Expository Writing

1. Expository Writing August 5, 2010

2. Standard • ELA8W1. The student produces writing that establishes an appropriate organizational structure, sets a context and engages the reader, maintains a coherent focus throughout, and signals a satisfying closure.

3. The Procedures • Paragraph 5-7 Sentences • Follow Writing Process • Write final draft in pen only! • On final draft double space or skip lines between sentences. • Do not write on the back of final drafts.

4. Writing Topic • Write a 6 paragraph passage that compares and contrasts the planets Neptune and Venus. • Write an introductory Paragraph • Write a paragraph describing Neptune • Write a paragraph describing Venus • Write a paragraph describing their similarities. • Write a paragraph describing their differences. • Finally write concluding paragraph.

5. Expository Writing VideoUnited StreamingEssential Questions 8-11-2010 • What is expository writing? • What are examples of expository writing? • What is a thesis? • How can you organize expository writing? • How can an effective introduction help your reader?

6. UNDERSTANDING PARAGRAPH STRUCTURE

7. WHAT IS A PARAGRAPH? Paragraphs are basic structural units of extended prose writing. A paragraph can identify an idea, develop it with examples and details and reinforce with a conclusion.

8. FORMATTING PARAGRAPHS • In a work written by hand always indent the first line of the paragraph. • In a work typewritten and double-spaced, always indent the first line of the paragraph. • In a work typewritten and single- spaced, a new paragraph is set off from the previous one by double- spacing.

9. WHY PARAGRAPHS? A new indentation is a sign that a new idea will begin, or the thoughts on the page will now change direction.

10. PARAGRAPH LENGTH A paragraph rarely has only one sentence. Usually it has five to eight sentences of varying lengths, all focused on one main idea.

11. THE TOPIC SENTENCE • The main idea of the paragraph is expressed in a single sentence called the topic sentence, which is often the first sentence of the paragraph. • All other sentences in the paragraph relate to the ideas of the topic sentence, as well as to each other.

12. EXPOSITORY PARAGRAPHS Expositoryparagraphs have a definite structure that helps to organize complicated thoughts logically. Their structure makes it easy to explain things.

13. EXPOSITORY PARAGRAPHS The expository paragraph structure encourages you to: • prioritize your ideas • find support for these ideas • order that support so that it makes sense.

14. THE STRUCTURED EXPOSITORY PARAGRAPH Begin with a topic sentence that’s broad enough to include all the ideas of the paragraph, but narrow enough to be limited to a single paragraph. Ex. Overloading your schedule with too many hours of class may cause you to achieve less than you hoped

15. SUPPORTING IDEA The topic sentence is then developed by the first of two supporting ideas: First, you may spend so many hours attending class that you have very little time for the research and homework that university classes require.

16. Example The supporting idea is then developed with an illustration: Felicia, a mother of twins, added extra hours of class to her schedule because she wanted to finish her degree as soon as possible. However, the extra hours gave her no time at all to study, and she had to re-sit a course, thus losing time instead of gaining it.

17. ANOTHER SUPPORTING IDEA Now comes the next supporting idea for the topic sentence: Second, the extra classes may require group work The words first and second add cohesion to the paragraph, showing that the supporting ideas relates to the topic sentence.

18. ANOTHER ILLUSTRATION The second supporting idea needs an illustration: A student who is in class every hour of the day finds it very difficult to meet with other members of the group. This is frustrating to both the stressed student and the group members, who may become hostile. The grade for the whole group may suffer.

19. THE CONCLUDING STATEMENT A concluding sentence ties up the thoughts and drives home the main idea: Thus, consider carefully the number of courses you sign up for; an overload may spell disaster.

20. EXPOSITORY PARAGRAPH SCHEME • Topic sentence • Supporting idea • Illustration(s) • Supporting idea • Illustration(s) • Conclusion

21. EXPOSITORY PARAGRAPH SCHEME Another paragraph scheme may look like this: • Topic sentence • Supporting idea • Supporting idea • Supporting idea • (Supporting idea) • Conclusion

22. VARIETY, THE SPICE OF LIFE The model structure of the paragraph is like the basic design of a cabinet or dress, or like a favourite recipe. Once you have mastered it, you can vary it to suit your purpose and audience.

23. My name • Write a brief passage explaining your name? • Who named you? • Why? • What does your name mean? • How do you feel about your name?

24. August 18, 2010 • Write a brief passage about your history as writer. Write on page 6 of writing Explorations. (These are ideas you may consider. However, you are to write a paragraphs not just answer these questions) • How did you learn to write? • Do you enjoy writing? Why or why not? • What type of things do you like to write about? • How do you think becoming a better writer will help you in the future.

