General Handouts – can be used for Strategies, Composition, or CJ

1. Citation Workshop – O – Rama: This is a fun exercise to get students to start thinking
about brainstorming and about how to use outside sources in their papers.
2. Shark VS. Bear :This is another activity; it works well following Workshop – O – Rama.
It is designed to help students think about what types of questions to ask themselves as
they prepare to write a paper. It also addresses organization
3. Proofreading 101: This handout gives students some easy steps they can take in order to
catch the most common mistakes when proofreading their papers.
4. What Should I Write About?: This handout walks students through the process of
picking a topic. I also address some brainstorming methods here.
5. How to Assess Source Credibility: This is to be used with the following handout, Using
the ITT Virtual Library, and focuses on explaining the differences between articles you
find in a database, using a search engine like Google, and on a wiki like Wikipedia. I
also discuss with students how to decide if a source is reliable.
6. Using the ITT Virtual Library: This is the only handout where I use an overhead
projector. I walk students through EbscoHost and ProQuest and show them how to
utilize these databases.
7. Tips for Tackling Tricky Writing Problems: This is similar to Proofreading 101, but it
is more in depth.
8. How to Avoid Plagiarism: I lay out what exactly plagiarism is and what students must
do to give credit to their sources when they write
9. Plagiarism activity: This activity is simply meant to give students a chance to practice
the skills they learned in the Plagiarism workshop
10. Make Your Paper the Best in Class: This is a very short handout about quick things
students can do to improve their papers.

These handouts are developed in such a way that I can combine them in order to create a
workshop that meets the specific needs of your students. I am also very willing to modify
any of these handouts or create new handouts if you have specific composition concerns you
would like me to address with your students.

*Note: The formatting of each of these handouts has been changed for presentation
purposes. Handouts that I use in workshops usually have graphics and more spacing. I
have condensed the material here.
Citation Workshop – O – Rama

1. How to survive an alien invasion

2. How to dance and still look cool
3. How to start (and win) a food fight

Our Mission: as a class, we are going to brainstorm about topic number _____. We are also
going to incorporate two outside sources and cite them using APA style formatting. Sources are
listed on the back of this paper.

Your Mission: as a group, brainstorm some answers to the following questions.

What resources (tools, materials, contacts, plans, etc.) would you need?

What steps (in order) would you need to take to put this plan into action?

What would be the benefit of learning this skill?

What precautions would you suggest to limit the risks of this plan?

Outside Sources:
1. How to survive an alien invasion
• Bill Pullman, Blasted on the 4th of July: My encounter with Aliens copyright
1997, published in New York by Classified Books Inc.
“If you plan to infect their defense shields with a virus, make sure to practice your
maneuvers and flight plan in advance with a handy dandy crop-dusting plane.” From
page 67 of book
• Area51.gov website, webpage “How to get out alive” written by American
Survivors of Alien Visitations, last updated on 12/15/2003; information retrieved
on 1/10/2009, web address www.area51.gov/getoutalive
“Aliens are actually very kind and sensible individuals, except for the fact that they want
to take over the world, suck the brains out of humans, and decimate the ecosystem.”

2. How to dance and still look cool

• Kevin Federline, PoPo Wow!: Dancin’ with K-Fed copyright 2004, published
in Atlanta by Spears Publishing
“Nothing adds to your image as a dancer better than the undershirt you wore
yesterday.” From page 10 of book
• Travolta.com website, webpage “What every dancer should know” written
by John Travolta, last updated on 02/13/1997; information retrieved on
1/10/2009, web address www.travolta.com/whattoknow
“Although there are many ways to improve your dancer image, the real foundation of
any good dancer is a good polyester suit.”

3. How to start (and win) a food fight

• Jenny Craig, The People’s Cheesecake: baked goods as weapons copyright
2001, published in Denver by Krusty Publishing Inc.
 “You gotta consider the velocity of your cheesecake when launching it into the air.
Toppings like cherries or chocolate may be attractive, but can cause wind resistance.”
From page 110 of book
• Milkmoneybully.com, webpage “Making the most of a food fight” written by
Food Fighters Anonymous, updated on 1/4/2008; information retrieved on
1/10/2009, web address www.milkmoneybully.com/foodfight101
“Studies have shown that dumping an entire lunch tray is 15% more effective than
throwing any single item from said tray.”

Activity: Using the sources for topic number _____, choose where each source would best fit
into your paper. Why is this the best place for the source? Which examples from the “Quick
Reference Guide” handout would you use to figure out how to do an in-text and a reference list
citation for each of these sources?

