Writing A2 – Week 1

COURSE DETAILS

Materials:
Oshima, A., & Houge, A. (2017). Longman writing
series 2: Paragraphs to essays (4th ed.). Pearson
Education.
Assessment:
1. Participation (in-class participation + SPARK
completion): 10%
2. Progress test: 30% (Describing people/places)-W7
(Reading+Listening+Writing on that day;
 LESSON 1

Sentences building
Introduction to paragraph writing - The writing
process
TYPES OF SENTENCE
-SIMPLE SENTENCE
-COMPOUND SENTENCE
-COMPLEX SENTENCE
-COMPOUND-COMPLEX SENTENCE
Sentences are a basic unit of text.
The extent to which essays, reports, seminar papers are
effective has much to do with the content and mastery of
sentences.
It is helpful, therefore, to be knowledgeable about the
structure of sentences and the rules and the conventions
which govern their use.
This enables a writer to more confidently explore ways of
expressing his/her thoughts to others.
A sentence signals at least one unit of thought that the
writer wants the reader to absorb.
It could be as simple as:
A. The Gold Coast is an enjoyable place to be.
B. A tall man is standing next to the car.
Or extensive as:
C. The Gold Coast is Australia's premier tourist region which
has caused overdevelopment on what were once some of
most beautiful coastal areas on the eastern seaboard.
D. A tall man wearing a dark suit is standing with his arms
folded next to an old, red taxi.
SUBJECT+ PREDICATE= SENTENCE
The two fundamental parts of every English sentence are
the subject and the predicate.
SUBJECT+ PREDICATE= SENTENCE
A sentence can be analyzed into subject and predicate. The
predicate is all the rest of the sentence after the subject.
Most English sentences have three parts: a subject, a
verb, and an object or complement.
These sentences are called SVO sentences.
 SIMPLE SENTENCE
The simple sentence often makes its point concise,
for it can be the shortest of the sentences.
A simple sentence, also called an independent
clause, contains a subject and a verb, and it
expresses a complete thought.
In the following simple sentences, subjects are in
bold and verbs are underlined:
EXAMPLE: Simple Sentence
a. The package arrived.
b. Canals vary in length and width.
c Juan and Arturo drove from Connecticut to Tennessee in
one day.
d, The ape-man in the gray loincloth, a wooden
spear in his hand, attacked.
e John Gordon goes to the library and studies there every
day.
Note that a sentence can contain a compound subject (c) and long
subject (d), and a sentence can contain a compound verb (e)
 COMPOUND SENTENCE
A compound sentence contains two or more independent
clauses or consists of two or more simple sentences
separated by conjunctions (joining words).
That means that there are at least two units of thought
within the sentence, either of which can stand by itself as
its own sentence.
FORMING COMPOUND SENTENCE
There are three ways to join independent clauses to form a compound
sentence.
1. by a coordinator (or a coordinating conjunction):/or, and, nor, but,
or, yet, so. Helpful hint: The first letter of each of the coordinators spells
FANBOYS
E.g.,
a. The economy stagnates, and prices rise.
b. Mrs. A was ill, so her husband had to bring their children to school.
c. Sam wanted to study law, but he was rejected by the university he
applied to.
Except for very short sentences, coordinators are always preceded by a
comma.
FORMING COMPOUND SENTENCE
(cont.)
2. by a conjunctive adverb. (Therefore, however)
e.g., She did not want to go at that time; however, she still
went with him.
3. by a semicolon or colon (This kind of CS is possible
only when the two independence clauses are
closely related in meaning. If not, they should
be written as 2 simple sentences, each ending
with a period (.))
e.g., He never went to the snake house again; he had been
revolted by the alligator.
Punctuation mistake
I forget my homework paper, I get a Zero. (comma-splice error).
I forget my homework paper I get a Zero I am sad. (run-on
sentence).=> I forget my homework paper, so I get a Zero; therefore,
I am sad./ I forget my homework paper, so I get a Zero. Therefore, I
am sad.

Because it rains. (Fragment)

I’m => I am (avoid using contraction)
A: Eleanor tried a new recipe today;
however, she forgot to add the baking
soda. (Conjunctive Adv.)
B: Michael played football, for Maria went
shopping. (Comma + Coordinative
Conjunction )
D: I would like to do some exercise
everyday, but I have no time.
E: The whistle blew; the parade began.
(Semicolon)
F: My older brother studies law;
my younger brother studies
medicine.
 COMPLEX SENTENCE
The complex sentence gives depth to writing, reduces the number of
words used and through its main clause-subordinate clause shows
levels of relationships.
A complex sentence consists of at least one main (independent)
clause joined by one or more subordinate ( dependent) clauses. A
main clause can stand by itself; a subordinate clause cannot. (It
relates to the main clause). Consider the example below:

As it was summer, the holiday brought many people to

the beach.
 Complex Sentences /
Adjective Clauses
Sentences containing adjective
clauses (or dependent clauses) are
also complex because they
contain an independent clause and
a dependent clause. The subjects,
verbs, and subordinators are
marked the same as in the
previous sentences, and in these
sentences, the independent
clauses are also underlined.
Subordinating Conjunctions

After, although, as, as far as, as if, as long

as, as soon as, as though
Because, before, besides
Even though, even if, ever since
If, in order that
Since, so that
Than, that, though
Unless, upon, until
When, whenever, where, wherever, whether,
while
It rains.
Because it
rains, I stay
at home.
As it was summer, the holiday brought many people to th
beach.

