WEEK 8 LESSON 1

DIRECT YOUR WRITING

C WITH A THESIS
STATEMENT

Vidhyah Nelson
So what do I need in a Good
Essay?

Vidhyah Nelson
 INTRODUCTION
General statement about the topic- HOOK THE READER !!
Thesis Statement- Topic, Writer’s Claim, Direction

BODY
Point: Topic sentence 1
Explanation
Example
Link to thesis statement/ topic sentence or next para.

Point: Topic sentence 2

Explanation
Example
Link to thesis statement/ topic sentence or next para.

Point: Topic sentence 3

Explanation
Example
Link to thesis statement/ topic sentence or next para.

CONCLUSION
Restatement of thesis statement
Summary of Main Points
Your opinion
Vidhyah Nelson
Prediction
 What is a thesis statement?
Most important sentence in an essay
Why?
Contains the main idea or scope of the entire
essay
In fact the reason you write an entire essay is to
prove your Thesis Statement

What happens if you don’t have a Thesis Statement?

You don’t have a quality essay and it’s pointless!!
PLEASE REMEMBER THIS!!!

Where do I write the Thesis Statement?

At the end of the Introduction (Introductory Paragraph)
Vidhyah Nelson
 Direct Your Writing with a Thesis Statement

• A thesis is a statement written in precise terms that presents a

controlling idea about a subject.

• It comprises of - 1. topic
- 2. writer’s claim
- 3. direction of the essay= controlling ideas

Vidhyah Nelson
 Writing a Thesis Statement

A thesis statement is made up of three different parts. Every thesis needs these three things:

1) Topic (What is the topic you are talking about?) -Procrastination

2) Claim (What do you believe about the topic?) -can be attributed to

a number of causes

3) Direction (What are the 3 main reasons you can use to 1) overwhelmed by
support your claim? This will basically outline work
the body paragraphs of your essay.) 2) lack motivation
to work
3) fear of failure.
You will need to form these three parts into a complete sentence:

Topic + Claim (belief about topic) + Direction (reason 1, reason 2, and reason 3.)

Procrastination occurs when we feel overwhelmed by work, lack of motivation to work and have a
fear of failure.
Vidhyah Nelson
 Facts vs Opinions
• Opinions are general statements that express personal
beliefs and need reasons, facts, and examples to
back them up and to show their validity.

• Facts do not need support to back them up.

Vidhyah Nelson
Exercise 1 - Identify Facts and
Opinions

Let’s Review and Apply

Vidhyah Nelson
Identify Facts and Opinions
A. I go to college, work twenty hours a week, and help
with the care of my elderly grandmother.
B. My college offers a work/study program.
C. Working part-time while attending college has some
distinct advantages.
D. Time management strategies can help students
balance their time in their work, school, and personal
lives.

Vidhyah Nelson
Identify Facts and Opinions
A. I go to college, work twenty hours a week, and help with the
care of my elderly grandmother. - Fact
B. My college offers a work/study program. - Fact
C. Working part-time while attending college has some distinct
advantages. - Opinions
D. Time management strategies can help students balance their
time in their work, school, and personal lives. - Opinions

Vidhyah Nelson
 Identify Facts and Opinions

A. Playing video games has taught me strategies I can use in my

everyday life.
B. I play video games an average of three to four hours every day.
C. The current labelling system for video games is misleading and needs
to be revised.

Vidhyah Nelson
 Identify Facts and Opinions
A. Playing video games has taught me strategies I can use in my
everyday life. - Opinions
B. I play video games an average of three to four hours every day. -
Facts
C. The current labelling system for video games is misleading and
needs to be revised. - Opinions

Vidhyah Nelson
Direct Your Writing with a Thesis
Statement
• A thesis statement written in precise terms gives readers a clear sense
of what direction the paper will take and what kinds of support the
writer will use.
• Avoid broad and vague words that leave readers wondering just what
the point is.

Vidhyah Nelson
Exercise 2 Identify Precise Thesis
Statements
Let’s Review and Apply

Vidhyah Nelson
 Identify Precise Thesis
Statements
1. The playground was bad.
The playground was unsafe.
2. The economics class helped me understand why the U.S. economy is so
dependent upon foreign markets.
The economics class helped me understand many things.
3. Michael Pollan’s book The Omnivore’s Dilemma is interesting.
Michael Pollan’s book The Omnivore’s Dilemma has changed the way I shop
for food.

Vidhyah Nelson
 Identify Precise Thesis
Statements
1. The playground was bad.

The playground was unsafe.

2. The economics class helped me understand many things.

3. The economics class helped me understand why the U.S.

economy is so dependent upon foreign markets.
4. Michael Pollan’s book The Omnivore’s Dilemma is interesting.

