Prewrite Plan your work Select a topic and

Prewrite Plan your work. Select a topic and brainstorm what you will say about it. Organize your thoughts and the evidence that support them. Keep in mind your audience and your purpose.

Rubric Before starting your essay, you should always read the rubric, to know what is expected of you. New York State checks these areas of your writing. ◦ Claim and Reasons: the extent to which the essay conveys complex ideas and information clearly and accurately in order to logically support the author’s claim. ◦ Command of Evidence: the extent to which the essay presents evidence from the provided texts to support argument ◦ Coherence, Organization, and Style: the extent to which the essay logically organizes complex ideas, concepts, and information using formal style and precise language ◦ Control of Conventions: the extent to which the essay demonstrates command of the conventions of Standard English grammar, usage, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling

Outlining It is important to figure out your essay’s purpose. From there you can identify the main idea of your essay. Keeping the main idea in mind when you write will help you focus your thoughts and ideas. Introduction: This is the first paragraph of your essay. It is there to show the reader your essay’s purpose. It introduces the main idea and grabs the reader’s attention. It should include brief background information and context on your topic. Your thesis should appear at the very end of it. Body: The body of an essay is the paragraph or paragraphs that explain or support the main idea. Each body paragraph should begin with a topic sentence that connects back to thesis. Here is where you include your reasons and evidence. Don’t forget to cite where you found your evidence! After presenting evidence, you should also include analysis sentences to explain why the evidence supports your argument. Think of each body paragraph as a quote sandwich. Conclusion: This is the last paragraph of your essay. The conclusion states the main idea again, and brings the essay to a close. It should show your reader the big picture behind why your thesis is important. It should not just summarize or repeat what was said earlier in your essay.

Citation “Quote” (Author page/ paragraph number).

Draft Write your work. Use sentences and paragraphs to communicate the ideas from your prewriting plan.

Author’s Purpose Just as important as coming up with what to write is pinpointing why you’re writing it. To figure out your purpose, think about what you want your essay to accomplish. The purpose is not the argument of your essay. Rather, it should tell your reader why your argument is interesting or important. ◦ Writing can persuade (change your reader’s mind) ◦ Writing can inform (educate your reader on your topic). ◦ Writing can entertain (create enjoyment for your reader).

Thesis A thesis statement lets your reader know your idea on the topic. Should be arguable: it should be possible for someone to come up with an argument against your idea. If your idea can’t be contradicted, it probably isn’t worth reading or writing. Should appear the end of the first paragraph: Positioning it here gives you time to present some background information, lets you explain why the topic is important, and steers the rest of the essay in the right direction. Should be supported by reasons and evidence. Should NOT include I: Don’t use personal pronouns (I, me, my, us, we) in your thesis. No one cares to read “I think” in an essay. Show your reader what you know instead.

Quote Sandwich Needs to include the following: QUOTE SANDWICH Background information on your quotes Who, what, when, where of the situation in the quote. At least one quote from the text Before the quote, you must include a sentence starter to let your reader know where the quote comes from. Ex: In the text it states, According to the author, The text says The quote must represent your answer to the question. If you could pick any scene from the text to show exactly what you’re talking about, what would it be? Your quote should be that scene. The quote must be appropriately punctuated. Ex: “Your quote here” (author page number). Analysis of the quote(s) Explain the quote and answer the question being asked.

Paragraph Reminders Paragraphs have some set rules to always follow. For example, the first line of a paragraph is indented. Also, a paragraph should start with a topic sentence. The topic sentence clearly tells the reader what the paragraph is about. The topic sentence should explain your main idea. The main idea is what the paragraph is about. Supporting details are the facts and information (evidence) that prove the main idea of your topic sentence. They give clear and specific details to support your topic sentence. Each of these elements of a paragraph will help make your writing stronger and clearer for your reader.

Plagiarism Whenever you are doing research, you must quote or paraphrase the information from your source. To paraphrase means to write the information in your own words. To quote means to use exact wording and quotation marks to note someone else’s thoughts. If you copy the words out of a book or off the internet, you are committing plagiarism. This means that you have stolen the ideas or words and pretended they are your own, without saying where you got them. This is cheating, and can result in serious consequences. Plagiarism includes: ◦ Failing to cite ideas or paraphrases that aren’t your own. ◦ Copying phrases, sentences, or paragraphs without citing them. ◦ Replacing a source’s exact words with synonyms (similar words). ◦ Submitting work written by others as your own.

Evidence can be facts, figures, quotes, expert opinions, anecdotes, illustrations, or any other convincing proof. Should have at least one piece of evidence for each reason. Should be true: Opinions are not evidence. Should be followed by a citation (the source where you found it). When you are selecting evidence, you must first decide if the information is relevant, or closely connected to or appropriate for your topic. Ask yourself: Does this information help to show, rather than tell, what is happening in my argument? If I could pick any scene from out of the text to represent my point, is the scene? What would happen if I took this information away? Would my reader still understand the point I’m trying to make? Does the information make sense? Is the information confusing? If I include it, will my reader have more or fewer questions? Does the information come from a reliable source? Is this someone’s opinion or could it be incorrect information? Is this information necessary? Am I giving too many details and overwhelming my reader?

Revise Rethink your work. Correct any mistakes in your first draft and look for ways to make your writing stronger. Add, remove, and substitute as needed. The best way to find mistakes is to read your paper out loud.

Subject-Verb Agreement The subject of a sentence tells you who or what the sentence is about. The verb tells you what the subject is doing or being. In a sentence, it’s important that the subject and the verb match. Singular means one. Singular subjects go with singular verbs. Ex: The student learns. Plural means more than one. Plural subjects go with plural verbs. Ex: The students learn.