The subordinate clause in the sentence is clear.

As it was summer: it cannot stand by itself; it is
dependent on the main clause the holiday brought many
people to the beach. To put in other words, in a complex
sentence, one idea is generally more important than the
other one. The more important idea is placed in the
independent clause, and the less important idea is
placed in the dependent clause.
EXAMPLE-Complex Sentence
A complex sentence always has a subordinator such as because,
since, after, although, when, while, even though,
if or a relative pronouns such as that, who, or which, whether, wh-
questions and sometimes if.
Consider the examples below:
a. Because the economy stagnates, high prices find new buyers.
b. Men who are not married are called bachelors.
c. Some people think it would be better to our environment and
economy if people only ate locally produced food.
d. That the Earth's temperature is rising concerns scientists.
e. Scientists believe that the Earth's temperature is rising.
A: When he handed in his homework, he forgot
to give the teacher the last page.
B: The teacher returned the homework after
she noticed the error.
C: The students are studying because they have
a test tomorrow.
D: After they finished studying, Juan and Maria
went to the movies.
E: Juan and Maria went to the movies after
they finished studying.
EXAMPLE-Complex Sentence
a. The students, who formerly were weak at essay
writing, improved considerably as a result of
reflecting upon the task.
b. While many students were absent from the party,
it was still the most enjoyable event held this year.
c. The Australian impressionist painters have
received much acclaim because they were such
strong nationalists.
A: The woman whom my mom talked to
sells cosmetics.
B: The book that Jonathan read is on the
shelf.
C: The house which Abraham Lincoln was
born in is still standing.
D: The town where I grew up is in the
United States.
E: He raises his hands in order that the
bus might stop.
DC, IC (main clause) IC DC

Because it I stay at home because it rains.

rains, I stay at
home.
[DC, IC] or [IC DC]
There are two possible positions for a dependent adverb clause:
before or after the independent clause.
(1) If it comes before the independent clause, it is followed by a
comma.
Although women could own property, they could not vote.

(2) If the dependent adverb clause comes after the independent

clause, no comma is used.
Women could not vote although they could own property.
A complex sentence can be converted to a simple
sentence by REDUCING the adjective clause in the
dependent clause to a phrase or a word
Simple sentence
Complex sentence
I have no money that I can I have no money to lend you.
lend you. The marble statue was brought
The statue that is made from Japan
of marble was brought The students studying seriously
from Japan can get good marks. (turn the
The students who study adjective clause into a phrase
seriously can get good “studying seriously”).
marks. The people living in slums face
The people who live in a lot of problems.
slums face a lot of
problems.
COMPOUND-COMPLEX SENTENCE
Compound-Complex sentence, although less
common, pushes the possibilities further. A
compound-complex sentence consists of at least two
main clauses with at least one
subordinate/dependent clause. For example,
We thought that we would go, but we decided not
to.
(INDEPENDENT) (DEPENDENT) (INDEPENDENT)
Compound-Complex sentences allow many
possible combinations, and their punctuation
requires careful attention.
E.g.,
a. I wanted to travel after I graduated from college; however, I had to go to
work immediately.
b. After I graduated from college, I wanted to travel, but I had to go to work
immediately.
c. I couldn't decide where I should work or what I should do, so I did
nothing.
d. I wanted to travel after I graduated from college, but I had to go to work
immediately.
e. It was summer, and many people went to the beach, although the water
was still cold.
PARAGRAPH
A paragraph is a group of related sentences that discuss
one (and only one) main idea. The paragraph should be
long enough to develop the main idea clearly.
In every paragraph, the first word is indented (five
spaces from the margin).
 FREEWRITING
Choose a topic and try to write a QR code for
PADLET
paragraph of about 100-150 words.
Your writing must include
-simple sentences
-compound sentences
-complex sentences
Focus on AN IDEA and try to DEVELOP
it
(you can think about an example and
give an explanation; a feeling is also
a good idea).
DON’T forget to add a SUMMARY or
conclusion
THE WRITING PROCESS

a. Step – 3
b. Topic – 4
c. gather – 8
d. Organise – 7
e. Paragraph – 2
f. Essay – 6
g. Proofread – 1
h. Edit - 5
6 STEPS
REVIEW