After we have looked at the “Quick Reference Guide” handout, attempt to create an in-text and
a reference list citation for each of these sources. You can use the space on the back of the
“What should I write about” handout to do this.

APA style citations for the sources used in the APA workshop

1. How to survive an alien invasion:

Pullman, B. (1997). Blasted on the 4th of July: My encounter with Aliens. New York:
Classified Books Inc.
In-text: (Pullman, 1997, p.67).

American Survivors of Alien Visitations. (2003). Area51.gov. How to get out alive.
Retrieved January 10, 2009 from www.area51.gov/getoutalive.
In-text: (www.area51.gov/getoutalive).

**Notice that when you have an organization taking credit for a website, they are listed first in
the citation. If an individual was named as author, they would be listed first. If no one takes
credit, list the name of the website first.

2. How to dance and still look cool:

Federline, K. (2004). PoPo Wow!: Dancin’ with K-Fed. Atlanta: Spears Publishing.
In-text: (Fererline, 2004, p. 10).

Travolta, J. (1997). Travolta.com. What every dancer should know. Retrieved January
10, 2009 from www.travolta.com/whattoknow.
In-text: (www.travolta.com/whattoknow).

3. How to start (and win) a food fight

Craig, J. (2001). The People’s Cheesecake: baked goods as weapons. Denver: Krusty
Publishing Inc.
In-text: (Craig, 2001, p. 110).
Food Fighters Anonymous. (2008). Milkmoneybully.com. Making the most of a food
fight. Retrieved January 10, 2009 from www.milkmoneybully.com/foodfight101.
In-text: (www.milkmoneybully.com).

Entries should be in alphabetical order. Examples are not in alphabetical order.

In-text citations should not be italicized; they are here simply to make them easily
distinguishable from reference list citations.

Some APA style guides tell you to use author in in-text citation for a website, this is not
wrong – either is acceptable.

Shark vs. Bear

Who would win in a fight between a shark and a bear?

Your Mission: In a group of four or five, list four questions (in order) that you would need
to answer in order to figure out which animal would win the fight.

(*Hint: Look at the previous activity to get an idea of what types of questions to ask. You
want to ask questions that will take you a couple of sentences to answer – NO YES/NO
QUESTOINS.)

1.
2.
3.
4.
 Proofreading 101:
Some tricks to catching (and correcting) some of the most common types of errors.

Catching common grammar problems:

1. Double check Microsoft Word’s corrections. Make sure that Word plugs in the correct
term when you use the “check spelling” feature. Also make sure that if you use the
“check grammar” feature, Word does not rework your sentence in such a way that it no
longer says what you want it to say.
2. Check for tense agreement. It is very easy to switch between tenses as you write.
Make sure that all of your verb tenses agree. If you are writing about something that has
already happened, you want to write in past tense. (Yesterday I went to the grocery store;
Susan came with me.) If you are writing about something that is happening right now,
use present tense. (I am sitting in class and taking notes.) If you are writing about
something that will happen in the future, use future tense. (Tomorrow I will go hiking
and I will bring my dog with me.)
3. Look up words when you are not sure if you are using a term correctly. If you are
typing your paper in Microsoft Word, you can use the dictionary function to make sure
you are using the correct term. This is especially helpful when dealing with homonyms.
(Homonyms are words that sound alike but have different meanings. Cents and sense are
homonyms, so are accept and except.)
4. Look for sentence fragments and run -on sentences. A sentence should be a complete
thought, with a subject (someone doing an action) and a verb (the action being done). If
you are not sure if your sentence is complete, think about what would happen if you
walked into a room and said the sentence. Would people have to ask you who you are
talking about or what the subject of your sentence did? If they would have to ask, your
sentence probably isn’t complete. If you are not sure if your sentence is a run-on, look
for any place where you could stop in the sentence and still have your idea make sense.
5. Read your paper out loud to yourself. If you read your paper out loud, you are more
likely to catch typos than if you read it silently to yourself. This is because we have a
tendency to auto-correct mistakes when we read silently.