Michael Pollan’s book The Omnivore’s Dilemma has changed

the way I shop for food.

Vidhyah Nelson
Direct Your Writing with a Thesis
Statement
• Direction= reasons for your claim a.k.a. Controlling
Ideas
• A thesis needs to have a single idea or a set of points that directs the action
of a piece of writing.
• One way to focus a subject with a clear controlling idea is to think of a
question you want your paper to answer for readers.
• This approach will help you avoid thesis statements that may produce a “So
what?” response from your readers.

Vidhyah Nelson
Identify Clear Direction/ controlling
ideas in thesis statements
Let’s Review and Apply

Vidhyah Nelson
Identify Clear Direction/ controlling
ideas in thesis statements
1. a. Young children should eat more nutritious foods and fewer
junk foods.
b. Parents can teach their children healthy eating habits
through planned meals, simple guidelines and control of junk
food.

2. a. You can enjoy using social networking sites like Facebook

and Twitter but you must be careful.
b. Users of social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter
should take several precautions to prevent unwanted contact
with Internet predators.
Vidhyah Nelson
Identify Clear Direction/ controlling
ideas in thesis statements
1. a. Young children should eat more nutritious foods and fewer
junk foods.
b. Parents can teach their children healthy eating habits
through planned meals, simple guidelines and control of junk
food.

2. a. You can enjoy using social networking sites like Facebook

and Twitter but you must be careful.
b. Users of social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter
should take several precautions to prevent unwanted contact
with Internet predators.
Vidhyah Nelson
Identify Clear Direction/ controlling
ideas in thesis statements
3. a. Teachers’ PowerPoint™ presentations can be boring for students.
b. Teachers can make PowerPoint™ presentations more engaging for
students by avoiding five common mistakes.

4. a. College offers far more challenges than high school, but being prepared
helps.
b. Adjustment to college life can be difficult without effective study skills,
time management and a change in attitude.

Vidhyah Nelson
Identify Clear Direction/ controlling
ideas in thesis statements
3. a. Teachers’ PowerPoint™ presentations can be boring for students.

b. Teachers can make PowerPoint™ presentations more

engaging for students by avoiding five common mistakes.

4. a. College offers far more challenges than high school, but being prepared helps.

b. Adjustment to college life can be difficult without effective

study skills, time management and a change in attitude.

Vidhyah Nelson
 PUT I.D.E.A.S. TO WORK
FOR WRITING ACADEMIC PAPERS
C

Vidhyah Nelson
 Put IDEAS to Work (1 of 6)
• As you begin the process of composing your own
papers, you can also use the IDEAS template as a way
to think about the writing situation as it applies to your
particular writing assignment.
• You can use IDEAS to generate support for your paper
as well as to make sure you are thinking about the
essentials needed to successfully complete writing
assignments.

Vidhyah Nelson
Put IDEAS to Work (2 of 6)
• Interest
• How can I capture my readers’ interest with a thought-provoking title?
• What introduction strategy will work best with this topic?
• What about this topic most interests me, and how can I share that interest
with readers?
• Why should my readers be interested in this topic? How can I help them see
its importance?

Vidhyah Nelson
Put IDEAS to Work (3 of 6)
• Details
• What strong, specific, concrete, and vivid details can I provide?
• How can I “make this subject real” through good details?
• Do my paragraphs support the controlling idea of my essay?
• Do my details work together to support the controlling ideas of the
paragraphs?
• What organizational strategy best suits my topic and purpose?

Vidhyah Nelson
Put IDEAS to Work (4 of 6)
• Explanation
• Which examples best show what I want my readers to
understand?
• Can I provide anecdotes and any personal examples?
• Do I use abstract terms or concepts that the reader may need
clarified?
• Do I use specialized words or expressions that the readers may
not understand? What is the best way to define them for the
readers?
Vidhyah Nelson
Put IDEAS to Work (5 of 6)
• Audience
• Who is my target audience?
• What kind of background knowledge do they already possess?
• If this information is necessary, would the audience find it
boring?
• How can I make it more appealing?
• What tone, words or language level is appropriate for this
audience?

Vidhyah Nelson
Put IDEAS to Work (6 of 6)
• Style
• How can I use sentence variety (different lengths and types of sentences) to
make the writing flow effectively from one idea to another?
• What point of view will work best to convey this attitude?
• How will I keep my “voice” as a writer distinct yet appropriate?
• Where can I cut the clutter in my writing?
• What are the kinds of distracting errors I tend to make? How can I avoid
them?

Vidhyah Nelson
Practice Writing as a Process

Embrace the
Messiness and
Discoveries Before
the Final Product

Vidhyah Nelson
Practice Writing as a
Process
• Adelstein’s Recommendation:

Vidhyah Nelson
 Practice Writing as a Process

Planning and Prewriting

• Before you begin writing, you might spend some time just thinking
about your topic.
• You might also try talking to others about your topic.

