2. The Writing Centre, StFX University 20051 How to Benefit Most from a Writing Centre Appointment Adapted from the resources of Purdue University http://owl.english.purdue.edu/workshops/pp/index.html

3. The Writing Centre, StFX University 20052 What is a Writing Centre Appointment? 45-minute one-to-one session with an Academic Skills Instructor Purpose  To help you become a better writer What Happens?  You ask questions.  We try to answer them.  We also ask you questions to help you approach the writing task.

4. The Writing Centre, StFX University 20053 An Instructor Can Help You at Every Stage of the Writing Process  Invention (brainstorming, outlining)  Research  Drafting  Revising  Editing (teaching you how to correct your own surface errors)

5. The Writing Centre, StFX University 20054 One Thing to Remember An instructor does NOT correct/proofread your paper because… that does not help you become a better writer. But the instructor can teach you HOW to proofread and edit.

6. The Writing Centre, StFX University 20055 “Dos” & “Don’ts”  Plan ahead: come when you start writing or with a first draft.  Before you come, set an agenda for the appointment  Do NOT come at the last minute because you will have little time for revision!  Do NOT expect to work on too many issues in one appointment.

7. The Writing Centre, StFX University 20056 Setting an Agenda What do you want to work on? Why is agenda-setting important?  Writing Centre appointments are different from tutorials in a classroom setting. We do not teach you subject - specific material (i.e., how to solve a Chemistry problem or identify the factors leading to the conflict between the French and the English in Canada).  You know your own writing best.  Be realistic about what can be done in one appointment and set priorities.

8. The Writing Centre, StFX University 20057 HOC and LOC  What are HOC (Higher Order Concerns)?  What are LOC (Lower Order Concerns)?

9. The Writing Centre, StFX University 20058 Higher Order Concerns  Focus/Thesis  Purpose  Audience/Readers  Organization  Development

10. The Writing Centre, StFX University 20059 Lower Order Concerns  Grammar sentence structure punctuation prepositions articles verb tense  Word choice  Spelling

11. The Writing Centre, StFX University 200510 The Need to Prioritize If you want to work on both HOCs and LOCs with a writing instructor, we suggest you plan to work on HOCs first because:  We have limited time in an appointment.  Starting with LOCs may distract you from global issues (HOCs) you may need to address.  After your work on HOCs, you may delete/add some parts.

12. The Writing Centre, StFX University 200511 Five-Topic Agenda-Generator  Instructions for the assignment  Your familiarity with the writing task  Preferred textual patterns in the subject area  Development  Lower Order Concerns

13. The Writing Centre, StFX University 200512 Instructions for the Assignment  Is there an assignment sheet?  Do you have notes taken in class?  Do you have any questions about the instructions?

14. The Writing Centre, StFX University 200513 Your Familiarity with the Task  Have you worked on this kind of writing task before?  Did you read samples written by others?  What questions do you have about the writing task?

15. The Writing Centre, StFX University 200514 Your Familiarity with the Style of Writing  Thesis statement (your main point)  Structure  Transitions  Direct, concise and to the point Remember there are different styles of writing for different subjects

16. The Writing Centre, StFX University 200515 Development Have you supported your main points with supporting details? For Example: It is important for you to try to set the agenda for the appointment in advance because 1. We have only forty-five minutes; 2. The appointment is more effective if we focus on one or two concerns; 3. Students usually learn best when they take the initiative in the learning process.

17. The Writing Centre, StFX University 200516 Lower Order Concerns  Grammar What are the patterns of grammatical errors I tend to make?  Word Choice What are the words I am using but uncertain about? Actually, there is a 24-7 teacher to help you with most of your lower order concerns.

18. The Writing Centre, StFX University 200517 Your Best 24-7 Teacher The right dictionary!  Tells you the part of speech of words  Gives you examples of word usage  Provides related/similar words  Provides usage notes

19. The Writing Centre, StFX University 200518 Recommended Dictionaries for Writers  The Canadian Oxford Dictionary  www.dictionary.com  Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English  Longman Web Dictionary www.longmanwebdict.com

20. The Writing Centre, StFX University 200519 Dictionary Use Basics  Take the time to browse through the dictionary. build your vocabulary  Learn grammar: parts of speech  Learn usage: Synonyms phrasal verbs usage notes

21. The Writing Centre, StFX University 200520 Questions to Ask Yourself Regarding Grammar What are my grammar questions?  Can I find the answer in a good dictionary? If you cannot:  What exactly is my grammar question? Can I write it down?  Can I underline the parts I have questions about? Then take your questions and your paper with the underlined sections to your Writing Centre appointment.

22. The Writing Centre, StFX University 200521 We Have Covered  What a writing centre appointment is  What an instructor can help you with during your writing process  Dos and Don’ts  A Five-Topic agenda-generator We hope you have learned more about writing centre appointments and benefit more from them in the future!

23. The Writing Centre, StFX University 200522 For More Help with Writing  Call 867-5221 to schedule an appointment  Buy The Writing Guide at the campus bookstore  Attend the free Writing Centre workshops  Visit the StFX Writing Centre website at: http://www.stfx.ca/resources/writingcentre  Visit the Purdue Online Writing Lab at: http://owl.english.purdue.edu