Writing Tip: Organization
by Linda Galloway
Beginning and completing a paragraph
Another way to help students begin to write and to complete a writing is to help students make an outline. Having a format helps them see a logical path to describe something fully. This is the basic form that works for most academic and professional writings.
Because an outline does not need to be written in order in the rough draft stage, students can put ideas in place as they come to mind. Once the outline is edited, writing a complete paragraph is less stressful.
Although there are many variations for an effective paragraph outline, this one is usually very helpful:
- Topic Sentence
Students should put their topic here and an opinion word. This will probably change as new ideas present themselves.
- Body
Three is usually a good number of supporting ideas. Sometimes reaching for a third idea helps students provide the most creative ideas. After the outline is finished, students should consider the best order of ideas. Time, spatial, or emphatic (putting the strongest idea last) order are three effective logical orders.
- Conclusion
With a conclusion signal word, the conclusion sentence is probably the most important sentence of a stand-alone paragraph. It is the ‘educated’ topic sentence that helps both the reader and the writer focus on the benefit of the information in the paragraph.
Tags: Writing a paragraph; Paragraph outlines; Order of ideas
Writing Tip: Topic Sentences
by Linda Galloway
Writing Tip: Topic Sentences
Many cultures do not require a topic sentence at the beginning of an academic paragraph, but English writing will always be clearer if it begins with this focus. Students can simply begin with the topic of the writing and an opinion word. At first the topic sentence may be very vague, but it will help the writer to begin, which is usually the hardest step. For example, ‘Chocolate is delicious’ can help writers begin to list reasons why they think this. Once they have a few reasons, they can improve the topic sentence by giving some of the sub-topics: ‘Chocolate is delicious because of its rich and complex tastes.’
To help students recognize effective topic sentences, give them contrasting topic sentences on topics they are likely to be interested in, such as the following sets:
1a) [My hometown] is a good place to visit.
1b) [My hometown] is a good travel destination because of its natural, historical, and cultural sights.
2a) My university major is [whatever it is] because it will get me a good job.
2b) My university major is [whatever it is] because it will prepare me for the future in several ways.
2c) My university major is [whatever it is] because it will teach me specific techniques, introduce me to a professional discipline, and help me to make connections which will prepare me for a professional life.
Effective topic sentences help the writer to stay on topic and help the readers logically connect the ideas as they read them in the paragraph. Longer writings will have thesis sentences with topic sentences in each paragraph, but writing thesis sentences works the same way.
Tags: Writing; Topic Sentences
Fluency Practice: Be verb and Personality Adjectives
by Scott Miles
Fluency Practice: Be verb and Personality Adjectives
Drill 1
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Positive |
Neutral |
Negative |
|
Bright Friendly Funny Gentle Helpful |
Busy Careful Cold Fearless Logical |
Boring Childish Controlling Forgetful Judgmental |
- Choose eight personality adjectives from the list that can complete each sentence about you. Write the two words for each sentence in the blanks.
- I am somewhat ____________. _______ _______
- I am very ________________. _______ _______
- I am not very _____________. _______ _______
- I am not _____________ at all. _______ _______
- Write down each word on eight cards (or slips of paper). Give them to your partner.
Your partner will shuffle the cards and read the words. For each word, say the complete sentence where the word fits.
- Drill: How fast can you do all 8 sentences? Time yourself, and write the answer in Time #1 below.
Next, try two more times. Try to increase your speed with each attempt.
Time #1 ____ Time #2 _____ Time #3 ______
Drill 2
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Positive |
Neutral |
Negative |
|
Honest Kind Loving Lucky Warm |
Interesting Quiet Realistic Serious Shy |
Lazy Loud Mean Selfish Silly |
- Complete the following sentences with personality adjectives from the box above. Each sentence should have a different word.
- My best friend is very _________, but I am not.
- I am somewhat _________, but my best friend is not.
- My best friend is not ________ at all, but I am.
- I am not _______ at all, but my best friend is.
- My best friend is very _________, and I am too.
- I am not _______ at all, and my best friend isn’t either.
- Write the six vocabulary words on cards. Give them to your partner.
Your partner will shuffle the cards and read the words. Put each word in the correct sentence.
- Drill: How fast can you do all 6 sentences? Time yourself, and write the answer in Time #1.
Now try two more times. Try to increase your speed with each attempt.
Time #1 ____ Time #2 _____ Time #3 ______
Drill 3
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Personality (ex. forgetful, gentle, mean, etc.) |
I |
My best friend |
You |
|
|
|||
- Choose six personality words that you would like to practice. Write them in the first column (Personality).
- Complete the second column with your own information about how the personality word fits you. Choose one of the following for each word: quite, somewhat, or not very.
- Next, do the same about your best friend in the third column.
- Finish the final column with information about your partner. Ask your partner about each word.
