The Writing Process

Essays and the Writing Process

Hybrid Course Reminders

This is a hybrid course. We meet on Wednesdays 3:30-4:50 and you complete the other lesson online by Tuesdays at 8PM.

1. Take note of due dates in the course schedule.

2. Plan to be ready to participate on Wednesdays at 3:30. This is not a lecture course! When we meet, you’ll be working in small groups, completing assignments, peer reviews, discussions, etc..

​College Composition Reminders

​This class is a writing course, designed to help you participate in academic conversations in college and the workplace.

We’ll read and respond to the ideas of others, working in stages to:

1. Learn to summarize others accurately and fairly before we respond (Paper 1)

2. Respond to others (Paper 2)

3. Create an argument using sources (Paper 3)

All quizzes, discussions, and other activities in the class help you build the skills to complete the papers, and the papers will be completed in stages with revisions.

Poll

I have waited until the night before a paper is due to start writing it.

• Always

• Often

• Sometimes

• Never

Open Ended

What are some consequences of completing work at the last minute?

​The Writing Process

Thesis Statement

The thesis statement will be in your introduction. It’s usually best placed as the last sentence in the introduction.

It should be:

• Clearly worded

• Strong

• Specific

• Not too broad but not too narrow

• Not a list of ideas

​Papers

​We’ll be writing college-level essays in this course. We’ll get into some specifics with each assignment but overall:

Essay: a piece of factual writing in which ideas on a single topic are presented, explained, argued, or described in an interesting way.

An essay will have:

• An introductory paragraph with a thesis (introduction)

• Body paragraphs (number depends on topic)

• Conclusion

Multiple Select

The papers in this class will be...

• essays

• written in steps

• ten pages long

• Based on readings

Introduction

The introduction is the opening paragraph. 

It should:

• Inform your audience about the topic

• Provide your thesis statement (best as last sentence in introduction for now)

• Be engaging and make a good first impression

Body Paragraphs

Body paragraphs (sometimes just called the body) are the paragraphs between the introduction and conclusion that develop your thesis.

Each body paragraph should:

• Have a clear main idea developing the thesis

• Have a topic sentence

• Connect to the thesis 

• Have a combination of your own ideas and evidence and evidence from sources