Verb Tense When you are writing, it is important to use the same tense throughout. Tense means time. A verb’s tense tells the reader when in time the action of a verb takes place. There are three main verb tenses. ◦ Present tense means the action is taking place now. Ex: I jump rope. It is fun. ◦ Past tense means the action took place before now. Ex: I jumped rope. It was fun. ◦ Future tense means the action has not happened yet, but will any time after now. Ex: I will jump rope. It will be fun.

Common Mistakes You’re: You are. Your: It belongs to you. They’re: They are. Their: It belongs to them. There: A place. We’re: We are. Were: Past tense of are. Where: A place. Wear: To have on an item of clothing. Then: A point in time. Than: Comparing more than one. Two: The number 2. To: Indicates motion. Too: Also or A lot. Affect: The action of making a change. Effect: The thing changed by an action. Literally: Means that exactly what you say is true. A lot: A bunch of something. (A lot is two words, not one). Lose: Opposite of win. Loose: Not tight. Are: There is more than one. Our: We own it.

Editing Marks Insert a word, letter, or phrase Delete Capitalize Change to lower case Insert a period Insert a comma Insert an apostrophe Insert quotation marks Insert a space Close up a space Transpose letter or words New paragraph Check spelling

Words to Avoid Using these words and phrases can be unclear. Try using a stronger synonym. I think, I believe, Was, Is, Are, Am, Went, Said, Like, Nice, It, This, That, Really, Very, Pretty, A Lot, Things, Stuff , Big, Small, Good, Bad

Titles Underline or Italics A novel, play, film, TV show, magazine, encyclopedia, newspaper, pamphlet, website “Quotation Marks” A poem, short story, commercial, episode of TV show, chapter, article, newspaper story

Proofread Polish your work. Look one more time for errors in spelling and grammar. Check that punctuation and capitalization are correct. Make final changes.

Capitalization It is very important to capitalize words correctly, or the meaning of a sentence can be lost. Without correct capitalization, the sentence could become unclear. Capitalize the first word in a sentence. Capitalize the pronoun I. ◦ Ex: My teacher is nuts. ◦ Ex: After finishing my homework, I was tired. Capitalize proper nouns (the names of specific people, places, and things). ◦ Ex: Ms. Olson is from Ilion, New York. Capitalize the days of the week and the months of the year. ◦ Ex: I can’t wait for the last Friday in October. Capitalize official titles or positions in a person’s name. ◦ Ex: My teacher, Ms. Olson, sometimes talks to Dr. Race. Capitalize holidays, festivals, and special events. ◦ Ex: St. Patrick’s Day is my favorite holiday.

Complete Sentences Fragment: An incomplete thought. Usually: Missing a subject or verb. Run-On: Too much information, not enough punctuation. Usually: needs a comma or period to separate ideas.

Publish Share your work. Give it to a friend, read it aloud to an audience, turn it into a book, post it on a website, or get a grade on it from a teacher.

Checklist Each of paragraphs has one main idea. I have used correct grammar/ punctuation. My spelling is correct. My sentences begin in different ways. My sentences are complete with no run-ons or fragments. My ideas are in an order that makes sense. I have capitalized the first word in each sentence and proper nouns (people’s names, months, days, books, cities, states, and places) I used vivid adjectives (describing words) and nouns (people, places, things, ideas). I used strong verbs that show action. My ideas are written in my own words. My details give the reader important info.

Punctuation Once we put words into sentences, we have to punctuate them. How those little marks are used can make a big difference. Let’s eat grandma. Let’s eat, grandma. ◦ The words are exactly the same, but with different punctuation, they tell an entirely different story. ◦ Punctuate sentences so they express exactly what you want to say.

Commas Use commas to show where a reader should take a break. Commas separate items in a list, or ideas in a sentence. Use commas: After an introductory phrase in a sentence. Ex: After a chilly night, the morning sun warmed us up. In a series. Ex: We sang about Christmas, Hannukah, Kwanza, and Festivus at the Winter Concert. Between the day and the year. Ex: The Declaration of Independence wasn’t signed until August 2, 1776. With a conjunction (a word that joins others together) to separate complete thoughts in a sentence. Ex: I wanted to go swimming, but my mom decided the water was too cold. Between two adjectives (describing words) when they describe the same noun (person, place, thing, idea). Ex: The moldy, old bookshelf collapsed under the weight of the books. To set off a quotation. Ex: Olivia exclaimed, “Look out!” just before the ball hit Brian in the face.

Apostrophes Use an apostrophe for a possessive noun (one that another noun belongs to). ◦ Ex: Svetlana’s homework earned her the highest grade in the class. Use an apostrophe for a contraction (a word formed by combining a verb and another word). An apostrophe takes the place of missing letters. ◦ Ex: I am = I’m; We are= We’re; You are=You’re; He is=He’s; She is=She’s; It is=it’s

Semicolons Use a semicolon instead of a conjunction to separate two complete thoughts. ◦ Ex: We decided that English was the best subject in school; it’s awesome because it has the best teacher.

Colons Use a colon before a list or a series. Ex: When the new school year started, I had a few school supplies to buy: a binder, some paper, a composition notebook, and some index cards.

Quotation Marks Use quotation marks to show dialogue (what someone is saying). ◦ Ex: “Hurry!” Levi called. “The walls are closing in. You’ll be crushed!”

End Punctuation Marks Use a period to end a sentence. ◦ Ex: Fred ate sushi for the first time. Use a question mark to end a question. ◦ Ex: Have you ever tried sushi? Use an exclamation mark to show excitement or concern. ◦ Ex: It’s disgusting!