ACADEMIC WRITING
WEEK 13 CLASS 1
THINK AND WRITE
• Please spend 5-10 minutes responding to the following questions.
This will be collected. *While you are writing I will come around to
check your argumentative essay draft*
• How do you react to stress? What things in your life stress you out
the most? What do you do to reduce stress, or what activities make
you feel more relaxed?
QUIZ: WRITING AN ESSAY
• After correcting your Cause and Effect essays I am concerned many
of you do not understand the basic parts of writing an essay
• To see what you really know, you will now take an informal quiz
• Afterwards, you will correct each other’s quizzes and turn them in to
me
• Do your best and DO NOT LOOK AT ANYONE ELSE’S PAPER
QUIZ: WRITING AN ESSAY
• 1. Name the 3 parts to the Introduction: _______, ________, ________
• 2. Create a thesis statement for a cause and effect essay using these 3 effects:
diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. _______________________________
• 3. What is a topic sentence, and what does a topic sentence do? ___________
• 4. What is a concluding sentence, and what does the concluding sentence do? _____
• 5. Pizza is definitely the greatest food in the world, firstly because of the variety.
There are hundreds of different kinds of pizza toppings available: fruit, vegetables,
meat-even dessert pizzas! The crust has options too. Whether you enjoy deep dish,
thin, or stuffed crust there is something for everyone.
____________________________________________.
• Write a concluding sentence for the above paragraph.
QUIZ: WRITING AN ESSAY
•
6. What two things must you do in the Conclusion of an essay? _____ and _____
•
7. D. Johnson, 2015, “Plagiarism is unacceptable and inappropriate.” ____________
•
•
Write a sentence using this quote. Cite the source correctly.
8. In the following paragraph write an ‘X’ every place there should be an in-text citation:
The majority of high school students experiment with alcohol and drugs in their high
school years. Among seniors in high school, 80% report having used alcohol, 49% having
used marijuana, and close to a third (30%) report having used some drug besides marijuana
at least once. Many have already made the transition to regular use. Thirty-two percent of
12th graders , 24% of 10th graders, and 14% of 8th graders reported drinking five or more
drinks in the last two weeks. These numbers, while alarming, indicate that despite a firm
drinking age of 21, young people in the United States think little of drinking underage.
Because of this, it is clear that the drinking age should be reduced to 18.
QUIZ: WRITING AN ESSAY
• 9. Write an APA Reference page citation with the following information from
an online source:
• Author: Beth Cornet
• Year: 2009
• Title of Article: Reptile Knowledge: Reptile Conservation and Care Information
• Name of Website Organization: Reptiles Rock
• Link: http://www.reptileknowledge.com
QUIZ: WRITING AN ESSAY
• 10. How are the body paragraphs in a cause and effect essay different from
each other? __________________________________________
• 11. What are two reasons we use in-text citations in our essays? ______ and
________
QUIZ ANSWERS:
• 1. 3 parts to the Introduction: hook, background information, and thesis statement
• 2. (Many correct examples.) The three biggest effects of eating fast food are
diabetes, heart disease, and obesity.
• 3. A topic sentence is the first sentence in a paragraph. A topic sentence explains
to the reader what the subject of the paragraph will be.
• 4. A concluding sentence is the last sentence in a paragraph. A concluding
sentence very briefly summarizes what the paragraph was about, and can also
explain how the paragraph relates back to (proves) the argument in the thesis
statement.
QUIZ ANSWERS
• 5. (Many correct answers.) For these reasons it is obvious that no
food can out rank pizza.
• 6. In the Conclusion you must: summarize the main points you
discussed and give your own thoughts and opinions on the topic
(explaining why it is relevant or important)
• 7. (Many correct answers.) In fact, Johnson (2015) states,
“Plagiarism is unacceptable and inappropriate.”
QUIZ ANSWERS
•
8. The majority of high school students experiment with alcohol and drugs in their high school
years. X* (If not common knowledge, must cite) Among seniors in high school, 80% report
having used alcohol, 49% having used marijuana, and close to a third (30%) report having
used some drug besides marijuana at least once. X (Statistic) These drugs included
amphetamines, opiates, and a variety of prescription pills. X (Paraphrasing) Many have
already made the transition to regular use. Thirty-two percent of 12th graders , 24% of 10th
graders, and 14% of 8th graders reported drinking five or more drinks in the last two weeks
X (Statistic) Smith notes, “The amount of high school students consuming drugs and alcohol
was high enough to be considered pervasive.” X (Quote) These numbers, while alarming,
indicate that despite a firm drinking age of 21, young people in the United States think little
of drinking underage. Because of this, it is clear that the drinking age should be reduced to
18.
QUIZ ANSWERS
• 9. Cornett, B. (2009). Reptile knowledge: Reptile conservation and care
information.
Reptiles Rock. Retrieved from http://www.reptileknowledge.com
• FOR ONLINE SOURCE NEED: author, year, title, link
• 10. Each body paragraph is a different cause, or effect, that supports the thesis
statement.
• Argumentative essay=each paragraph is a different argument that supports the thesis statement
• 11. To give credit to the person who wrote the information, and to make it easy for
the reader to see where the information is coming from (FACT CHECKING).