Catching common content problems:

1. Read back over your assignment. It is easy to forget exactly what you are supposed to
cover in a paper if you don’t revisit the assignment throughout your writing process.
2. Group like ideas together in your paper. Generally speaking, each paragraph should
cover one idea. Paragraphs should also flow in a logical order with similar ideas being
covered in subsequent paragraphs. Performing a reverse outline is an excellent way to
make sure that similar ideas are grouped together. See reverse side of this paper for info.
about reverse outlines.
3. Look for places where you can better explain your ideas. Sometimes it helps to
assume that you are writing a paper for someone who knows absolutely nothing about
your topic. Read through your paper and look for places where your reader might have
questions about your topic. These are places where you can probably expand your ideas.
(Think how, what, why, when, who, where)
 What should I write about?

Here are some techniques to try if you can’t figure out what to write about.

If you have absolutely no idea what to write about, think about topics that might pertain to
one of the below listed areas of your life:
1. work
2. school (your major)
3. hobbies
4. things you don’t know much about
5. current hot topics in the media
6. things that bug you or practices you don’t agree with

HINT: If you are writing a research paper, try to pick a topic you don’t already know much
about. It may seem counter-intuitive, but if you choose a topic you are not very familiar with,
you will find it easier to research and to write about it because the information will be new to you.
If you choose a topic you already know a great deal about, it is easy to get bored.

Once you’ve narrowed your topic choices down, brainstorm.

There are several different ways to brainstorm.
1. Make a list. Include both information you already know about your topic and questions
you have about your topic.
Example: TOPIC: Drug testing on animals
- is controversial
- may help to eliminate harmful effects of product on humans
- may cause harm to animals
- How are animals cared for when they are test subjects?
- How do scientists choose which types of animals to test on?
2. Write out everything you are thinking in stream of consciousness
Example: TOPIC: Drug testing on animals
There are many animal activist groups that speak out against drug testing
on animals but scientists still do it – info against is very emotion driven
and seems like testing is often cruel – is this always the case – what
about products that aren’t tested on animals, how do producers know
they are safe for humans – is there some good alternative to testing on
animals?
3. Make a concept map. (This is sometimes called clustering.)
*See reverse side of this handout for an example of a concept map.

HINT: The key to productive brainstorming is to write down absolutely everything you think of
that has anything at all to do with your topic. No idea is a bad idea. No question is stupid. Don’t
edit yourself at all during this step. Everything should land on paper.

Sometimes it helps to do some preliminary research.

This is research you do before you begin writing your paper. Google some things you are
interested in and see what other people have written about them. What types of questions are
others asking about your topic? At this point in the process, it can be very helpful to look at blogs
and wikis; these sources are great places to start when you begin thinking about a topic, though
they are not usually credible sources you can use in your final paper.

Above is an example of clustering or concept mapping about the topic of drug testing on animals.

After you’ve decided what to write about, try writing a low stakes draft.
Simply start writing. Don’t worry about grammar, spelling, or organization – just get all of your
ideas out on paper. This will accomplish two things for you. First, it will help you conquer the
blank page. Second, it will allow you to get all of your ideas out before you forget anything.
This is a draft that only you will see so you don’t care if it looks very chaotic. All you care about
is getting your ideas on paper. If you are writing a research paper, this step will probably come
after you’ve done your research. If you are writing a personal paper, you would do this step after
you’ve done your brainstorming.
 How to Assess Source Credibility

1. Where did you find this source? (Did you find it using a database or a search
engine? Is it posted on a wiki, a blog, or a forum?)
Using a database, like EbscoHost or ProQuest, is the best way to find a credible source
because these databases weed out articles that are not very reliable. Search engines, like
Google and Yahoo, do not distinguish between academic and personal source; they only
look for key words or phrases. In general, wikis, blogs, and forums are unreliable
because absolutely anyone can post anything on these sites. This is why Wikipedia is not
considered a reliable source by many instructors.

2. Who wrote it? What are the author’s credentials?

Usually, it is a bad sign if you cannot find a person or an organization willing to take
credit for an article or website. Once you find an author or an organization responsible
for the content of your source, look for what credentials they have. Does their career
field or area of expertise line up with the information they are presenting? For example,
if you are looking up information on what to do if your dog won’t eat his dog food, are
you more likely to trust the article written by a veterinarian or the one written by a
fashion designer?

3. When was the article written or page last updated?

Depending on the subject, when the article was written can be very important. If you are
researching the history of prison systems in the U.S., it doesn’t matter if the article is a
couple of years old because the information hasn’t changed. If, however, you are writing
about recent advances in chemical warfare, it is important that you find an article that
was written recently so that your information will be up to date.

