Here is the Common Core standard for which you are seeking to aim (from
Standard CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.2):
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.2c Use appropriate and varied transitions and syntax
to link the major sections of the text, create cohesion, and clarify the relationships
among complex ideas and concepts.
YOUR GOAL FOR THIS EXPLORATION:
Write the introduction to your essay and revise your introduction and body paragraphs for
appropriate and varied transitions and syntax to link major sections of the text, create
cohesion and clarify the relationships among complex ideas and concepts.
Learn it
Writing your Introduction
1. Watch the following video about a suggested structure for your introduction:
http://www.sophia.org/tutorials/introductions--3
List the three essential components of a strong introduction, according to Michelle
Bowman (the first video on the above link):
1.
2.
3.
List three mistakes to avoid in writing your introduction:
1.
2.
3.
2. Watch the following Ted Ed video about “The Power of a Great Introduction”:
http://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-power-of-a-great-introduction-carolyn-mohr
In the scope of the writing process, when does Carolyn Mohr suggest writing your
introduction? What should you instead focus on FIRST?
In the example of the literary analysis about Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations,
how did she hook the reader? How did she connect this hook to her thesis?
Using Correct Syntax
3. Part of the Common Core standard above asks you to use appropriate
syntax in your writing. What exactly is syntax? Click on the following link,
type “syntax” into the search box and write down the definition of syntax
below:
http://www.usingenglish.com/glossary/
Definition of Syntax:
4. When we write, we are prone to many different errors in syntax, but some of
the most common student errors relate to sentence fragments, comma
splices, and run-on sentences. Read the following link:
http://cstw.osu.edu/writing-center/handouts/sentence-structure-errors
Edit the following comma splice error using 3 of the four strategies suggested in the
link:
I am desperately hungry, I crave Italian food.
Edit #1:
Edit #2:
Edit #3:
There’s nothing like a cartoon to simplify complex ideas. For extra help, watch the
following Brainpop videos on fragments and run-on sentences: (Login with
username = gormanbp and password = brainpop)
http://www.brainpop.com/english/grammar/sentencefragments/
http://www.brainpop.com/english/grammar/runonsentences/
Using the links above, write out a definition of a sentence fragment, a comma
splice, and a run-on sentence and give an example (that YOU create) for each:
Sentence Fragment =
Example of sentence fragment:
Comma Splice =
Example of comma splice:
Run-on Sentence =
Example of run-on sentence:
5. To continue your learning about common syntax errors, watch the following
Brainpop video on “Strengthening Sentences”, take the quiz and print your
results for your teacher:
http://www.brainpop.com/english/writing/strengtheningsentences/
Watch the video again from 3:25 to the end and list 3 strategies for improving your
sentences:
1.
2.
3.
Using Appropriate and Varied Transitions
6. Transitions: What is a transition? Check out these links for help:
http://www.aims.edu/student/online-writing-lab/tools/transitions
https://www.msu.edu/~jdowell/135/transw.html
Now, explain why transitions are helpful in an essay and give at least 10 examples of
common transitions which connect ideas (use the back of the paper if you need
more space):
Discover it
1. Read the essay titled “Save the Elephants” on the following link:
http://www.thewritesource.com/studentmodels/wi-eleph.htm
List 5 transitions from this essay that you think effectively link the major sections of
the text, create cohesion, and clarify the relationships among complex ideas and
concepts:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
What type of “hook” does the author use at the beginning of the introduction? Do
you think it is effective? Why/why not?
Think back to what you learned in Exploration 2 about writing a strong thesis. If you
were the writer of “Save the Elephants”, how could you make this thesis stronger?
2. Click on the following link and study the introduction and transitions in the
essay “Lives on Mango, Rides the Whale” on Page 60-61:
http://www.corestandards.org/assets/Appendix_C.pdf
Think about what you learned about the structure of a strong introduction. Give
examples of how this introduction follows those principles:
List 5 transitions from this essay that you think effectively link the major sections of
the text, create cohesion, and clarify the relationships among complex ideas and
concepts:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
3. Read the introduction to the essay “The Making of a Human Voice and How
to Use It” on Page 94 of the following link:
http://www.corestandards.org/assets/Appendix_C.pdf
List three qualities of this introduction which are effective and which you might like to
imitate when you write your own introduction:
1.
2.
3.
Employ it
Write your Introduction
It is now time for you to write the introduction to your essay. You have already
completed the thesis, but feel free to revise it if it does not adequately express your
topic and the significance of it (Ozymandias and the ruler you chose to research,
leadership and legacy).
Remember the following helpful structure in writing an introduction:
1. Grab the reader’s attention
2. Narrow the topic
3. State the thesis
Revise your Introduction and Body Paragraphs for Proper Syntax and Transitions
Take time, now, to revise your introduction and body paragraphs, looking
specifically to correct sentence fragments and/or run-on sentences. Try reading
your essay out loud—does it sound right or does the syntax need a second look?
Re-read it again, looking for places that could use a transition to link parts of your
text together and clarify the relationships between your ideas.