CAUSE AND EFFECT ESSAYS: REVISIONS FOR POINTS
• You will now receive your cause and effect essay
• I spent a lot of time correcting and commenting on the essays, and I want you
to READ, and LEARN from, the corrections
• If you fix ALL the corrections (including directions I give in my comments)
AND…
• Write a 5-7 sentence paragraph explaining to me how you improved/fixed
your essay AND…
• You submit the revised essay, with the paragraph, by Thursday
• You will get 7 points added to your final essay grade
•
If you had an 85% and you do corrections with the paragraph, you now have a 90%
ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAY: BODY PARAGRAPHS
• There are 4 parts in a body paragraph:
• Topic Sentence
• Evidence/Support (research that proves your thesis)
• Explanation of Evidence (explain how the research proves your thesis)
• Concluding Sentence
• To connect your ideas and arguments use TRANSITION WORDS/PHRASES
• According to, On the other hand, In fact, Furthermore, Although, For example,
However, Nevertheless, In addition to, Therefore, Consequently, In conclusion, etc.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zYfztmFD5g
STUDENT EXAMPLE
Topic/Concluding Sentence
Evidence from source
Explanation of evidence
Evidence from background knowledge
The evolving technology has a strong impact on the academic life of teenagers. One of
the most significant changes in education over the past 50 years is the introduction of
improving technology into the classroom (Nuttall, 2013). Having access to any information
around the world, with the appearance of the Internet, has become a crucial link in academic
areas. According to the authors of “Internet Applications of Type II Uses of Technology in
Education,” Internet use in schools empowers students to use technology to create their own
learning environments “filled with enthusiasm and self-motivation” (Wade, 2015). Also, with
these resources, teenagers have the opportunity to expand their knowledge by accessing an
abundance of information regarding millions of topics. It gives students the ability to complete
assignments quicker and more efficiently, and it also allows for instant feedback. In addition,
students that work at different paces can learn on their own and adjust better. For example,
they can access online books and videos and learn in their own way. Therefore, technology has
positive impacts on the academic areas, if teenagers know the adequate forms of it to use.
SELF EDITING/REVISING: INTRODUCTION
• You will now revise and edit your Introduction
• Read the following questions and make sure you can answer each one
• Do you have a hook as the first sentence in your Introduction?
• Is the hook interesting?
• Do you give background information on your topic?
• Do you give enough background information so that the reader can understand
the topic?
• Do you have a thesis statement as the last sentence of your Introduction?
• Does your thesis statement list your 3 main points?
• Do you cite ANY information in the introduction that you took from an outside
source?
SELF EDITING/REVISING: BODY PARAGRAPH 1
• Answer the following questions about your first body paragraph:
• Do you have a topic sentence that explains what the paragraph will be about?
• Does your topic sentence tell the reader what you will prove in your paragraph?
• Is your topic sentence the first main point from your thesis statement?
• Do you use evidence from outside sources to support your topic sentence?
• Do you CITE ANY evidence or information you took from an outside source?
• Do you EXPLAIN the evidence you give, to the reader?
• Does all the information in your paragraph have to do with to ONE topic?
• Do you use transition words and phrases to connect ideas?
• Do you have a concluding statement that summarizes the paragraph?
• Does your concluding statement tell the reader what you just proved in the
paragraph?
HOMEWORK
• Complete your argumentative essay (2nd paragraph, 3rd paragraph, conclusion,
and Reference page)
• DRAFT IS WORTH 20 POINT HOMEWORK-BRING YOUR DRAFT
• Final Exam is Monday 11/ 30
• Study: Vocab set 3 (5 new words are on the next slides), REVIEW: words often
confused, verb tense, spelling, pronouns, punctuation (commas, colons), and
capitalization (proper nouns).
TRAIT
• noun
• definition: a distinguishing quality, or characteristic, typically belonging to one
person
• synonyms: quality, attribute
• Examples:
• 1. Patience is a trait that runs in my family; we all are very level-headed.
• 2. Typically, women are described using emotional traits, such as being
sensitive or nurturing.
DEMEANOR
• noun
• definition: a person’s outward behavior, how they are acting
• synonyms: attitude, appearance
• Examples:
• 1. His calm demeanor made the crying baby settle down to
sleep.
• 2. Your demeanor at work should be confident and respectful.
BAN
• verb and noun
• noun=ban
• verb=ban, bans, banned, banning
• definition: officially, or legally, prohibit something (make something illegal);
• Examples:
• 1. They are proposing a ban on e-cigarettes on campus; they would not
be allowed at all.
• 2. Many sports stadiums have banned glass bottles, because broken glass
is a very dangerous.
EXEMPT
• adjective
• definition: free from an obligation (obligation-something you are forced to do)
• synonyms: free from, not subject to
• Examples:
• 1. I was exempt from taking a foreign language in high school, because I
was fluent in French.
• 2. The students are exempt from the final exam because their averages
were 99%.
EAGER
• adjective
• adverb: eagerly
• definition: strongly wanting to do, or have, something
• synonyms: hopeful, impatient
• Examples:
• 1. She was eager for her brother to come home from college; they hadn’t seen each other
in 5 months.
• 2. The little boys eagerly opened their Christmas presents; ripping away the wrapping
paper as fast as they could.