domingo, 15 de noviembre de 2015

Argumentative text

What is it?


You should differenciate between opinion and argument







Before you start, you must organize your ideas.





Title



Introductions and conclusions


Link



  • A good introduction should 
    • make the topic interesting
    • have enough background information to open the topic
    • Content a clear, strong thesis statement.

Thesis statemement in 3 steps

1.       Make the topic specific
2.       Continue with a database phrase
3.       Explaining the significance to the audience
Exactly who?
Does….
Does not…
Should
Should not
Highlights
ignores
Providing that…
When?
Resulting in…
How many?
Making us doubt…
Which ones?
Reminding us that…
Where?






  • A conclusion should 
    • sum up
    • Or make a recomendation
    • Or conclude the topic somehow
    • But it shouldn't have new information

Worksheet1
Worksheet 1 answer 


Worksheet 2
Worksheet 2 answer

Model thesis statements for compare and contrast essays 


1. There are ___________ similarities (differences) between ______________ and __________.

There are three major differences between lap top computers and desktop computers. There are a number of similarities between Canadians and Americans. 

2. ____________ and _____________ are similar (different) in _________ ways. 

Korea and Japan are similar in many ways. Fruits and vegetables are different in three important ways. 

 3. _______________ and ___________ have ____________ in common. 

Christianity and Islam have many things in common. 
Magazines and newspapers have several things in common. 

4. ____________ is different from (is similar to) ________ in ___________. 

American football is similar to rugby in several ways. 
Cable TV is different from public access TV in a number of ways. 

5. A comparison between ___________ and __________ ________ _____ similarities (differences).

 A comparison between hotels and motels reveals many similarities. 
 A comparison between dolphins and porpoises shows several surprising differences. 


Compare and Contrast Essay Guidelines Point-by-point method 


Introductory paragraph 

1. Does the paragraph include background information about the topic being discussed? 
2. Does the paragraph explain the reason for making the comparison and/or contrast? 
3. Does the paragraph contain interesting facts, statements, or anecdotes that grab the reader’s attention? 
4. Does the flow of sentences move from the general to the more specific? 
5. Does the thesis statement identify the items or situations things being compared and/or contrasted?



Supporting paragraphs  

1. Is the first facet in the thesis statement of the items being compared and/or contrasted identified in the first paragraph(s)? 
2. Is the second facet in the thesis statement of the items being compared and/or contrasted discussed in the next paragraph(s)? 
3. Does each paragraph clearly state that a comparison and/or contrast is being made? 
4. Do all paragraphs relate to and support the thesis statement?


5. Does the topic sentence of each paragraph have a controlling idea? 
6. Is unity achieved by having all the sentences in the paragraphs relevant to the topic?

7. Is there a logical concluding sentence for each paragraph? 
8. Are appropriate transition signals used to indicate comparisons and/or contrasts?



Concluding paragraph 

1. Does the paragraph summarize the reason for making the comparison and/or contrast? 
2. Does the paragraph summarize the main points in the comparison and/or contrast? 
3. Does the paragraph restate the thesis statement? 
4. Does the paragraph contain any final thoughts of the writer? 
5. Does the paragraph effectively indicate the end of the essay?

A Concluding paragraph must
  1. Answer any question set in the title (if it is a pros and cons essay, you will need to say which argument is stronger).
  2. Link back to introduction
  3. Summarise the main points.
  4. Give a sense of an ending.

Giving examples

Language

We
show
exemplify
illustrate
this
....
by
...

For example,
For instance,
...

A key experiment
shows
exemplifies
illustrates
this.
...

This is shown by the following examples,
The following are examples of this:
The following is a case in point:
...

 ...
is a case in point.

...
institutions
such as
the family
...


Counterclaim Starters



Ending



Language

In short,
In a word,
In brief,
To sum up,
To conclude,
To summarise
In conclusion,
On the whole,
Altogether,
In all,
...

It is
generally
widely
accepted
argued
held
believed
that .

Therefore,
Thus,
On this basis,
Given this,
it
can
may
be
concluded
deduced
inferred
that .

From
Table 1
it
can
may
be
seen
concluded
shown
estimated
calculated
inferred
that .
the
table
figures
data
results
information

In conclusion,
Finally
we/may say
it can/may be said
that .


Talking about your experiences


Activity
Presentation and speaking
Current affairs related topics

Proofread




Taken from: 

Prezzi presentation

Persuasion map

Guided Writing

Online exercises
Fill in the gaps
Fill in the gaps 2

For and Agaist 



PDF with explanation and exercises

Vocabulary

Presenting an argument

  • Y argues that…
  • Y suggests that…
  • Y contends that….
  • Y makes a case that …
  • X develops the argument further by suggesting that …
  • X maintains that …
  • X claims that…
  • X asserts that…
  • In contrast, Y states that
  • According to X..