E.g. Are you gentle? Are you outgoing? Etc.
- For each row, say sentences for each person. Follow the example.
Example: I am somewhat forgetful. My best friend is quite forgetful. You are not really forgetful.
- Drill: How fast can you say all the sentences in the chart? Time yourself, and write the answer in Time #1.
- Now try two more times. Try to increase your speed with each attempt.
Time #1 ____ Time #2 _____ Time #3 ______
For the Teacher
The above exercises are drills. These are activities which give learners ample practice with specific grammar and vocabulary to increase both fluency and accuracy. Draw students’ attention to the grammar that they are practicing. In this case, it is using the correct Be verb (am, is, are) with different subjects. When doing the final drill assignment, the target grammar should be perfect. If a student makes an error, she should repeat that sentence. If possible, complete a chart with a volunteer student and model the activity. Make it clear to the students that the purpose is NOT to be faster than their partner. The purpose is to increase their own speed and accuracy. This lesson coordinates well with Book 1 Unit 1 of Now We’re Talking.
March Writing Tip: WRITING NAME POEMS
by Linda Galloway
One assignment students like is to write name poems.
Often these start with doing one’s own name, but after practice, they can be about a classmate or special person. A poem with qualities about M O T H E R will use sweet adjectives, but new adjectives can be needed to describe others. The assignment can be more difficult if two or more words are required for each letter. Since some names are longer than others, a total number of added words can be specified. Afterwards, students should write why some words are specifically appropriate.
Here is our editor’s name as an example:
Sociable
Conscientious
Optimistic
Terrific
Tenacious
Explanation: The first three are clear, the fourth is because Scott is innovative in his teaching and sharing of ideas, and the fifth is a higher-level vocabulary word, but it works because Scott has always worked to solve difficult problems.
English Words from French
by Scott Miles
The English language has taken in a large amount of words from other languages.
As a matter of fact, only about 26% of the current English vocabulary is purely from the earlier forms of English.
As the chart shows, French accounts for 29% of all words in the English vocabulary. The origin of some of this borrowed vocabulary is no secret, as the words retain a strong French flavor in spelling and/or pronunciation. Genre, croissant, déjà vu, and buffet are among many such examples.
However, there are many borrowed words that the average native-speaker of English might be surprised to find out were originally of French origin. Here is a short list of food vocabulary borrowed from French.
|
beef pork poultry |
caramel cream pastry pudding |
mayonnaise mustard Sauce salad |
casserole sausage soup stew |
Bon appétit!
Words to Describe People
by Scott Miles
The vocabulary in this supplement is commonly used to describe people.
They are words that appear in the 2000 most commonly used vocabulary in the English language, so they are essential for students at the basic to intermediate levels.
- First, review the words and circle the words that you do not know. You can underline the words that you think you might know, but aren’t sure.
- Next, with a partner (or partners), ask about the words you do not know.
What does _______ mean?
To explain the words in English, the following sentences might be helpful:
- It’s the opposite of __________.
- It’s almost the same as ___________.
- This is the kind of person who always ________
- This is the kind of person who never __________.
After listening to the explanation, guess the translation of the word in your first language. Later, you can look up the words in a dictionary to see if your guess is correct.
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Positive |
Neutral |
Negative |
|
Bright Friendly Funny Gentle Helpful Honest Kind Loving Lucky Warm |
Busy Careful Childlike Cold Fearless Interesting Perfectionist Quiet Realistic Serious |
Boring Childish Controlling Forgetful Judgmental Lazy Loud Mean Selfish Silly |
Talk about the vocabulary. Which words describe you? Which words do not? Use the following sentence patterns.
|
|
Now We’re Talking Textbook Activity Supplement
Book 1-Unit 1-Vocabulary: Describing People
This is a lesson plan that can complement the vocabulary activities on page 7 of Now We’re Talking Book 1, Unit 1.
Lesson Plan
- Distribute the handout (see above). Have the students look at the list of words and circle the ones they do not know. They can underline words they are not sure about, but have an idea of what they might mean. Tell the students to refrain from looking up words they do not know yet.
- In pairs or small groups, students then ask their partners about the words they circled and underlined. If another student knows the word, the student should try to explain the meaning. This is not an easy task for basic and even intermediate level students, but the given structures in the handout can be helpful. Do a few of the examples as a class before having the students try on their own.
If students have trouble finding a meaning (for example, they get stuck on a word that none of them know), they should call over the instructor to help with an explanation.
Once the word is explained, the student can write down their best guess of the translation of the word. Finally, after this part of the activity is over (or for homework), students can look up the words in a bilingual dictionary to see if their understanding was correct.
- In pairs or small groups, the students can discuss the vocabulary as it relates to themselves. If needed, review the sentence structures for this part of the exercise.
