A Writing Primer

Parts of Speech Sentence Structure Writing Skills Types of Writing The Five Paragraph Essay

Parts of Speech
The main parts of speech explain the ways words can be used in different ways. Every word functions as at least one part of speech; many words can serve as two or more parts of speech, depending on how they are used.

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Basic Elements of Every Sentence

SUBJECT
Simple Sentence

PREDICATE

Mary

plays tennis-

one subject

one predicate

Simple Sentences

Tom and Mary

play tennis-

&
compound subject one predicate

Tom and Mary

&

play tennis and swim&

compound predicate

compound subject

Compound Sentence with Coordinating Conjunctions

SUBJECT and SUBJECT

PREDICATE

PREDICATE
FOR AND NOR BUT OR YET SO

Compound Sentence with Coordinating Conjunctions

Tom and Mary

swims,

plays tennis.

Compound Sentence with Conjunctive Adverbs

Tom moreover, he

is atheletic;

is successful.
MOREOVER OTHERWISE THEREFORE HOWEVER

Compound Sentence Semicolon

Tom has benefited from his exercise program; he is fast and energetic.

Complex Sentence with Subordinating Conjunctions

SUBJECT even though SUBJECT

PREDICATE

PREDICATE
EVEN THOUGH WHEN BECAUSE UNLESS WHEREAS

Complex Sentence with Subordinating Conjunctions

Tom is even though he is

overweight

athletic.

Complex Sentence Subordinating Conjunctions

Even though Tom is athletic, he is overweight.

Compound Complex Sentence

Tom is however, he is because he is

overweight;

fast and energetic

athletic.

REVIEW

Simple Sentence

My friends and I play tennis and go bowling every weekend.

Compound Sentence with Coordinating Conjunction

Men may exercise harder, but they may not exercise as regularly as women do.

Compound Sentence Conjunctive Adverb

Native and nonnative English speakers have different needs;however, some schools fail to distinguish between these groups.

Complex Sentence Subordinating Conjunction (Adverb clause)

People had continuous exercise when they had to hunt for food.

When people had to hunt for food, they had continuous exercise.

Writing Skills
After learning to read, becoming a strong writer is probably the most important skill you can develop. Like reading, the real-life applications of being a clear, effective writer are limitless. Reading is a key skill to practice before being able to write effectively. Someone from England would have a hard time playing a game of baseball without watching a few games first. Similarly, your ability to write will be improved tremendously by reading what others have to say and, more importantly how they say it.

Types of Writing
Knowing what kind of audience you are writing to, and for what purpose, is important when deciding how to begin a piece. You wouldn't use the same language to sell a car in the classifieds, tell a story about the time your car broke down in the desert, or to explain how to jumpstart a car in the winter. Thus, you need to identify which of the following kinds of writing is appropriate.

Descriptive: The idea behind descriptive writing is to bring something, someone, or someplace to life through words. You might be asked to describe the house your family lives in, to express what it's like to ride a roller coaster, or tell what life was like in America during the Civil War. The goal is to bring something to life so vividly that even a reader who has never seen or heard of the subject before will be able to picture it. Expository: This type of writing includes simple explanations, summaries, and anything that falls under the header of "How to". Instructions on how to use appliances, directions from point A to point B, invitations to a birthday party, and retellings of a sequence of events are all forms of expository writing. Clarity and brevity are key; flowery details and opinions should be omitted. You should include enough information to make the instructions or communication clear to an average person but not so much detail that the reader gets overwhelmed or bored. Narrative: Narrative writing tells a story. Stories like "What I did on my vacation" or "The most important day of my life" are narrative in nature. The task is to describe an experience you have had. This type of writing is almost always written in the first person (using "I") to show that it's a personal experience. Make sure that the story has a beginning, middle, and end; an introduction that explains what the story is about, the story itself, and a conclusion that wraps up the experience. You should use detail, adjectives, and personal thoughts to make the story come alive and make it specifically your own. Persuasive: Persuasive writing focuses on using prose to convince the reader to do something, from buying a new stove to voting for a candidate. For example, you might be asked to argue one side of a debate, such as whether or not a principal should be allowed to search students' lockers or if movie stars make too much money. A successful persuasive essay will contain evidence (such as statistics, facts, and quotes) to support the arguments, a discussion of the opposing view's side, and a well -formed conclusion.

The Five Paragraph Essay

The five-paragraph essay is the most popular way to learn how to structure a longer piece. Its structure is constant and easily assessable, so its easy to judge each essay against your prior work or the work of others. A five-paragraph essay contains an introductory paragraph, three supporting paragraphs, and a conclusion that together discuss a main point or thesis. It is a little like a sandwich, with two slices of bread keeping the meat of the sandwich together. The first and last paragraphs hold together each piece of the essay neatly within. The introduction discusses the subject generally, briefly touches on what the points will be in the next three paragraphs, and contains the thesis. If the essay's argument is, "The BLT is the best sandwich ever," the introduction might start with a broad statement about sandwiches, then talk about meat, lettuce, and tomato, and end with a statement about the BLT's superiority. It should start with the general and move to the specific. The three main paragraphs explain in detail a single idea, example, or argument that supports the main point or thesis. In the BLT essay, the second paragraph might talk about the wonders of lettuce, the third about the crispiness of bacon, and the fourth about the juicy complement of tomato. The concluding paragraph summarizes, briefly, your main point and supporting ideas. After that, it should discuss more of why this is important (i.e. because the BLT isn't served at fast food restaurants), what it means to you the author (i.e. my grandmother and I ate BLTs every Saturday for lunch), or some other larger concept related to the thesis (i.e. if everyone ate BLTs the world would be a better place). The conclusion is sort of the opposite of the introduction, in that it tends to start with the specific and become more general. The last thing to think about when writing a five-paragraph essay is the transitions between paragraphs. The final line of one paragraph should flow logically into the first sentence of the next. For example, if the second paragraph ended with, "Lettuce gives the sandwich the perfect crunch." The first line of the third paragraph might begin, "The crunchiest part, though, is the bacon." Look for relationships that can be formed between the two ideas. Good transitions can be comparisons or contrasts, using lead-ins like, "Others feel the bacon adds too much crunch" or "Although bacon is important, it's the tomato that makes the meal." This basic five-paragraph approach can be adapted to both shorter pieces and longer papers.