1. Sarah Syrjanen General Education, Composition Kaplan University
CM 220 College Composition II Unit 6: A Blueprint for Progress: Putting the Pieces Together
Sarah Syrjanen
General Education, Composition
Kaplan University
Personalize this slide to include your name.

2. Assignments and draft guidelines
Unit 6
Assignments and draft guidelines

3. Unit 6 Reading Reading Where to find
The Kaplan Guide to Successful Writing, ch. 6 (pp )
Doc Sharing
The Kaplan Guide to Successful Writing, ch. 14 (pp )
KU Writing Center resources on paragraph development and graphic organizers
Links in reading and “Extra, Extra!” tab
Unit 6 overview
Click on “Reading” icon on unit home page

4. Unit 6 Invention and Tech Labs
Invention Lab: Strategies for defeating writer’s block and prewriting for draft
Tech lab: Prezi (animated presentations), Photoshop and Gimp (graphic design)

5. Unit 6 Draft: The Blueprint for Progress
Purpose: Pull together all the pieces of your research, pre-writing, and organizational techniques into a coherent essay.
While this draft will not be perfect or complete, it is not “rough,” either. Do edit and proofread!
Be sure to format according to APA guidelines.
Consider submitting to the Writing Center for additional feedback.

6. Draft Guidelines
Includes introductory paragraph with thesis statement and concluding paragraph. Note: Introduction and conclusion will be revised and expanded as part of the unit 8 Invention Lab.
Supports main points effectively and clearly.
Uses research, evidence, and examples to support assertions.
Skillfully refutes counter-arguments without ignoring data that contradicts the student’s thesis.
Refers to at least 3 secondary sources in the body of the paper and on the references page. One should be from the Kaplan Library.

7. Draft Guidelines
Paragraphs are well-developed, coherent, and logically organized.
Style is appropriate for academic writing.
Style is clear and concise.
Project is free of serious errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
Follows accepted conventions of Standard American English.
Follows APA guidelines for the document layout and citations (including title page, in text citations, and References page).
Meets 3-5 page length requirement; this does not include the title and references page.

8. Defeating writer’s block
Having problems?
Defeating writer’s block

9. What causes it? Anxiety and stress Fear of others’ opinions
Difficulties with research
Too close to topic

10. How to defeat it? Know your topic—be prepared.
Don’t strive for perfection—this is a draft!
Don’t edit and proofread while writing.
Don’t stress over the introduction—come back to it later.
Be confident!
Just do it 
Note: see the Dennis Stokes video for more details.

11. The next step
Prewriting for draft

12. Getting Started with Your Big Idea
At the end of this unit, you will submit a 3-5 page draft of your Big Idea.
What can you do to GET STARTED?

13. Common Prewriting Techniques
Freewriting
Brainstorming
Bubbling
Clustering
See ch. 6 of The Kaplan Guide to Successful Writing for more on the writing process.
Listing
Informal outlining
Annotating
Questioning

14. Organizational Tools

15. Bubbling Chart: Food Additives
Food additives—are they dangerous?
Decreasing nutritional value of food?
Compare ingredients and nutritional value
Health risks?
Cancer
Rising obesity rates
Impact on brain development?
Neurological disorders (Parkinsons, Alzheimers, ADD)
Changing what we grow and how we grow it?
Farmers growing more corn, soybeans (used in many of the additives like HFCS)

16. Listing chart: Banning cigarettes
Main points
Support from sources?
Audience concerns to address
Examples I could use
Cigarettes are bad for everyone’s health, smokers and non-smokers alike
Surgeon General (warnings), medical reports on second-hand and third-hand smoke effects
Should the government outlaw everything that is bad for us (fast food, etc.?)
Childhood asthma and allergies, even ear infections, often tied into parents’ smoking
Those horrible pictures they showed in elementary school of black lungs of smokers!

17. Organizing and Developing Your Ideas
Establish a thesis
Consider writing an outline (it can be changed later)
Take the ideas in the outline and brainstorm each concept/argument
Begin researching and incorporating evidence to support your argument/claims

18. Creating strong paragraphs
The next step
Creating strong paragraphs

19. Strong Paragraphs Are limited and focused Are unified and coherent
Are clearly related to the thesis
Are well developed
Include a clear topic sentence, supporting sentences, and a clear conclusion

20. How do I create such a paragraph?
Decide on your main idea for the ¶.
Write a topic sentence expressing your argument.
Explain/develop that idea in ¶ body.
Give example(s).
Explain relevance of examples.
Complete ¶ or transition into next paragraph. (“Paragraph Development,” 2007).