For Example, Such As, and Like
by Scott Miles
There are several options for introducing an example. These include for example, such as, and like.
Generally, here are the main points of using these phrases correctly:
- Use for example at the beginning of the sentence.
- Use such as and like in the middle of a sentence.
As you might guess, the above is an over-simplification that isn’t always true. However, it is a good guideline to help writers stay out of trouble most of the time.
Here are the details.
For example
This works as a transition (a conjunctive adverbial) to introduce an example to support a previous sentence. It is most common to use for example at the beginning of a sentence, and it should be followed by a comma.
There are many interesting things to do in my hometown. For example, you can go to one of our many parks.
Like other transitions, it can also go within a sentence, but it will always be marked by commas.
There are many interesting things to do in my hometown. You can go to one of our many parks, for example.
There are many interesting things to do in my hometown. You can, for example, go to one of our many parks.
Such as
Such as is a prepositional phrase, so it can’t be used the same way grammatically as for example. It is always followed by a noun phrase (or phrases). It is best used when introducing an example mid-sentence.
There are many interesting things to do in my hometown, such as going to one of our many parks.
We need to get several things from the store, such as hamburger, buns, and ketchup.
Use a comma before such as for sentences that can be complete without the examples.
Utah has many national parks, such as Zion Canyon and Bryce Canyon.
In this case, the sentence would be okay without the examples (a non-restrictive clause).
However, in the following sentence, the examples are crucial for the meaning of the sentence, so a comma is not used.
When going to parks such as Zion Canyon and Bryce Canyon, be prepared to pay an entrance fee.
Like
Using like for examples is common in spoken and informal English.
She enjoys outdoor activities like bicycling and hiking.
For academic and formal writing, use such as for this kind of sentence.
She enjoys outdoor activities, such as bicycling and hiking.
False Cognates
There are many words in English that native Portuguese (and sometimes Spanish) speakers may think they recognize, only to be completely misunderstood.
These are known as “false cognates” or linguistically “false friends”. They may sound pretty close to familiar words, but these false cognates mean completely different things in English. Here are a few examples:
1) Costume (English) X Costume (Portuguese).
In English, a “costume” is an outfit or clothing that someone would wear to play a character in a movie or play, or for a party or special event. For example, “I’m wearing a Carmen Miranda costume for Halloween this year,” or “The actress wore a beautiful costume for her role in the movie.” The best translation for the Portuguese “costume” is CUSTOM or TRADITION in English.
2) Actually X atualmente
In English, the word “actually” means “in truth” or “as a fact”. For example, “I thought that it would take three hours to travel there, but it actually took five hours!” “Atualmente” means “currently” in English. For example, “I am CURRENTLY working on my master’s degree.”
3) Educated X educado
In Portuguese, “educado” has to do with good manners and not necessarily with formal education. In English, “educated” has everything to do with schooling, and nothing to do with manners. For example, “He was educated at Harvard.” If you want to refer to someone’s good manners in English, you should use the word “POLITE”. For example, “He is very POLITE and would never use bad language.”
4) Enroll X enrolar
To “enroll” means to sign up or register for a course or school. For example, “She enrolled in the Algebra class” or “He will enroll in the university classes this semester.” If you are trying to say “enrolar” in English, you need to use “WIND UP” or “ROLL UP”. For example, “Please ROLL UP the maps when you are done with them” or “Do you mind WINDING UP the cord?”
5) Cord X corda
When it comes to the last example above, don’t be fooled by the word “cord”. While it can mean something long and used for tying things, a “cord” usually means an insulated cable used for carrying electricity. For example, “She pulled on the telephone cord.” When trying to say “corda” in English, the best translation is ROPE or STRING.
6) Fabric X fábrica
These two words could not be more different in meaning. “Fabric” in English has nothing to do with building things. “Fabric” is a noncount word that means the type of material that clothes are made of. For example, “She bought some fabric to make her own dress,” or “That fabric will make a lovely shirt.” If you are trying to say “fábrica”, you probably mean “FACTORY”.
These are just some of the “false cognates” or “false friends” that native Portuguese speakers will come across. Be careful next time you use them!
Using the Word “Success”
by Scott Miles
Image by mirsasha via Flickr
Students often make mistakes using the word ‘success.’ Here are the proper ways to use this word.
Noun: Success
Serena Williams was a great success in professional tennis.
Verb: Succeed
Serena Williams succeeded in winning seven major tennis tournaments.
Adjective: Successful
Serena Williams was one of the most successful tennis players in history.
Common mistakes
I will succeed my plans.
‘Succeed’ is a non-transitive word, which means it cannot have an object. You cannot say that you ‘succeed something.’
In this case, you can put ‘plan’ in a prepositional phrase:
→ I will succeed in my plans.
Or even better, you can change the sentence using the adjective or noun forms.
→ My plans will be successful. → My plans will be a success.