Transcript Jane Schaffer Writing Terms - Tracy Unified School District

Jane Schaffer
Writing Terms
Tracy Unified School District
Adopted Writing Program
Essay:

An essay is a piece of writing that
gives the writer’s thoughts
(commentary) about a subject. All the
essays will have at least four
paragraphs: an introduction, two body
paragraphs, and a conclusion.
Introduction:

The introduction is the first paragraph
of an essay. It includes the thesis,
most often at the end.
Body Paragraph:

This is a middle paragraph in an
essay. It develops a point the writer
wants to make that supports the
thesis.
Format of the
Body Paragraph
Topic Sentence (TS)
Concrete Detail (CD)
For example, …
Commentary
(CM)
This shows that
Commentary
(CM)
This also shows
Concrete Detail (CD)
In addition, …
Commentary
(CM)
This shows that
Commentary
(CM)
This also shows
Concluding Sentence (CS)
…
…
…
…
Conclusion:


The conclusion is the last paragraph in an
essay. It may sum up the writer’s ideas,
reflect on what is said in the essay, or give
a personal statement about the subject.
The conclusion is all commentary and does
not include concrete detail. It does not
repeat any key words from the paper and
especially not from the thesis and
introduction. It gives a finished feeling to
the essay.
Thesis:

The thesis is a sentence with a subject
and opinion. This is most often found
at the end of the introduction.
Pre-Writing:


Pre-writing is the process of getting
the concrete details down on paper
before the writer organizes the essay
into paragraphs.
There are several kinds of pre-writing.
There are five basic kinds: bubble
clusters, spider diagrams, outlines, line
clustering, and columns.
Concrete Details (CD):


Concrete details are specific details that
form the backbone or core of the body
paragraphs.
Synonyms for concrete detail include facts,
specifics, examples, descriptions,
illustrations, support, proof, evidence,
quotations, paraphrasing, or plot references.
Commentary (CM):


Commentary is the writer’s opinion or
comment about something; not concrete
detail.
Synonyms for commentary include opinion,
insight, analysis, interpretation, inference,
personal response, feelings, evaluation,
explication and reflection.
Topic Sentence (TS):

The topic sentence is the first
sentence of a body paragraph. The
topic sentence must have a subject
and opinion (commentary) for the
paragraph. It does the same thing for
a body paragraph that the thesis does
for the whole essay.
Concluding Sentence
(CS):

The concluding sentence is the last
sentence in a body paragraph. It is all
commentary, does not repeat key
words, and gives a finished feeling to
the paragraph.
Shaping the Essay:

This step is done after pre-writing and
before the first draft of the essay. It
is an outline of your thesis, topic
sentences, concrete details, and
commentary ideas.
First Draft:

The first draft is the first version of
your essay. This version is also known
as the rough draft.
Final Draft:

The final draft is the final version of
the essay, but NOT NECESSARILY the
second draft.
Peer Response:

A peer response is a written response
and/or reaction to a partner’s paper.
Chunk:

A chunk is one sentence of concrete
detail (CD) and two sentences of
commentary (CM). It is the smallest
unified group of thoughts that one can
write.
Weaving:

Weaving is the blending of concrete
details (CD) and commentary (CM) in
a body paragraph. One can do this
after the format is mastered.
Ratio:

The ratio for English is one part
concrete detail (CD) to two parts
commentary (CM)
Shifting Ratios:
ENGLISH
HISTORY
MATH
1:2+
2+:1
1:0
CD
CD
CD
CM
CD
CD
CM
CM
CD
Word Counts:

The word count is the minimum
number of words in a specified
paragraph that will allow the writer to
earn a “C”.
Word Count
th
for 9 Grade
FIRST SEMESTER
SECOND SEMESTER
Introduction: 40+
Introduction: 40+
Body Paragraphs: 100+
Body Paragraphs: 125+
Conclusion: 40+
Conclusion: 40+
Sentence Count:

The sentence count is the minimum
number of sentences in a specified
paragraph that will allow the writer to
earn a “C”.
Sentence Count
th
for 9 Grade
FIRST SEMESTER
SECOND SEMESTER
Introduction: 3+
Introduction: 3+
Body Paragraphs: 8+
Body Paragraphs: 11+
Conclusion: 3+
Conclusion: 3+