4. Can you identify a bias? Are both (all) sides of an issue represented?
Look for favoritism within the article or on the website. If the article is about a
controversial issue, are several different takes on the issue represented? If the website
posits a solution to a problem, is it the only viable solution? For instance, of you look up
information on the death penalty, you will certainly find many articles and sites that are
biased either for or against the death penalty. Opinion pieces are always biased.

Sometimes bias is not as easy to identify. To revisit the example about the dog that will
not eat his dog food, you will probably find many sources that will give you lots of
different possible solutions to your problem. It is very likely that you will find several
sites that tell you to buy some type of medicine or a specialty dog food in order to get
your pet to eat. Often, these sites will be sponsored by a company that sells the product
they posit as the solution to your problem. These sites are biased because they only
present the possible solutions that will benefit them.

It is not necessarily bad to use a source that is biased. Sometimes you will want a source
that supports or opposes a certain opinion. You must always use biased information
responsibly. If your source is biased, you need to acknowledge this in your paper.
Using the ITT Virtual Library

1. In order to access the EbscoHost, ProQuest, and Criminology databases, click on the
____________________ link on the sidebar of the ITT Virtual Library main page.
2. The Boolean search terms we use in these databases are _______, _______, _______.
Boolean search terms establish the link between words. You can use them to narrow or to
broaden your search parameters.
3. If you are using the EbscoHost database and you want to only retrieve complete articles,
you need to go to the “limit your results” section of the search page and click the
___________________ box.
4. Once you’ve located an article that you might be interested in using as a source, read the
_______________, or short summary, in order to decide whether or not the article is what
you are looking for.
5. If you choose to use this article, you can click on the citation icon at the top of the page.
Once you do this, you will be given several citation formatting options. You want to use
________ style formatting.

Here are some tips to help you tackle some of the trickier aspects of the writing process:

Complete sentences: Every sentence should have a subject and a verb. That means that every
sentence needs to have someone or something doing an action and an action. If you are missing
either of these, you do not have a complete sentence. You should always be able to identify who
did the action and what they did. For example, the phrase “Spent the week at the beach” is a
fragment because the reader doesn’t know who spent the week at the beach. The second thing to
consider when deciding if you have a complete sentence is figuring out whether or not you
have a complete thought. The phrase “Because Mario got home late” is not a complete sentence
because it is not a complete thought. The reader doesn’t know what happened because Mario got
home late. “Because Mario got home late, he missed dinner” is a complete sentence because now
we know what happened to Mario as a consequence of his late arrival.

Punctuation: When trying to figure out where to put punctuation, it helps to think of where you
naturally pause when you read. If you read a sentence out loud, listen carefully to where you take
a breath as you read. Most likely, this is where you want some type of punctuation. Once you’ve
identified where you pause, look back over your sentence. Did you pause at a place where you
have just completed a thought? Do you have both a subject and a verb? If so, you want some
kind of end punctuation here – like a period. If, however, you pause in a place where you have
not just completed a thought, you probably want a comma. Commas also go around phrases that
can be taken out of a sentence without changing the meaning of the sentence. Ex. – Jan, my best
friend since kindergarten, is moving in the fall. There are commas on either side of the phrase
“my best friend since kindergarten” because it could be taken out of the sentence without
affecting the meaning of the sentence. Some transition words, such as “however”, “finally”,
“also”, “in conclusion”, are almost always followed by a comma.

Organizing your ideas and staying on topic: The most helpful technique for organizing your
ideas and checking to see whether or not you’ve strayed from your topic is to perform a reverse
outline on your paper. Step one: identify the main point or focus of your paper and write this at
the top of your page. Step two: identify the main point of each paragraph you’ve included in
your paper. If you have more than one main point, you might need to break this paragraph up.
After you’ve done this, check to see if you group similar ideas together in you paper. If not, you
might want to move one of these paragraphs so that paragraphs about similar ideas are together.
Step three: go back through your paper and identify why you’ve included each paragraph. If you
find a paragraph that accomplishes nothing for your paper, you either need to rewrite it so that it
fits in better with your main idea, or you need to kick it out of your paper.

Paragraph transitions: The key to writing a paper where ideas flow nicely together is creating
strong transitions between paragraphs. This can be tricky and takes some practice. One helpful
way to think about paragraph transitions is to think of building a bridge between paragraphs. You
want the opening sentence of each paragraph to spring from your last paragraph. How can you
connect ideas between paragraphs? There are several ways to do this. One way is to include a
key word from your previous paragraph in the first sentence of your new paragraph. Another way
to connect ideas is by using transitional words, such as “However”, “On the other hand”,
“likewise”. You want to avoid ending paragraphs with new ideas. The last sentence in a
paragraph should not introduce something completely new, but should rather tie up what you’ve
said in that paragraph.