Vidhyah Nelson
 Practice Writing as a Process
• Planning and Prewriting
• Use IDEAS to connect the writing situation to your specific assignment.

IDEAS
Interest,
Details,
Explanation,
Audience,
Style

Vidhyah Nelson
 Practice Writing as a Process

• Planning and Prewriting

• When it’s time to start getting your thoughts and ideas down on
paper, don’t worry about organization, grammar, punctuation,
or spelling.
• The goal of prewriting is to free up your creativity and to
generate as many possible ideas as you can.

Vidhyah Nelson
 Practice Writing as a Process
• Planning and Prewriting
• Some prewriting methods that may help you generate material
include brainstorming and freewriting.
• Brainstorming involves listing details or examples that you might
use in a piece of writing.
• Freewriting is writing non-stop for a certain period of time.

Vidhyah Nelson
Practice Writing as a Process

• Planning and Prewriting

• Through prewriting, you will generate a lot of ideas,
but they will be in a “rough” form. But don’t worry
about this.
• Prewriting is usually chaotic and unstructured. It has
to make sense only to you, the writer.

Vidhyah Nelson
 Practice Writing as a Process
• Organizing
• First, determine your thesis. What question do you want your paper to
answer? The single statement that answers your question may be your
preliminary thesis.
• Now put the material you generated during prewriting into an organized
form.
• Ways to Organize:
• Mind Mapping
• Formal Outline

Vidhyah Nelson
Practice Writing as a Process

• Drafting
• After you have generated ideas, arrived at a point,
and decided how you are going to organize your
support for the point, it’s time to write a rough draft.
• Now your ideas begin to take the shape of the kind
of paper you are writing, whether it is an essay, a
single paragraph, a letter, or some other genre.
• Unlike chaotic prewriting, a draft follows the plan of
your outline and has a clear beginning, middle, and
end.
Vidhyah Nelson
Practice Writing as a Process

• Drafting
• During drafting, here is what you should not worry
about:
• getting everything complete and perfect.
• Your goal should be to get a “rough” draft of what
the final paper will be. But don’t fall in love with this
draft or turn it in as though it were the final polished
paper.

Vidhyah Nelson
Practice Writing as a Process
• Revising
• Revision = re-seeing your work
• Revision involves thinking about a document from
the reader’s perspective. The piece of writing you
produce has to connect to the reader.
• Revision includes all the ways you can improve the
content of your paper to make the subject more
clear and entertaining to the reader.

Vidhyah Nelson
Practice Writing as a Process
• Revising
• Questions for Revision:
• Is my objective for the essay met?
• Am I in alignment with my thesis statement?
• Have I fulfilled all of the task requirement?
• Have I adhered to the word count stipulation?
• Editing & Proofreading- Grammar and Spell Check done?
• Do I need to cut out anything?
• What’s my similarity score on a plagiarism checker?
• Finally, read the paper out aloud- how does it sound to you?

Vidhyah Nelson
In Conclusion
• By assessing a writing situation
and then following a writing
process and making sure you
have met all the special
requirements of an
assignment, you are on the
road to developing the skills
you need to become a
confident and competent
writer.

Vidhyah Nelson
Writing and the Writing Process
Let’s Review and Apply

Vidhyah Nelson
1. Read this writing situation carefully and then determine which of
the following correctly identifies the audience, purpose, topic and
genre
• Melvin is on his state’s no-call list, yet a particular home
remodelling company calls him nearly every week, trying
to sell him some kind of home improvement. Melvin writes
a letter to his state’s Attorney General asking her to put a
stop to these phone calls.
A. The audience is the Attorney General, the purpose is to
inform, the topic is home improvements, and the genre is a
letter.
B. The audience is the remodelling company, the purpose
is to persuade, the topic is the no-call list, and the genre is
a letter.
C. The audience is the Attorney General, the purpose is to
persuade, the topic is the remodelling company’s violation
of the no-call list, and the genre is a letter.
Vidhyah Nelson
1. Read this writing situation carefully and then determine which of
the following correctly identifies the four parts

• Melvin is on his state’s no-call list, yet a particular home

remodelling company calls him nearly every week, trying
to sell him some kind of home improvement. Melvin writes
a letter to his state’s Attorney General asking her to put a
stop to these phone calls.
A. The audience is the Attorney General, the purpose is to
inform, the topic is home improvements, and the genre is a
letter.
B. The audience is the remodelling company, the purpose
is to persuade, the topic is the no-call list, and the genre is
a letter.
C. The audience is the Attorney General, the purpose is to
persuade, the topic is the remodelling company’s violation
of the no-call list, and the genre is a letter.
Vidhyah Nelson