English Writing 101 Chapter 2

Paragraph Errors Format: Where does your name, student ID #, class name, and name of the assignment go? Is it handwritten or typed? Are handwritten assignments accepted? Format: Remember that paragraphs are blocks of sentences that talk about the same topic. This means that we don’t separate the sentences on different lines, there are no lines between the sentences. We always indent the first line of the paragraph so that readers know that it is the beginning of a new paragraph.

Paragraph Errors Content: Paragraphs always start with a topic sentence that tells the readers what the paragraph is going to be about. Content: Paragraphs also always have concluding or ending sentences that talk about the topic sentence again. The last sentence doesn’t give more information or say something new, it uses other words to say what you said in the beginning of the paragraph.

Paragraph Errors Grammar: Many of you need to study the rules for capitalization again on page 7. Remember that these errors can make your grade lower and your writing more difficult to read.

What Does Peer Review Mean? When we split up into pairs with partners, we are trying to get another set of eyes on your work. Sometimes your partner may see an error that you didn’t, or they may have ideas of how you can make your paragraph easier to read. Each of you should read your partner’s paragraphs, ask questions, and say what’s done well and what could be changed to make it more clear. To help you know what mistakes to look for and what questions to ask, use the worksheets on pages

What Does Self-Editing Mean? When I ask you to edit your paragraphs yourselves, I am asking you to read your paragraphs and look for mistakes or ways to make your writing better. This will help you gain higher grades if you correct the mistakes before you submit your work. Use the worksheets titled self-editing on pages to help you know what to look for. I want you to know how you can get better grades, so I am sharing the grading scale I use with you. You can find it on page 196. It tells you how many points you lose for each mistake, which means you could have a perfect paragraph if you correct all of the writing mistakes before you submit your paragraph!

Three Comma Rules Please turn to page 33 to look at two comma rules we’ve already talked about and one new rule to learn.

Three Comma Rules Rule One: Put a comma after a time order signal that comes before the subject at the beginning of a sentence (don’t use commas for then, soon, and now when used at the beginning of the sentence). Examples: Yesterday, I did homework for three hours. Finally, I was too tired to think. At 8:00, I fell asleep on the sofa. Soon I started snoring.

Three Comma Rules Rule Two: Put a comma after the first sentence in a compound sentence. Put the comma before the coordinating conjunction. We DON’T use a comma between two parts of a simple sentence. Examples: I was too tired to think, so I decided to take a break and watch TV for a while. I woke up and finished my homework.

Three Comma Rules Rule Three (NEW!): Put a comma between the items in a series of three or more items. The items may be words, phrases, or clauses. We DON’T use a comma when there are only two items. Examples: I got up, took a shower, drank a cup of coffee, grabbed my books, and ran out the door. Red, white, and blue are the colors of the U.S. flag. Red and gold are the school colors.

Practice Please work alone on exercise 3A-B on page 33.

Narrative Paragraph Peer Review Please break into groups of two to talk about your narrative paragraphs. Please remember to use the peer editing worksheets on pages to help you.

Homework Final Draft of the narrative paragraph Self-editing worksheet on page 201 – You MUST bring a hard copy to submit next class!