Using spell check and grammar check responsibly: Spell check and grammar check can be
great resources for any writer when they are used responsibly. Whenever Word tells you there is
a problem in your essay, you need to look at the suggestions offered to you for correction. Many
times, you will find a correction suggestion that will improve your paper. Sometimes, however,
Word does not understand what you are trying to say and gives you a suggestion that is not
helpful. The best way to get the most out of spell check and grammar check is to carefully read
through the correction suggestions offered to you and decide if they clarify your ideas or if they
do not. Watch out for wrong words that spell check may accidentally plug in to your paper.
Always look up a word if you are not sure whether or not it fits with what you are trying to say.
If you read your paper out loud to yourself after you’ve used spell check and grammar check, you
are much more likely to catch errors and typos.

Pronoun use: When using pronouns (he, she, it, they, you, I, we) make sure that it is very clear to
your reader what the pronoun is referring to. For example, if you write a paper about growing up
with your three brothers, using the pronoun “he” too often in your paper could lead to confusion
because your reader might not be completely sure which “he” you are referring to. Make sure
that the connection between every pronoun, and the person or thing it refers to, is very obvious.
Use names frequently if you are talking about several different people. Whenever you use a
pronoun, make sure that you’ve named the person or thing it refers to within the last couple of
sentences.

Homonyms (words that sound alike but mean something different):

Your – ownership – it belongs to you (wash your hands)

You’re – you are (you’re early)

Are – verb that means a state of being (you are happy!)

Our – ownership – it belongs to us (that is our house)

To – express motion (go to the store)

Too - higher degree (too much); in addition (she is coming too); moreover/also (she is strong too)
Two – number 2

Effect – change that is a result of something; a consequence (We are all worried about the effects
of global warming)
Affect – to have an effect on. Hint – if you could substitute the phrase “have an effect on” and
not change the meaning of your sentence, you want to use the word “affect” – (The storm affected
the outcome of the ballgame.); attack or infected by illness (They are affected by the flu.) A way
to reword this last sentence would be to say that, “the flu has an effect of them” – thus, they are
affected by it.

Than – comparing - (He is a better student than his brother was.)

Then - dealing with time (Back then, we had to wash all of our clothes by hand); dealing with
consequence (If you don’t wash your hands, then I won’t give you dinner.)

There – distance – (the ball is over there)

Their – belonging to them (it is their ball)
They’re – they are (They’re coming later)
 How to avoid PLAGIARISM

Plagiarism happens whenever a writer uses thoughts or words that are not his/her own and then
fails to give credit to the originator of the thought or words. In effect, plagiarism is stealing
because you are taking someone else’s work and not giving them any credit for it. It is very
important that you understand that almost all colleges and universities have severe punishments
in place for students who are caught plagiarizing. Ask your instructor about his/her plagiarism
policy.

Plagiarism can be very serious but luckily it is easy to avoid. GIVE CREDIT TO YOUR
SOURCE WHENEVER YOU USE SOMEONE ELSE’S IDEAS OR WORDS. You will use
citations in order to do this. At ITT, most instructors require their students to use APA (or
American Psychological Association) formatting for citations.

The first step to avoiding plagiarism is identifying when you need to cite a source. Remember
that EVERY TIME you use information that you had to get from someone or somewhere else,
you need to cite that person or source. There are two main ways to include information from a
source, and you need to cite whenever you use any of these two ways.

DIRECT QUOTE: A direct quote is when you use someone else’s exact words. Direct quotes
should be contained within quotation marks. Quotation marks are signals to your reader that what
you are saying came from somewhere else. You always need to cite when you include a direct
quote in your paper.

SUMMARY: A summary is a shortened account of information you found in a source. It is

someone else’s ideas recounted in your own words. You do not need quotation marks for a
summary. It is important that if you summarize a source, you use your own words in the
summary. If you use exact phrases or sentences from the source, you are using a direct quote.
You always need to cite when you include a summary in your paper. Your citation should come
at the end of your summary.

Now that you know when you need to give credit to a source, it’s time to look at how to give
credit to a source. Writers use citations in order to let readers know where they found information
they are including in a paper. Most likely, you will use APA style citations while at ITT.

