Write It .5: A Process Approach to College Essays, with Readings
Edition: 4
Copyright: 2023
Pages: 536
Edition: 4
Copyright: 2023
Pages: 540
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The goal of Write It .5 is to introduce international and generation 1.5 students to the idea of academic argument and the academic essay form that they will encounter in many of their classes in American colleges and universities. The opening sections of the book help familiarize these students with conventions of language, basic course organizations, and writing in the college classroom. The following sections guide the students through the writing process itself by providing thought-provoking questions and activities designed to help them gain skills and strategies that enable them to approach a writing assignment. Each of the later sections then helps them develop their skills in critical reading and textual analysis. Ultimately they are lead through the processes of gathering evidence, drafting, and editing. The practice of each stage of the writing process in isolation allows them to focus on writing one stage at a time.
Write It .5 is a workbook that provides practice that aids understanding of
- college course organization and etiquette
- vocabulary and dictionary usage
- idioms
- the steps in the writing process
- critical reading
- analysis of a reading
- summarizing
- construction of a thesis
- formation of an argument
- marshalling evidence
- drafting
- editing
- proofreading
A Note on Writing
Acknowledgments
Part 1 BECOMING MORE FAMILIAR WITH ACADEMIC CULTURE
Reading a Syllabus
Sample Syllabus
English Idioms
Academic Integrity: Guidelines for Avoiding Plagiarism
Using a Dictionary
Using the Writing Process
Reading, Writing, and Speaking in an Academic Setting
“Some Thoughts on the Lost Art of Reading Aloud” by Verlyn Klinkenborg
Part 2 WRITING BASICS
Steps for a Thoughtful Reading of an Essay
“Sibling Rivalry” by Kelsey O’Neill
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Summary and Paraphrase
Analysis
A Suggested Structure for an Essay That Responds to Another Writer’s Essay
“Television: The Great Unifier” by Allan Von Niks
Writing an Introduction to an Argument Essay
Guidelines for Writing a Directed Summary
Advice on Writing a Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
A Rubric for Evaluating Student Essays
Part 3 WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
Assignment 1
“How I Discovered Words: A Homemade Education” by Malcolm X
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “How I Discovered Words: A Homemade Education”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “How I Discovered Words: A Homemade Education”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“Going Home” by Pak Muhammad Sukma
from Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass
Assignment 2
“Where Have All the Animals Gone?” by Charles Siebert
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “Where Have All the Animals Gone?”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “Where Have All the Animals Gone?”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“Why We Love Zoos” by Diane Ackerman
“Modern Zoos Are Not Worth the Moral Cost” by Emma Marris
Assignment 3
“Staying Put” by Scott Russell Sanders
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “Staying Put”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “Staying Put”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“Why Staying Put Matters and Why It’s So Hard” by Gracy Olmstead
“Stay Put?” by Sarah Skwire
“The States That College Graduates Are Most Likely to Leave” by Quoctrung Bui
Assignment 4
“Learning Responsibility on City Sidewalks” by Jane Jacobs
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “Learning Responsibility on City Sidewalks”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “Learning Responsibility on City Sidewalks”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“It Takes a Whole Village to Raise a Child. Igbo and Yoruba (Nigeria) Proverb” by Rev. Joseph G. Healey
“Why We Need to Talk to Strangers” by Claire McCarthy, MD
“Actually, It Doesn’t Take a Village” by Diane Swanbrow
“Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” by Peter Lovenheim
Assignment 5
“The Iks” by Lewis Thomas
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “The Iks”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “The Iks”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Student Essay 1
Student Essay 2
Supplemental Reading
“A World Not Neatly Divided” by Amartya Sen
The Cosmic Connection (an excerpt) by Carl Sagan
“I Believe in Empathy” by Azar Nafisi
“It Takes a Tribe” by David Berreby
Assignment 6
“Ants and Cooperation” by Edward O. Wilson
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “Ants and Cooperation”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “Ants and Cooperation”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“If Humans Evolved to Cooperate, Why Is Cooperation So Hard?” by Jill Suttie
“The Argument with My Uncle” by Ran Abramitzky
Assignment 7
“Mother Tongue” by Amy Tan
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “Mother Tongue”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “Mother Tongue”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“The Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodriguez” by Richard Rodriguez
“Why and When We Speak Spanish in Public” by Myriam Marquez
Student Essay 1
Student Essay 2
Assignment 8
“What’s in a Name?” by Richard Crasta
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “What’s in a Name?”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “What’s in a Name?”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“‘Blaxicans’ and Other Reinvented Americans” by Richard Rodriguez
“Two Ways to Belong in America” by Bharati Mukherjee
Student Essay 1
Student Essay 2
Student Essay 3
Assignment 9
“No Name Woman” by Maxine Hong Kingston
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “No Name Woman”
Some Questions to Deepen Your Understanding of “No Name Woman”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Glossary
Index
The goal of Write It .5 is to introduce international and generation 1.5 students to the idea of academic argument and the academic essay form that they will encounter in many of their classes in American colleges and universities. The opening sections of the book help familiarize these students with conventions of language, basic course organizations, and writing in the college classroom. The following sections guide the students through the writing process itself by providing thought-provoking questions and activities designed to help them gain skills and strategies that enable them to approach a writing assignment. Each of the later sections then helps them develop their skills in critical reading and textual analysis. Ultimately they are lead through the processes of gathering evidence, drafting, and editing. The practice of each stage of the writing process in isolation allows them to focus on writing one stage at a time.
