Revision Part 1

Revision Part 1

by Miranda Ferguson

Multiple Choice

When you use the words of someone else in quotations, that is called...

• Paraphrasing

• Plagiarizing

• Quoting

Good writers pay attention to sentence variety. They notice how sentences work together within a paragraph, and they seek a mix of different sentence lengths and types. Experienced writers have a variety of sentence patterns from which to choose. They try not to overuse one pattern.

​Why use a variety of sentences?

​Sentence variety is necessary for a number of reasons:

• Sentence variety makes your writing more interesting to read.

• Sentence variety adds style to your writing.

• Sentence variety will help develop your writing skills.

​Use a Question, a Command, or an Exclamation

• The most commonly used sentence is the declarative sentence, which is a statement.

• An occasional carefully placed question, command, or exclamation is an effective way to achieve sentence variety.

• A rhetorical question used as a topic sentence can provide a colorful change from the usual declarative sentences.​

​Vary The Beginning of Sentences

Begin with an adverb: a comma usually follows an adverb that introduces a sentence; however adverbs of time - often, now, always - do not require a comma.

As a general rule use a comma if you want the reader to pause briefly.

​Begin with a prepositional phrase - a prepositional phrase is a group of words containing a preposition and its object (a noun or pronoun) For example: In the evening

​*Khan Academy Video on Commas and Introductory Elements

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​Vary Methods of Joining Ideas

Join ideas with a compound predicate: a sentence with a compound predicate contains more than one verb, but the subject is not repeated before the second verb - such a sentence is really composed of two simple sentences with the same subject.

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Join ideas with an -ing modifier: an -ing modifier indicates that two actions are occuring at the same time.​

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​*Khan Academy Video on Relative Clauses

​*Khan Academy Video on Appositives

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​Vary Methods of Joining Ideas

​Join ideas with a past participial modifier: a sentence that contains a to be verb and a past participle can be changed into a past participle modifier.

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Join ideas with an appositive: an appositive is a word or group of words that renames or describes a noun or pronoun.

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Join ideas with a relative clause: a relative clause begins with who, which, or that and describes a noun or pronoun.

​Avoid Misplaced and Confusing Modifiers

Revise your work to avoid misplaced, confusing, or dangling modifiers.

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"Pearching on a scarecrow in the cornfield, the farmer saw a large crow."

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If taken literally, the farmer is the one perching on the scarecrow.​

Multiple Choice

Sentence Variety adds style to your writing

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Using appositives is a method of...

• Sentence Variety

• Joining Ideas

• Varying the Beginning of Sentences

Multiple Choice

Use a comma if you want your reader to pause

• True

• False

​"The secret of effective writing is revision. Do not settle for the first words that come to you, but go back over what you have written, replacing dull or confusing language with exact, concise, fresh, and sometimes figurative language."

​Exact Language: Avoiding Vagueness

​Good writers express their ideas as exactly as possible, choosing a specific, concrete, and vivid words and phrases. They do not settle for vague terms and confusing generalities.

​Concise Language: Avoiding Wordiness

​Concise writing comes quickly to the point. Concise writing avoids wordiness and unnecessary repetition.

​Fresh Language: Avoiding Triteness

​Triteness = Cliches (overused words and phrases) Freshness = original and lively words

​Figurative Language: Similes and Metaphors

​A simile is a comparison using the word like or as.

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A metaphor is a similar comparison without the word like or as.

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​*Khan Academy Video on Figurative Language

Multiple Choice

When a writer's ideas are unclear that is...

• Exact Langauge

• Vagueness

Multiple Choice

A simile compares two things using the words like or as

• True

• False