Putting forward your own opinion using the passive voice

  • The evidence suggests that …
  • It will be argued ….
  • The paper argues …
  • The findings indicate ….
  • These findings suggest ….
  • This seems to imply….
  • One view is that….
  • It is generally accepted that …
  • It is widely agreed that …
  • Most people appear …
  • It is probable that…


Providing a counter argument

  • Despite claims that…
  • Some would argue that … but
  • It has been argued that …., however ….
  • However,
  • While a lot of evidence points to this conclusion … there is another aspect to be considered …
  • On the contrary….
  • On the other hand …
  • Some assert that … but this underestimated the influence of ….

Emotive language


Link 1 with exercises



miércoles, 30 de septiembre de 2015

HOOKS



Sample Essay Hooks

Type of Hook
Examples
Quotation
- General Patton once said, “If a man does his best, what else is there?”
- When Hillary Clinton said “we must stop thinking of the individual and start thinking about what is best for society,” she highlighted one of the biggest issues in American politics.
Anecdote
- There was nothing more isolating than being alone in a foreign country, with no cell phone, no money, and no ability to speak the language.
- It was Christmas of 1995 when my parents taught me a valuable lesson: always expect the unexpected.
Rhetorical question
- Have you ever wondered what you would do if you couldn’t fail?
- What’s the one thing you can do to make the world a better place?
Interesting fact
- China is going to spend $850 billion to clean up its water supply over the next decade.
- Ancient Egyptians used heavy eye makeup to keep evil spirits at bay and to protect their eyes from infection.
Simile or metaphor
- When I first went to Japan, it was like a baby bird trying to fly for the first time.
- The high rate of poverty in America is the country’s elephant in the room.



http://www.wikihow.com/Sample/Essay-Hooks


domingo, 2 de agosto de 2015

jueves, 30 de julio de 2015

Narrative Text

What is it?


Watch this video

1. Decide on your plot

1.1 The Seven Basic Plots


a) Anticipation Stage
b) Dream Stage
c) Frustration Stage
d) Nightmare Stage
e) The thrilling escape from death and the death of the monster

1.1.2 

1.1.1. Tragedy

a) Temptation  
b) Gratification
c) Problems begin
d) Nigtmare Problems
e) Disaster


2. Write a first draft



3. Choose a beginnig

The first sentence is part of what is commonly known as the hook — the few statements, questions, and/or phrases that begin a writing piece that provoke your audience to keep reading.


Techniques

  • Make the reader the subject of the writing
  • Create a shocking moment that works with your story or goal
  • Succinctly establish a vivid setting
  • Make a paradoxical statement or observation
  • Go from an ordinary moment to an unusual one very quickly
  • Make a statement that a person would not usually say
  • Be bold enough to make a statement that may elicit a judgmental response
  • Don’t put up a front and share your “flaw” (or a character’s flaw, if fictional)

http://verilymerrilymary.com/2016/04/how-to-write-a-captivating-opening-sentence.html


Openings

The Action Opening: Start the novel with the hero in some sort of physical or emotional jeopardy
The Flashback Opening: Start with a moment of high drama from somewhere later in the novel and then flashback to the events leading up to it.
The First Day on the Job Opening: A good way to introduce the world to the reader is to discover it through the eyes of the hero. They may, as the title suggests, be starting a new job, or they may have just arrived in town.
The Everyday Hero Opening: Your protagonist is going about their everyday life and some event sends them spiraling off into another direction.
Outside Action: The outside action event could be a robbery, or a murder, or any problem that doesn’t involve the hero.

Writing Tip 26: Inciting Incident.

THE THINGS THAT CREATE STORY ATMOSPHERE
  • Mood of the characters
  • Emotions that characters are feeling. Are they happy, sad, scared, worried? How do they show this in their speech and body language?
  • Actions of characters – how do they respond to the situation?
  • Time of day – lighting, temperature etc.
  • Setting detail about the location of the scene – where and when – sounds and colours
  • Situation the characters find themselves in
  • Who is in the scene? Which characters, and what is their place in the story? Are the antagonist and protagonist in the scene? Is the hero under threat? How big is this threat? How much is at stake?
  • Pauses/beats between action
  • Imagery
  • language
  • rhythm
http://deescribewriting.wordpress.com/2011/10/25/story-atmosphere-tuesday-writing-tip/

Use this link

Theory for setting

Renowned American creative writing teacher, the late John Gardner developed this exercise for his students:
 A middle-age man is waiting at a bus stop. He has just learned that his son has died violently. Describe the setting from the man’s point of view without telling your reader what has happened.
 How will the street look to this man? What are the sounds? Odors? Colors? That this man will notice? What will his clothes feel like?