Write It .5 is a workbook that provides practice that aids understanding of
- college course organization and etiquette
- vocabulary and dictionary usage
- idioms
- the steps in the writing process
- critical reading
- analysis of a reading
- summarizing
- construction of a thesis
- formation of an argument
- marshalling evidence
- drafting
- editing
- proofreading
A Note on Writing
Acknowledgments
Part 1 BECOMING MORE FAMILIAR WITH ACADEMIC CULTURE
Reading a Syllabus
Sample Syllabus
English Idioms
Academic Integrity: Guidelines for Avoiding Plagiarism
Using a Dictionary
Using the Writing Process
Reading, Writing, and Speaking in an Academic Setting
“Some Thoughts on the Lost Art of Reading Aloud” by Verlyn Klinkenborg
Part 2 WRITING BASICS
Steps for a Thoughtful Reading of an Essay
“Sibling Rivalry” by Kelsey O’Neill
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Summary and Paraphrase
Analysis
A Suggested Structure for an Essay That Responds to Another Writer’s Essay
“Television: The Great Unifier” by Allan Von Niks
Writing an Introduction to an Argument Essay
Guidelines for Writing a Directed Summary
Advice on Writing a Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
A Rubric for Evaluating Student Essays
Part 3 WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
Assignment 1
“How I Discovered Words: A Homemade Education” by Malcolm X
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “How I Discovered Words: A Homemade Education”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “How I Discovered Words: A Homemade Education”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“Going Home” by Pak Muhammad Sukma
from Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass
Assignment 2
“Where Have All the Animals Gone?” by Charles Siebert
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “Where Have All the Animals Gone?”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “Where Have All the Animals Gone?”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“Why We Love Zoos” by Diane Ackerman
“Modern Zoos Are Not Worth the Moral Cost” by Emma Marris
Assignment 3
“Staying Put” by Scott Russell Sanders
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “Staying Put”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “Staying Put”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“Why Staying Put Matters and Why It’s So Hard” by Gracy Olmstead
“Stay Put?” by Sarah Skwire
“The States That College Graduates Are Most Likely to Leave” by Quoctrung Bui
Assignment 4
“Learning Responsibility on City Sidewalks” by Jane Jacobs
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “Learning Responsibility on City Sidewalks”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “Learning Responsibility on City Sidewalks”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“It Takes a Whole Village to Raise a Child. Igbo and Yoruba (Nigeria) Proverb” by Rev. Joseph G. Healey
“Why We Need to Talk to Strangers” by Claire McCarthy, MD
“Actually, It Doesn’t Take a Village” by Diane Swanbrow
“Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” by Peter Lovenheim
Assignment 5
“The Iks” by Lewis Thomas
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “The Iks”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “The Iks”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Student Essay 1
Student Essay 2
Supplemental Reading
“A World Not Neatly Divided” by Amartya Sen
The Cosmic Connection (an excerpt) by Carl Sagan
“I Believe in Empathy” by Azar Nafisi
“It Takes a Tribe” by David Berreby
Assignment 6
“Ants and Cooperation” by Edward O. Wilson
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “Ants and Cooperation”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “Ants and Cooperation”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“If Humans Evolved to Cooperate, Why Is Cooperation So Hard?” by Jill Suttie
“The Argument with My Uncle” by Ran Abramitzky
Assignment 7
“Mother Tongue” by Amy Tan
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “Mother Tongue”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “Mother Tongue”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“The Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodriguez” by Richard Rodriguez
“Why and When We Speak Spanish in Public” by Myriam Marquez
Student Essay 1
Student Essay 2
Assignment 8
“What’s in a Name?” by Richard Crasta
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “What’s in a Name?”
Questions to Review Your Understanding of “What’s in a Name?”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Supplemental Reading
“‘Blaxicans’ and Other Reinvented Americans” by Richard Rodriguez
“Two Ways to Belong in America” by Bharati Mukherjee
Student Essay 1
Student Essay 2
Student Essay 3
Assignment 9
“No Name Woman” by Maxine Hong Kingston
Writing Topic
Vocabulary and Dictionary Practice
Doing a Careful Reading of “No Name Woman”
Some Questions to Deepen Your Understanding of “No Name Woman”
Responding to the Writing Topic
Strategies to Help You Analyze a Reading Selection and Develop Your Ideas for Writing a Response
Shaping Your Ideas into a Rough Draft
Drafting Your Directed Summary
Developing Your Thesis Statement
Developing Body Paragraphs for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
A Basic Outline Form for an Essay That Presents a Thesis
Drafting Your Essay
Glossary
Index