Helping your student with writing:

Prewriting:

1. When a student is writing from a prompt or trying to generate a theme, ask him/her what interested her/him in the novel or about the topic area.

2. Once a topic is determined, the easiest way to generate a thesis is to start with a three-prong approach: 3 sub-topics to be discussed in the essay and from which examples will be drawn.

Example 1: Heroic Research Essay. What 3 heroic traits are most significant about the subject? Limit all research to these.

Example 2: Literary Essay. What 3 points will the student make in the paper and be able to support with examples from the novel?

3. In Freshman and Sophomore English, the 3-prong approach will likely move the student into the “C” range. A more sophisticated thesis is what I term an “umbrella” thesis, one that goes beyond “Martin Luther King, Jr. is heroic because…1, 2, 3…”.

4. An umbrella thesis digs more deeply, as the student asks, “Why? What did this cause or determine or who does it impact?” Then, examine the three points to find any common traits among them to determine an umbrella thesis.

5. In an outline, then, the easiest way to organize is to take each point of analysis one at a time and generate sentences that do the following:

ü Topic sentence introduces the point to be argued

ü Lead to the evidence—introduce the situation to be used as an example and the upcoming speaker of the quotation.

ü Evidence = Quotation (in most cases—paraphrase, in some, but usually at least one quote per argument)

ü Explain the evidence—how does the quote help support the point?

ü Conclude the point—reiterate what has just been proven

*Use the LO English Handbook (given to all students as Freshmen; can purchase a second copy for $3.50 from Business Office) to consult on technical writing questions.

Editing/Revising Writing:

1. Ideally, have the student read aloud to you, and mark any place that sounds “odd” to the ear—either your ear or his/hers.

2. Read the paper a 2^nd time yourself. Now mark places that are problematic and talk them through with your student.

Ex. 1: Reading along, I notice a sentence fragment; rather than tell the student what it is and how to fix it, I circle it as a place for the student to investigate, or I tell him/her it’s a sentence fragment, then have her figure out how to fix it.

Ex. 2: Reading along, I come across a sentence that sounds awkward or is too wordy…again, I mark the sentence as awkward or wordy, then talk with the student about how she can fix it—often starting with, “What are you trying to say/explain?” is a good beginning. Again, don’t fix it for him/her, but talk through the problem—she should do the writing, not you.

Ex. 3: Reading along, I come across dialogue. I think the quotations are formatted incorrectly. Ask the student for her English Handbook and go over the section on quotations with her. Look on-line for grammar resources—several exist that have interactive exercises, try: http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/index2.htm for one.

3. Again, go through the five steps required for each paragraph (see above under outline) Help your student to identify these. If s/he can’t, then start with a template such as:

1. What is the topic of this argument?

Generate a topic sentence that introduces what you will argue about the topic: .

2. What situation, event, incident from your reading best illustrates this point/topic? .

Who is speaking in the passage you want to quote?

Now, combine these two to serve as the lead into the quote.

3. Copy the passage you wish to quote word-for-word. .

How does this situation, event, incident help prove the point you are trying to make in this argument? .

4. Conclude your argument by revisiting the thesis. How does this point/topic/argument help prove your overall thesis? .

*Repeat steps 1-4 for each body argument.