For this exam, you'll choose one of the assigned topics and write an outline or graphic organizer to plan and develop your information before you begin to draft your essay. The information you use to prepare your graphic organizer should be based on your own knowledge and experience of your subject. If you do research or incorporate information that's not considered common knowledge into your prewriting, you must cite it according to MLA format.
Objectives
For this exam, you'll Identify the steps in the writing process Use prewriting, drafting, revising, and editing to write formal, college-level essays, Distinguish among different patterns of development, Apply an appropriate pattern of development to a specific purpose and audience. Write effective thesis statements. Develop paragraphs using topic sentences, adequate detail, supporting evidence, and transitions. Apply the conventions of standard written American English to produce correct, well-written essay.
Topic
You will choose one of the following topic areas. Review the graphic organizer on page 416 in your textbook. The graphic organizer that you create doesn't need to have boxed outlines or arrows, but it should show your organization.
Choose one of the following topics, and divide it into classes.
Sports-general, types of fans, or influence on culture
Genres of movies, television shows, or video games
Social media or networking sites and applications
Places you've lived, visited, or vacationed
As an example, following is a graphic organizer for the topic
"Types of Food
Title: Types of Food
Topic announcement: Restaurants
Introduction
Background: Dieting is more difficult when eating out.
Thesis statement: Watching one's diet is far more difficult when dining out, especially when eating out more than eating at home.
Burger King and McDonald's; Burgers and fries, basic kind of chain everyone is familiar with; too much sodium.
Taco Bell: Mexican and other cultural restaurants;
Drive-thru Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts: Coffee and donuts, on-the-run convenience
Good things: Convenience, speed, consistency, usually friendly, clean, and open most of the time. Bad issues: Salt, fat, sometimes not clean,
sometimes staffed by teens or others that don't Body Paragraphs seem to really care.
Outback: Popular steak and potato chain Olive Garden: Italian; Chinese: good food, relatively inexpensive Sit-down Good things: Once again, chains are familiar, consistent, and have standards to meet. Bad issues: Often processed, microwaved food. Portions are too large. Silver diners or bowling alley: Family style and greasy spoons, but when you want to spend time Homestyle/fancy with friends, this is where you go. Five-star dining: Has a reputation for special occasions Local hangouts are inexpensive but often serve large portions and fried food. Expensive places may serve smaller portions but may add high- Conclusion calorie sauces.
Every type of eating establishment has pitfalls for a dieter. There are trade-offs for convenience, price, companionship, and enjoyment of special occasions.
Essays must be typed, double-spaced, using a standard 12-point font and left justification. Use 1-inch margins at the top and bottom and 1.25-inch margins for the left and right sides of the document. Each page must have a properly formatted header containing your name, student number, exam number, page number, mailing address, and email address (see page 6 for an example). Name each document using your student number first, then the six-digit lesson number, and finally your last name (for example, 23456789_050177 Doe). Save each as "File Type: Rich Text Format," regardless of your word-processing program.