Trio/SSS/WC

Led by: Kristina Yegoryan

In 1 Workshop Learn About:

Essay Writing Writing Process Organization Researching MLA Formatting

WHAT DOES THE WORD ESSAY MEAN?

WHAT IS ITS ORIGIN?

The word essay means to try.

An essay is a piece of writing which is often written from an author's personal point of view.
It is a short piece of non-fiction: an editorial, a feature story or a critical study. It differs from the article as in the essay the pleasure of reading takes precedence over the information in the text!

The term Essay was FIRST used by Michel Montaigne during the 16th cen. (Renaissance) Montaigne attempted to assay (weight) his thoughts on human perception.

17th cent. (Age of Enlightenment)- Essays were a favored tool of polemicists who aimed at convincing readers of their position
18th, 19th cent.: Essays were written for a general public 20th cent.: Some used essay to explain the new movement in art (T.S. Eliot) and some used for literary criticism (Woolf, Charles du Boss)

At times it is difficult to test a students knowledge with multiple-choice tests. Essay writing shows: Students interpretation Critical thinking Projection/expression of ideas Writing skills

HOW DO WE WRITE?
At times students think that writing a paper a night before can be a miracle

1) PREWRITING 2) DRAFTING 3) REVISING 4) EDITING (PUBLISHING)

Narrative ( to tell a story/incident) Expository (to explain or acquaint with something) Exemplification (brings in many examples to
support a choice/argument)

Cause and Effect Descriptive Definition Compare and Contrast Persuasive/ Argumentative (prove a point)

Organization and Structure

Introduction, 3 Main Body Paragraphs, and Conclusion)

(academic essays have the 5 paragraph base- structure:

Authors voice (the essayist)

You do not need to use I when stating your arguments or

opinion- your essay/ your writing does present your voice

and your argument/opinion

Implied audience/reader :

Encoding (writers purpose) vs Decoding (readers interpretation) of the information in the essay

The reader of an essay is called on to join in the making of the meaning

Rhetorical appeals: Ethos, Pathos, Logos (by Aristotle)

Watch this video for understanding Rhetorical appeals: http://www.wimp.com/teachpersuasion/ (What Aristotle and Joshua Bell teach us about Persuasion)

Introduction: It sets the tone and the direction for the composition. The paragraph starts with Attention Getter/ Hook and concludes with a Thesis Statement. Body: The body can consist of any number of paragraphs that support the thesis statement. Typically compositions contain one to three body paragraphs. Each body paragraph has its own topic sentence with supporting evidence or commentary.
Conclusion: It brings the composition to a close. It usually starts with a general sentence that summarizes the introduction/the topic. Conclusion includes a restatement of the thesis in different words and ends with a Call to Action or advice.

1. Attention Getter / Hook

Use any of these hook strategies:

Rhetorical question General statement Very specific statement Fact or a startling statistics, or a quote

2. Definition/ Depiction 3. The Twist (However,) 4. Explanation 5. Thesis Statement ( the last sent/the main argument)

A sentence that goes at the end of your introductory paragraph. IT IS THE LAST
SENTENCE OF INTRODUCTION

The main idea of the whole essay.

A debatable statement, the authors argument /opinion.

It is usually 1 sentence or 2 max.

Open vs. Complete

An Open Thesis does not contain the body points.
i.e. Everyone should drive a hybrid car. A Complete Thesis includes the body points. i.e. Everyone should drive a hybrid car because they pollute less, they get better mileage, and they help reduce gasoline costs.

Although counter argument, actually your

argument Idea

because
rd

1st supporting idea 2nd supporting

, and 3

supporting idea.

1. Summary sentence
(General statement going back to Introduction or if started with a rhetorical ?-then answer to the question)

2. Restatement of Thesis (re-saying your argument

(Ex. Since A, B, and C + your argument)

3. Call for action( a suggestion/advice what to do)

Hence, we should do. (shouldnt)

MLA stands for Modern Language Association

MLA format offers:

guidelines for the overall look of a paper makes the paper credible with a method of documenting sources

Use Times New Roman font, 12 point size Double-Space the whole paper

All margins should be set to 1 inch

Single or double spacing after punctuation is acceptable

Each page should have header of last name and page

number at the upper right-hand corner of each page

Continued

Heading in the left corner of the 1st page:

Students Full Name

Instructors name Class name Date ( Day Month Year ) Ex. 20 November 2012

The title of the paper is centered Do not underline, bold, or quote the title

When ending a quote with punctuation, punctuation is inside the

quotation marks

Ex: O Romeo, O Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? (Romeo and

Juliet 2.2.36).

Is a list of the references used in the paper and serves as an acknowledgement for the sources.

With the detailed information in the Works Cited list one can find the original source if needed for further research
Works Cited is usually a separate page attached in the end of the essay or document The sources are listed in the alphabetical order without numbers or bullet- points

Lets try to structure a sample essay!

1. Watch the 3 min Ted Speech on 30 Day Goal by Matt Cutts, and think about your 30 day challenge and try to come up with a Thesis Statement for your 5 paragraph Narrative essay!
http://www.ted.com/talks/matt_cutts_try_something_new_for_30_da ys.html

2. Watch the 3 min Ted Speech on 8 Secrets of Success by Richard St. John, and think about your 3 secrets of success to form a strong thesis statement before you structure a 5 paragraph

TANK

YOU for YOUR Attention!