Day 6: Interpreting Prompts

Objectives
Students will be able to
a) review their diagnostic essays for effective body paragraphs.
b) recognize the importance of interpreting various types of prompts.

I. Review: 
A. Writing a Good Conclusion
*What are possible ways you can conclude an essay? Discuss with your peers around you. 
*Take a look at the following examples of concluding paragraphs and discuss what types of strategies did these authors use to end their essays.

B. Writing Effective Body Paragraphs
*Structure
*Evidence
In groups of two work on the  handout provided. Here are the answers.
*Revise the body paragraphs in your diagnostic essay for structure and evidence provided.
1. Does every paragraph start with a topic sentence that clearly states the idea developed in the paragraph?
2. What kind of evidence is used to support this main idea?

II.  Interpreting a Writing Prompt
 A. What is a PROMPT?  Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Examples of writing prompts

B.  Analysis of Writing Prompts (handout)
Answers

C. Creating an outline based on a writing prompt.
An outline enables you to determine the order in which you will present your main points, arrange your support items, and specify what you will say in your introduction and conclusion.  The outlines unifies all the parts of your presentation.
Practice:
1.  Let's remember the writing prompt for the diagnostic essay you wrote last week.
2. Now, open your diagnostic test. In a word document try to come up with the outline of your diagnostic. See if it fits the prompt given.
3.  Write a simple tentative outline for the following prompt:


(Prompt)  Write a 2,000-word essay on the topic, The Next Society, where you state your opinion on what to expect from the next generation of human beings with respect to the economy.
 

Homework
Please continue working on the revising of your diagnostic essay.

Sources:
Kim, J. (2012). Interpreting Writing Prompts. ESL505 Resources.
 http://esl505ta.blogspot.com/2012/06/day-5-writing-body-paragraphs-analyzing.html