Writing Notes
Writing Notes
Types of
Subject(s) What is it?
Writing
English! Most advanced academic writing is done in the
History! argumentative mode. It relies more on research
Argumentative Math! and offers the reader relevant reasons, credible
Science facts, and sufficient evidence.
Fictional or Personal/Autobiographical
English! Narrative writing is used to tell a story in order to
Narrative History inform or entertain the audience. Narrative writing
can be either fiction or nonfiction.
Source: Adapted from Poway Unified School District. “Mayawest Writing Project.” The Purdue Online Writing Lab. N.p. 2010. Web. 11 June 2015.
2
What is its purpose? Parts to include...
The main purpose of expository writing is to • introduction with thesis statement or claim!
• body paragraph(s) that include evidence (E)
inform. It is often used in the sciences, and it
and commentary (CM)!
is the primary mode used by journalists. • concluding paragraph
The primary goal of narration is to relate a • tells a story with beginning, middle, and end!
series of events that occurred to real or • most likely includes characters (real or
fictional), dialogue, setting, conflict, climax,
fictional people. It is used in personal writing,
resolution!
creative writing, fiction, or sometimes within • entertains the audience with descriptive,
academic essays. vivid, or humorous language
Source: Adapted from Poway Unified School District. “Mayawest Writing Project.” The Purdue Online Writing Lab. N.p. 2010. Web. 11 June 2015.
3
Getting Started
Purpose:!
Good writers make decisions about what to write and how to approach the writing task before
they start drafting. Here is a checklist to help you get organized!
Source: !
Adapted from The Write Path English Language Arts: Informing Ourselves and Others Through Writing and Speaking. AVID
Press, 2013. 77-79
5
Writing a Paragraph
Purpose:!
To share a well-developed idea in writing by:!
๏ focusing on one specific topic that you introduce in the topic sentence,!
๏ developing the idea,!
๏ and including enough supporting details to give the reader a complete,
interesting picture of the topic.
Structure/How to: !
!
Big Picture: 5+ sentences.!
! May have these 3 parts:!
Start with a topic sentence, which:!
! topic and scope (e.g., JLS homework)!
! Always contains the main idea opinion/stand (e.g., should be banned)!
!
of the paragraph. evidence/support (e.g., because it
! restricts playtime for students)
!
3+ sentences of evidence/support. Begin each with transition word(s).!
!
Last sentence should be a concluding statement.!
!
English Example:!
! At JLS, homework should be banned because it restricts playtime for
students. For example, typical seventh graders are expected to complete
seventy minutes of homework per night. However, with the limited amount
of daylight, there is little time for students to spend outside. Seventh
graders could choose to play while there is still daylight and do
homework afterwards, but the stress of delaying homework might weigh on
their minds. Reducing the quality of their playtime impacts students’
mental and physical health. Without a doubt, banning homework encourages
more playtime, a crucial aspect of a well-balanced lifestyle.
6
History Example: !
! Martin Luther started the Reformation by challenging the Pope of the Roman
Catholic church and also by writing the Ninety-Five Theses. Before Luther, many
disagreed with the Catholic church’s actions, however, no one had the power to stand
up to the Pope. In 1517, a young monk named Martin Luther challenged the Pope by
arguing that the Pope could not decide what a person had to do to get into heaven
which “…led to the creation of new churches in Western Europe” (Spielvogel).
Luther’s impact gained him many followers to help him fight against the Pope’s
authority. He believed that God was the greatest being, not the Pope, which
inflicted conflict between the two. With many followers the Pope could not handle
Luther’s power, therefore, Luther started the Reformation. When the church was
selling indulgences Luther was angered and wrote the Ninety-Five Theses in which it
states, “Christians should be exhorted to be diligent in following Christ, their
head…” (Luther). Luther disagreed that the Pope should be the most powerful
person. His writing against indulgences also convinced many people that the…
Catholic church was horrible. In doing so, he broke away from the Catholic church
and created a whole new denomination known as Protestantism. Through challenges
with the Pope and the writing of the Ninety-Five Theses, Martin Luther started the
Catholic Reformation.
Math Example:!
! It is important to analyze a given set of data to determine whether to use the
mean, median, or mode to support your argument. For example, if you download 10
television programs from the Internet and it takes 3, 5, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 10, 10
minutes the mode should be used to convince your parents a faster Internet
connection is needed. The mean of the data set will show the Internet connection
is somewhat fast at around 7.3 minutes and the median at 7.5 minutes. The mode
will show it takes 10 minutes to download a program, which is a sufficiently longer
amount of time compared to the mean and median. In conclusion, it depends on the
data on whether or not the mean, median, or mode should be used to support your
argument. !
7
Claim-Evidence-Reason Paragraph
Purpose: !
Use this graphic organizer to help construct a paragraph for expository, argumentative or
persuasive writing.
Question: !
Should we colonize Mars?
!
!
Claim: (What do you know?)!
Name:
Transition:! Evidence: (Data that supports your claim — most general)! Source:!
! We can answer big questions concerning what is required for !
For example, life, and whether there is life on places other than Earth. “Why Colonize
Mars?”
Reason: (How does this support your claim?)! redcolony.com
Getting to Mars helps humans learn more about the needs
and “frequency” of life in our universe.
Transition:! Evidence: (Another piece of data that supports your claim.)! Source:!
! “the largest canyons, volcanoes, and craters in the solar !
Another point
system are available for our study” (same)
that the same
article makes Reason: (How does this support your claim?)!
Scientists learn about the formation of planets, the
history of the universe and by examining Mars.
Transition:! Conclusion: (Use your evidence and reasoning in a paragraph to support your claim.)!
! !
In closing, Humans should aim to colonize Mars because of all the doors it will
open for scientists in terms of their understanding of life, planets, and
how to reach other planets.