We are working on the writing trait of organization and learning about writing essays.  In order to organize our writing we have to know when to start a new paragraph.  Mrs. Scales said, “developing a paragraph is like shifting a stick shift car; you can’t just change gears willy-nilly or when ever you feel like it.  There is a proper time to shift gears just like there is a proper time to start a new paragraph.”

 

Then we went on to look at putting those paragraphs together to make an essay.

 

Guide to Writing a Basic Essay

An essay can have many purposes, but the basic structure is the same no matter what. A classic format for compositions is the five-paragraph essay. It is not the only format for writing an essay, of course, but it is a useful model for you to keep in mind, especially as you begin to develop your composition skills.  You may be writing an essay to argue for a particular point of view, to retell a memorable experience, express your opinions on a specific topic, or to explain the steps necessary to complete a task. Regardless of the purpose, your essay will have the same basic format. If you follow a few simple steps, you will find that the essay almost writes itself. You will be responsible only for supplying ideas, which are the important part of the essay anyway. Don’t let the thought of putting pen to paper daunt you. Get started!

 

These simple steps will guide you through the essay writing process:

Basic Elements of An Essay

1.  Introduction:

– Catchy language ( Hook)

– Reason/ purpose – Answering the Essay Question:

An introduction should answer three questions
1. What am I talking about in this paper?
By answering this question you let the reader know what the subject of the paper is. For example, if your paper were about a particular book, your answer to this question would give the title, author, and any other necessary information.
2. How am I going to talk about it?
This is where you let the reader know how your paper is organized. Here you very briefly introduce your main points or the evidence that will prove your point.
3. What am I going to prove in this paper?
This is the dreaded THESIS STATEMENT. The thesis is usually the last sentence in the first paragraph and it clearly states the argument or point you are making in your paper.

 – Preview of sections coming up.

2.  The Body of An Essay:

– Contains three or four sections, divided into paragraphs.

– Each paragraph deals with one topic.
Paragraphs

–         First sentence contains the topic sentence, which supports the main idea of the essay.
–  The following sentences contain main points you’re making about that topic
–  Other sentences support those main points with examples, explanations, etc.  (Who, what, where, when, how, etc)

The Body consists of everything between your intro and conclusion and it is where you discuss your three main points. A good starting place is to envision that each point is a separate paragraph (or in a long paper each point might be a section). In each paragraph you:

· Introduce your point
· Explain your point
· Give supporting evidence (this is where quotes go!)
· Explain how the point and evidence relate to your thesis
The whole point of each paragraph is to relate your point to your thesis, but it helps to spell it out clearly in at least one sentence of the paragraph.

3.  Conclusion:

This paragraph should include the following:

– a look back on the purpose of the essay

– a look back on the purpose of the essay

1. an allusion to the pattern used in the introductory paragraph,

-restatement of key points

2. a restatement of the thesis statement, using some of the original language or language that “echoes” the original language. (The restatement, however, must not be a duplicate thesis statement.)

-Ending statement that makes you think

3. a summary of the three main points from the body of the paper.
4. a final statement that gives the reader signals that the discussion has come to an end. (This final statement may be a “call to action” in an persuasive paper.)

 

Everyone has to write an essay for one of the following five essay contests. Tomorrow our first rough draft is due. It will only be graded on the trait of organization. We need to list which contest we are writing for under our properly formatted header.

Fall 2011 7^th Grade Writing Contests

 

Essay Contest	Quote or Set Up	Prizes	Number of Words
United Way	Explain how the power of caring can impact our community and your generation.	$500 Savings Bond
Creative Communications		Becoming a published author	250 word max.
MLK	“Ten thousand fools proclaim themselves into obscurity, while one wise man forgets himself into immortality.”	$500	450 word max.
American History	Pretend you were alive during the War of 1812 and had a friend who has become famous in history because of standing up for America during the exciting but dangerous time.  Describe the person and how he or she stood up for America.  Explain why it is important to honor such heroes when we celebrate the 200th Anniversary of the War of 1812.	Pin, certificate, & $25	600 – 1000 words
Scholastic	Personal Essay or Memoir ( A self-revelatory work dealing with individual experience.	Gold or Silver Key	500 – 3000 words

 

 

 

Our root word for today was mono, which means one, single, or alone.

 

Monarch : MON arch (mon’ ark) n.The ruler of an empire

Monologue : MONO logue (mon’ o log) n. A discourse by one person; soliloquy

Monochrome : MONO chrome (mon’ o krome) n. A painting of a single color

 

Glogster

 

We were also given our gloster account information today.  It was on a small strip of paper, so Mrs. Scales told us to tape or staple it to our English Binder or W-R’s N, or to write the information in one of them.  It is important that we not lose the log in information because every student’s account information is different.

 

The first time we log into glogster edu, we have to use the specific link on our account information slip. It looks something like http://edu.gloster.com/go/gk39tl. The last part of everyone’s link (gk39tl) is different and we have to go to our own.

Once we are on the site, we have to log in with the nickname and password on our white slips of paper.

As soon as we are logged in, we MUST change our nickname to our last name (and initial if there are any other 7^th graders with the same last name).