21. More Help with Paragraphs
For a helpful Writing Center workshop on this topic, review:

22. How do I develop paragraphs?
Use examples and illustrations
Cite data (facts, statistics, evidence, details, and others)
Testimony from experts (interviews, quotes, paraphrases)
Use an anecdote or story
Define terms in the paragraph
Compare and contrast
Evaluate causes and reasons
Examine effects and consequences
Analyze the topic
Describe the topic
Offer a chronology of an event (“On Paragraphs,” 2010).

23. Use of comparison/contrast and example
Slave spirituals often had hidden double meanings. On one level, spirituals referenced heaven, Jesus, and the soul, but on another level, the songs spoke about slave resistance. For example, according to Frederick Douglass, the song "O Canaan, Sweet Canaan" spoke of slaves' longing for heaven, but it also expressed their desire to escape to the North. Careful listeners heard this second meaning in the following lyrics: "I don't expect to stay / Much longer here. / Run to Jesus, shun the danger. / I don't expect to stay." When slaves sang this song, they could have been speaking of their departure from this life and their arrival in heaven; however, they also could have been describing their plans to leave the South and run, not to Jesus, but to the North. Slaves even used songs like "Steal Away to Jesus (at midnight)" to announce to other slaves the time and place of secret, forbidden meetings. What whites heard as merely spiritual songs, slaves discerned as detailed messages. The hidden meanings in spirituals allowed slaves to sing what they could not say.

24. How could this paragraph be developed?
We should provide more financial support for 9/11 First Responders. Many are currently in poor health or dying from complications resulting from exposure to toxins at Ground Zero. It is unfair for them to suffer and die without adequate support from the government. What would YOU do to make this paragraph stronger?

25. Effective transitions
Putting paragraphs together
Effective transitions

26. Using Transitions Show relationship between ideas
Demonstrate that thoughts are logical and progressive, rather than random and accidental
Provide unity and coherence
Provide smooth “flow” within and between paragraphs

27. Some Example Transitions
To indicate time order
To provide an example
To indicate results
In the past
For example
As a result
earlier
For instance
consequently
before
To illustrate
Because of
currently
specifically
Since
preceding
In particular
therefore
presently
namely
For this reason

28. A more complete list LOGICAL RELATIONSHIP TRANSITIONAL EXPRESSION
Similarity
also, in the same way, just as ... so too, likewise, similarly
Exception/contrast
but, however, in spite of, on the one hand ... on the other hand, nevertheless, nonetheless, notwithstanding, in contrast, on the contrary, still, yet
Sequence/order
first, second, third, ... next, then, finally
Time
after, afterward, at last, before, currently, during, earlier, immediately, later, meanwhile, now, recently, simultaneously, subsequently, then
Example
for example, for instance, namely, specifically, to illustrate
Emphasis
even, indeed, in fact, of course, truly
Place/Position
above, adjacent, below, beyond, here, in front, in back, nearby, there
Cause and effect
accordingly, consequently, hence, so, therefore, thus
Additional Support or Evidence
additionally, again, also, and, as well, besides, equally important, further, furthermore, in addition, moreover, then
Conclusion/Summary
finally, in a word, in brief, briefly, in conclusion, in the end, in the final analysis, on the whole, thus, to conclude, to summarize, in sum, to sum up, in summary 

29. Other approaches Repeating key words or phrases
Using parallel structure (express content in grammatically similar ways)
Summarizing/rephrasing idea in preceding sentence or paragraph to link to new idea

30. What transitions would you use and where?
One of Mary Washington University’s best features is its small student population. The average class size is students. Students have many opportunities to meet in one-on-one conferences with their professors. This gives each student the opportunity to discuss class assignments.

31. What is wrong with this paragraph?
Club Palm Resort's beaches are beautiful, and the surrounding countryside is quite scenic. The quality of the food leaves a lot to be desired. Many vacationers enjoy the variety of outdoor activities and the instruction available in such sports as sailing and scuba diving. Unfortunately, security is poor; several vacationers' rooms have been broken into and their valuables stolen. Christmas in the Bahamas can make the thought of New Year's in Chicago bearable.

32. Paragraph Workshop
Share a paragraph from your draft you are currently working on. Offer your classmates advice on strengthening their paragraphs.

33. References
Brooke, B. (2009). Effective paragraphs. Bob Brooke’s Writer’s Corner. Retrieved from Clements, K. (2010). Essay development. In The Kaplan Guide to Successful Writing, eds. D. Martinez, S. Carlson, & K. VanDam, p New York: Kaplan Publishing. Jensen, M. (2010). The writing process. In The Kaplan Guide to Successful Writing, eds. D. Martinez, S. Carlson, & K. VanDam, p New York: Kaplan Publishing. Paragraph development. (2007). The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved from Stokes, D. (2008, April 20). 6 tips to overcoming and cure for writer’s block [Video file]. Retrieved from Transitions. (2007). The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved from