Process of Getting Ideas Down on Paper before Organizing the Essay brainstorming Process of Getting Ideas Down on Paper before Organizing the Essay

Freewriting: writing without constraint. . How it works: With a possible essay topic or idea in mind, get out a pen and a piece of paper, and spend a set amount of time writing about this topic (5-10 minutes is a good timeframe).  Write down anything and everything that comes to mind, even if you don’t think it is useful or relatable.  Once you start, do not stop writing; do not criticize or edit what you have written; do not even read what you have written yet.   Once you are finished, now read what you have written.  Is there a main idea that has emerged that can become a topic for an essay?  Are there several ideas that relate to a potential topic/thesis and can be written about in more detail in an essay? Are there actual sentences that can be used in an essay, even if they have to be revised? More than likely, the answer to these questions is yes.  If so, you now have a start for your essay.  At this point, you can begin the initial process of developing a working thesis, grouping your ideas together through brainstorming, and/or creating an outline.  

Listing: the simplest strategy First set a time limit for this activity; 5-10 minutes is more than enough. Then write down as many ideas related to the prompt as you can without stopping to analyze any of them. . . . "After you have generated your list of response to the prompt, review the list and pick one item that you might like to write about. This will become your object. Now you're ready for the next listing; this time, create a topic-specific list in which you write down as many ideas as you can about the one topic you have selected. These will be the three points for your thesis Next, take each of the points, and list specifically how they relate to your subject and object This will be the beginning of your outline.

Prompt: Who in your life has been your biggest influence and why? FIRST LIST: WHO? 1. Mother 2.Father 3. Mrs. Kerr 4. Dali Lama 5. Tricia 6. Bill 7. Ruth Bernita Mary Buddha Jesus SECOND LIST: WHY? Mrs. Kerr Philosophy of life Writing poetry to the ocean Published in the school publication English teacher Role model I became a teacher I assign POL I allow students to experience POSSIBLE THESIS FROM LIST Mrs. Kerr, my sophomore English teacher, was the biggest influence on my life because of her creativity, teaching style, and example as the model teacher I wanted to become.

Bubble Clusters The subject of the prewrite goes in the middle circle. Each circle is numbered. The center bubble is the main idea and is labeled #1 The #2 bubbles are sub-headings off the main idea. #2 ideas are the basis for the topic sentences. The #3 bubbles are concrete details and there must be at least two. They form the backbone of the body paragraphs. Each #3 must be at least 5 or more words.

Go on vacation s to Disneyland and the beach 1 Summertime 3 Go on vacation s to Disneyland and the beach 1 Summertime Barbecues in the back yard more time to do pleasure reading Catch up on movies I missed 2 family daily routine stay up late and sleep in see my brothers and sisters more often

1 Summertime 2 family Daily routine 3 Barbeques in the backyard See my brothers and sisters more often go on vacation to Disneyland and to the beach 3 stay up late and sleep in 3 more time to do pleasure reading catch up on movies I missed

Line Clustering Subject: (#1)Spring—my favorite season of the year. Step 1: LIST List your ideas in any order. You need 6. --new leaves and flowers on the trees --warmer weather during the day and night --time to clean the house --school is coming to an end --Daylight Savings Time comes in April --baseball season/practice starts up again

Line Clustering, cont’d. Step 2: CATEGORIZE Categorize your ideas(think of ways you can group ideas together) Nature (#2) My daily routine and responsibilities (#2)

Line Clustering, cont’d. Step 3: LABEL Label each idea by category A. new leaves and flowers on the trees (#3) A. warmer weather during the day and night (#3) B. time to clean the house B. school is coming to an end B. Daylight Savings Time comes in April B. baseball season/practice starts up again

Columns/ (#1)My Two Best Friends (#2)Cheryl (#2)Joe (#3) known me since we were in kindergarten (#3) we have 4 classes together each day (#3) lives down the street from me (#3) we will be taking driver’s training together next summer

Process of Getting Ideas Down on Paper before Organizing the Essay Next: The Thesis brainstorming Process of Getting Ideas Down on Paper before Organizing the Essay