25. Summarization August 19, 2010

26. StandardELA8W2. The student demonstrates competence in a variety of genres. C: Creates an organizing structure appropriate to purpose, audience, and context. d. Develops the topic with supporting details. e. Excludes extraneous and inappropriate information.

27. Essential Questions • How can you exclude extraneous and irrelevant statements from your writing? • How can combining sentences make your writing more coherent? • What is a summary?

28. Summarization • A summary is a paragraph or article that briefly explains a longer paragraph or article. • Using a graphic organizer to prepare the main points is a great way to prepare for a summary. • When writing a summary we tell the most important information in our own words.

29. Combining Sentences • Learning to combine sentences can make your writing more concise and condense it. • Sentence combining helps the writer avoid repeating words. • When we combine sentences we take two or more sentences and make them one. • Example: Leonardo was a talented Artist. Leonardo was a brilliant scientist

30. Combining Sentences • Combining with a conjunction: Use a comma and one of the following conjunctions. • For • And • Nor • But • Or • Yet • So Combing without a conjunction use a semicolon to join two sentences. ;

31. Introductory and Concluding Sentences • Does this sentence grab the reader’s attention? • Does this sentence bring it to a conclusion?

32. Prepositions/ Prepositional Phrases • Standard: ELA8C1 The student demonstrates understanding and control of the rules of the English language .

33. Essential Question • How can the use of prepositions improve your writing?

34. What is a prepositional phrase • United Streaming Video

35. About Above Across After Against Along Among Around As At Before Behind Beneath beside Between By Down During For From In Inside Into Near Of Off On Onto Common Prepositions • Out • Outside • Over • Through • to • Under • Until • Up • With • Without

36. Example • Essay on Cleopatra.

37. Write a summary: • Read the article on Leonardo da Vinci. Use the Graphic organizer to compose your Ideas. Then write a summary of the article in your writer’s notebook.

38. StandardELA8W2. The student demonstrates competence in a variety of genres. • C: Creates an organizing structure appropriate to purpose, audience, and context. • d. Develops the topic with supporting details. • e. Excludes extraneous and inappropriate information. • Standard: ELA8C1 The student demonstrates understanding and control of the rules of the English language .

39. Essential Question • How can we use prepositional phrases to combine sentences?

40. Standard: ELA8W2Page 145 • Define the following terms (IN YOUR OWN WORDS) in the glossary section of your writer’s notebook. You may write in pencil for this assignment only. • Expository Writing • Engaging the Reader • Precise • Topic Sentence • Supporting Details • Closing Sentence

41. Combining Sentences using prepositional phrases • Our class went on a field trip. • We went to the Palomar Observatory at the California institute of technology. • Our class went on a field trip to the Palomar Observatory at the California Institute of Technology. COMBINED

42. Combining Sentences using prepositional phrases • Our class went on a field trip. • We went to the Palomar Observatory at the California institute of technology. • Our class went on a field tripto thePalomar Observatoryat the California Institute of Technology. COMBINED

43. Combining Sentences using prepositional phrases • The family went skiing. • It was a cold winter day. • They went to the Hudson Mountain. • On a cold winter day, the family went skiing at Hudson mountain. COMBINED

44. Combining Sentences using prepositional phrases • The family went skiing. • It was a cold winter day. • They went to the Hudson Mountain. • On a cold winter day, the family went skiing at Hudson mountain. COMBINED

45. Combining Sentences using prepositional phrases • The wheelchair basketball team plays its next demonstration game on Wednesday. • The name of the team is the Portland Wheelblazers. • The game will be played at Cedar Hills Recreation Center. • The team will play the Rockford Chariots. • On Wednesday, at Cedar Hills Recreation Center, the Portland Wheelblazers will play a demonstration game of wheelchair basketballagainst the Rockford Chariots. COMBINED

46. You try it: Combine the following groups of sentences using prepositional phrases. Answers only! • We waited outside the movie theater. We were in line a long time. We were with our friends. • My report is due soon. It’s about Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. It’s due Friday. • I like sandwiches for lunch. I like sandwiches with ham, cheese, and lettuce. • She pried the lock. She used a nail file. She took the file from her backpack.

47. Varying Sentence Structure © 2001 by Ruth Luman References

48. Standard • ELA8C1 The student demonstrates understanding and control of the rules of the English language. • b. Analyzes and uses simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex sentences correctly, punctuates properly, and avoids fragments and run-ons.

49. Essential Question • How can varying sentence structure improve your writing?

50. Adding Variety to Sentence Structure To make your writing more interesting, you should try to vary your sentences in terms of length and structure. You can make some of your sentences long and others short. Read the two paragraphs on the next page.