THE FUNDAMENTALS OF WRITING

ONE CAN ONLY READ WHEN SOMEONE HAS WRITTEN SOMETHING

If you would not like to be forgotten as soon as you are dead,

either write something worth reading or do things worth writing for.

Benjamin Franklin.

WHY WRITING?

THERE IS ALWAYS THE CLASSICAL EXPLANATION: BECAUSE IS

MANDATORY.

BUT ….

WHY WRITING?• It reinforces the grammatical structures, idioms

and vocabulary that we have been taught.• The effort to express ideas and the use of the

eyes, hand and brain is a unique reinforcement to learning

• Students discover a real need for finding the right word and the right sentence. THERE IS A CLOSE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN WRITING AND THINKING.

ITEMS A WRITER HAS TO DEAL WITH TO PRODUCE A PIECE OF WRITING

.

Clear, Fluent and effective

communication of ideas

SYNTAXCONTENT

THE WRITER’S PROCESS

AUDIENCE

PURPOSE

WORD CHOICEORGANIZATION

MECHANICS

GRAMMAR

STAGES OF WRITING

Arlenne M. Fernández

Getting StartedGenerating ideasBrainstorming, Free writing, Making lists, Sketches, Wh questions, Essential questionsClustering, Venn Diagrams, Outlining, Researching (creating a bibliography).

1. PREWRITING: THINK BEFORE WRITING

• UNDERSTAND THE ASSIGNMENT• CHOOSE A SUBJECT THAT YOU ARE

INTERESTED IN / THAT YOU KNOW ABOUT• NARROW THE SUBJECT SO THAT IT CAN BE

COVERED WITHIN THE LIMITS OF THE ASSIGNMENT

• COLLECT IDEAS• CONSIDER THE AUDIENCE: READERS Vs

LISTENERS

THE AUDIENCE DETERMINES:• WHAT YOU WRITE:– WHAT YOUR AUDIENCE KNOW– THEIR INTERESTS, NEEDS AND

EXPECTATIONS– WHAT DOES YOUR AUDIENCE NOT KNOW

• HOW YOU WRITE:– SHORT SENTENCES AND SIMPLE LANGUAGE, OR LONG AND SOPHISTICATED– CHARTS– PHOTOGRAPHS

ASK YOURSELF THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS ABOUT THE AUDIENCE

1. WHO is going to read this piece of writing?2. WHAT does my audience know (or not know)

about the topic?3. WHAT background information about my topic

will my audience need to know?4. WHAT will my audience find interesting5. WHAT is the main point I want my audience to

understand6. HOW can I best get my audience to understand

my point?

2. DRAFTING

Begin writing.

Don’t worry about format, grammar or any other thing than

putting your ideas together in a written

form.

3. REVISING: LOOK AGAIN, CHANGE AND STRENGHTEN

• RECONSIDER THE NEEDS OF THE AUDIENCE

• RECONSIDER THE PURPOSE OF THE PAPER

• RECONSIDER YOUR ARGUMENTS.

4. PROOFREADING: POLISH YOUR WORK

• AVOID COMMON ERRORS OF GRAMMAR, SPELLING AND SENTENCE STRUCTURE.

• CHECK THE FORMAT IS CONSISTENT

• CHECK ON PUNCTUATION MARKS.

Using the right word is the same difference as lighting ourselves with a bulb or a fireflight Mark Twain.

1. The holes of the paper go on the left side.2. The TITLE goes on the first line by itself.3. INDENT the first line of the paragraph about

an inch. You can also indent each paragraph if you want to.

4. Leave a MARGIN on the left and the right sides of the paper.

5. For the copy you turn in to your teacher, write in ink on one side of the paper. If possible, type your paper.

5. PUBLISHING

HANDING THE

PAPER OVER TO

THE TEACHER

WHAT IS A COMPOSITION, ESSAY, PAPER?Is a piece of writing about one central topic.

WHAT IS A PARAGRAPH?A group or related sentences that

communicates a central idea.

WHAT DOES THE PARAGRAPH / ESSAYS HAVE IN COMMON?

Instructions may look like this:• DANCING MERENGUE is the TOPIC1. MECHANICS: Capital letters at the beginning of

sentences2. GRAMMAR: Subject pronouns in sentences with

the verb to be in present. Changing from first person to third person pronouns and verbs

3. VOICE: is the “YOU” in your writing. It shows how you feel.

4. SENTENCE CONSTRUCTION: Sentence patterns with be

5. VOCABULARY AND SPELLING: List the key words you want them to use.

WRITING GENRES

Arlenne M. Fernández