There are two types of citations and you will need to use both of them each time you include
information from a source in your paper.

IN-TEXT CITATIONS: These citations come right after your direct quote, summary, or
paraphrase. You will include the last name of your source’s author, the date that your source was
published, and the page number(s) where you found the information you are including. Below is
an example of a direct quote followed by an in- text citation:

“Lollipop connoisseurs seem to prefer cherry flavored Dum-Dums instead of their root beer
flavored counterparts” (Smith, 2001, p. 35).

You need to include an in-text citation every time you include a direct quote, a summary, or a
paraphrase.
REFERENCE LIST CITATIONS: These citations come at the end of your paper. You will list
each reference list citation in alphabetical order on your reference list page. You will include
the last name of your source’s author, followed by a comma, their first initial, and then a period.
Next, you’ll include the year of publication in parentheses, followed by another period. Finally,
you will list the title of the source, a period, the state or city of publication, colon, and the name
of the publishing house. Below is an example of a reference list citation for the source we used
above:

Smith, J. (2001). America’s Love Affair with Sugar: an in-depth look at why we crave
candy. Los Angeles: I Love Candy Inc.

Here are some things to keep in mind when you create a reference list:

1. All of the sources you use need to be included on the list.

2. Your sources need to be in alphabetical order. Don’t worry about
grouping sources by type (magazine article, website, book) only worry
about putting them in alphabetical order according to the author’s last
name.
3. You only need to list each source once. Even if you quote a source ten
times in your paper, it should only appear once on your reference list.
4. Notice that the second line of the above citation is indented. This is
called a hanging indent. Each line after the first in every reference list
citation should be indented. To do this, type out your citation and then
place your cursor at the beginning of your second line. Hit enter and
then hit tab. Do this for each line after your first.

Can you find the plagiarized information in this paper about plagiarism???

My teacher told our class to research the term plagiarism and see what we can learn about
it. I looked at a couple of different websites and finally found one that looked like it could be
helpful to me. On the website that I decided to use, it says that There are some actions that can
almost unquestionably be labeled plagiarism. Some of these include buying, stealing, or
borrowing a paper… The website goes on to mention several types of sources that must always be
cited when used in a paper. You have to cite things like words taken directly from sources like
magazines and books. You also have to cite diagrams, charts, and images when you copy them
from another source.
After researching plagiarism, I feel much better about what I need to do in order to give
credit to authors when I use their ideas in my own papers. I can see why it is important to let my
reader know where I get my information. After all, if I don’t cite my sources, how will my reader
know that I actually did the research and know what I’m talking about?
 1. What information should this writer have included in order to avoid plagiarizing?

2. Find the direct quote and add quotation marks.

3. Find the summary and circle it.

4. Where do you think this writer should have included in-text citations? Mark these places
in the text.

5. Using your quick reference guide to citations, what do you think an in-text citation for
this website should look like?

6. Using your reference guide again, what do you think a reference list citation for this
website should look like?

7. Write out any questions you have about plagiarism or citing your sources.

Practice with transitions

When you use outside sources in your writing, it is important that you transition in and out of the
source you use. Phrases like “according to,” “_______ says,” or “In the article entitled _____, the
author _____ notes that,” are all good ways to transition into a quote or summary. It is a good
idea to follow quotes and summaries with your own words about the idea you just included. Try
restating a quote or including your own reaction to a summary.

Working with your group, write out a paragraph that uses either a direct quote or a summary from
the OWL website. As you do this, pay close attention to how you transition in and out of your
quote or your summary. Make sure you cite your source.
 Here are some simple things you can do to make your paper the best in class!

Catching common problems:

6. Double check Microsoft Word’s corrections.
a. Read your paper out loud to yourself to catch typos.
7. Check for verb tense agreement.
• past tense (Yesterday I went to the grocery store; Susan came with me.)
• present tense (I am sitting in class and taking notes.)
• future tense (Tomorrow I will go hiking and I will bring my dog with me.)
8. Look up words when you are not sure if you are using them correctly.
• Watch out for homonyms - words that sound alike but have different meanings.
Cents and sense are homonyms, so are accept and except.
9. Look for sentence fragments and run -on sentences.
• A fragment is an incomplete thought. (I can’t go with you because.)
• A run-on is two or more complete thoughts put together with no connector
words. (I really like daisies I also like lilies.)
10. Look for places where you can better explain your ideas.
• What types of questions might your reader ask? Think who, what, when, where,
why, and how.