All too often teachers give their students a writing assignment without the appropriate instruction for how to write the essay. Understanding the essential components to a well written essay and taking the time to teach them will enable your students to excel in their writing assignments.
How to Organize an Essay
Teach students to organize their writing in a logical way. The most common method of writing an essay is to tell the reader what you are going to tell them in the introduction, tell them in the body and then tell them what you told them in the conclusion. This may seem convoluted, but indeed this method of organizing an essay is effective, easy to follow and easy to write. Here is an example:
The assignment is to write about types of flowers. In the first paragraph, the student mentions three flowers that will be discussed. In the second, third and fourth paragraph, the student talks about each of the individual flowers. In the fifth paragraph the student concludes by recapping which of the three flowers he discussed in the body of the essay.
How to Edit an Essay
There are several tips to editing and revising an essay that can help students become better at this skill. First, in order to check sentences for missing words, misspelled words and incorrect grammar, have them start at the bottom of the essay and read one sentence at a time, working up the essay. When reading from the top to the bottom, their brain will register what should be there, even if it is not actually correct.
Second, have the students go through each paragraph and highlight every 'to be' verb, attempting to reword those sentences with different verbs. Here are all the "to be" verbs:
- Am
- Is
- Are
- Was
- Were
- Be
- Been
- Being
Eliminating these verbs and rewording the sentences will make the writing stronger. Instead of requiring every "to be" verb eliminated, limit them to a total of 3 or 5.
Third, have your students put the essay down for a week and then pick it up to edit it. The break from the writing will enable your students to have fresh ideas, and see mistakes that they may not have seen before. A way around this, if time is limited, is to have the students edit each other's essays, instead of their own. The fresh set of eyes will provide new insights and will encourage your students to get into the habit of having someone else read their papers before turning them in for a grade.
Teaching students how to organize and edit their essays will enable them to become better writers. Keep this in mind when deciding on your lesson plans that include a writing assignment. Take the time to teach these skills and see your students reap the rewards.
Learn more tips to effectively teach writing.
 |