Create more conflict




In general, to introduce and increase conflict

  • give characters opposing goals
  • give characters the same goals but different methods of achieving those goals
  • make one character a go-getter who acts before thinking and one a planner who thinks before acting
  • give characters vastly different backgrounds or outlooks based on upbringing so that what is important to one may mean nothing to the other
  • make characters face their fears
  • make characters rely on weaknesses rather than strengths
  • don’t resolve conflict too soon
  • deny a character what he wants and then deny him again and then deny someone else what he wants
  • give a character something worth fighting for
  • give readers conflict that satisfies by making your choice of conflict type fit character personalities, yet also surprise readers (and characters) with conflict they didn’t expect
  • put obstacles in a character’s path—make him stop to deal with problems on his way to his main goal
  • frustrate characters by making it hard to reach goals or distract them with necessary obligations that slow down their march toward their goals
  • introduce uncertainty—is a friend really a friend? will the next action lead to the one that will bring about the desired goal, or is a character on the wrong track?
  • stir a character’s emotions—make him care and then threaten what he cares about
  • pile on conflict so your protagonist feels isolated and under attack from both friends and enemies, and from even himself





Embarrass your characters


Confrontation

This is where the hero and antagonist battle.

More interesting confrontations come from a villain who is justified in what he does.

Unanticipation

Pause after every scene and ask yourself: “What would a reader expect to happen next?” Create a list of at least three directions the story might take.
Then discard those three and do something different. 
Raymond Chandler advice: When things slow down, bring in a man with a gun
1.   A woman runs in screaming.
2.   The lights go out.
3.   A car crashes through the wall.
4.   Heart attack.
5.   SWAT team outside.
6.   Marching band outside.
7.   TV announcer mentions character’s name.
8.   A baby cries (what baby?).
9.   Blood drips down the wall.
10.  Justin Bieber comes in with a gun.

Ending




Write about motivation.

Use physical symptoms the character might experience



Use subtext to suggest emotions just under the surface 
“Why of course you can stay,” she said, ripping her napkin into small pieces.
Be specific
  • why he was happy, or 
  • how happy he is.
  • how would I know he’s happy? 
  • what is he doing? 
  • what’s the expression in his face? 
Use the setting
Use internal dialogue

Narrative tenses


Link 1
Link 2
Link 3
Link 4
Link 5
Link 6
Link 7
Link 8
Link 9 
Link 10
Link 11 
Link 12 
Link 13 
Link 14 
Link 15 
Simple Past
Past simple and Past Perfect
Past simple Past Perfect and Past Continuous
Future of the past
Future of the past 2




 

TIME EXPRESSIONS

Link 1
Link 2
Time Linkers in this blog

LINKING VERBS

Linking verbs link the subject to a describing word.

LOOK, SEEM AND APPEAR

Look
Seem
Appear

+ Adjective

You look happy today.

 
Look/ seem
Like
+ noun
as if
+ clause  (very formal)

It looks like rain.
She looks as if she’s seen a ghost.
It seems as if the thunder’s finished now.
It seems like the sumer’s over already.



Seem / appear


+ infinitive


If

That-clause

We seem to be lost.
I appear to have forgotten my wallet.

(Appear is not used for ‘emotions’)


VERBS DESCRIBNG CHANGE
Become:                Get
Turn:                     Grow
Go:                        Remain
Stay:                      Keep
Rest:






WRITING WORKSHOP


Link 1

How to create an atmosphere




Setting
Feeling
Location
five senses


grimy /lowdown
seedy bar



isolation / desolation
lonely motel
desolate highway strip



gothic
rundown English castle



timelessness
history
cementery
museum
ancient cathedral



desolation
melancholy
beach at night



fear
deep woods


Natural elements
Weather
Nature setting



storm




relentlessly sunny day



Time
scary
night



dying man
drug addict
sunset


Evocative language






Show, don't tell







Worksheet


• Use strong, specific verbs, and avoid overusing adverbs.
 • Provoke emotion through character reactions and vivid writing, don’t simply tell readers how to feel.
 • Use well-placed details to bring scenes to life.
• Use expressive dialogue to show characters’ emotions and attitudes.


Characters

Hero

Brainstorm a list of at least 10 inner demons your hero has to fight. Ten

Give him actions that demonstrate the flaw.

Villain


Give your antagonist just as rich a backstory as your hero. 

  • What hopes and dreams did he have? How were they dashed? 
  • What life-altering hurt did he suffer? 
  • Who betrayed him? 
  • How did all of this affect him over the course of his life?




 create empathy.
  1. Make the hero funny
  2. Make the hero a victim
  3. Show the hero in a dilemma
  4. Show the hero being highly skilled
  5. Show the hero being selfless

Interactive exercises

British Council

Prompt




Crime Writing

The devil is in the detail… (Niall Leonard)

Wikihow

Take into account:

  • What could have led to this crime scene?
  • What motivation would cause someone to commit the crime, or to frame someone else?
  • Think of the protagonist and antagonist features.