7 Writing Prompts

Throughout the guide, there have been writing prompts. With each prompt there are choices to make. The idea is simple; just write.

Students often do this assignment with partners. I encourage this so that they become comfortable with peer edits and collaborative work. It’s also more fun. Then, we debrief the work. First, students learn that they understand how to use different levels of formal tone depending on the reader. They know already what professional tone to use. They know already how to do a basic reader analysis. But we can ask better questions to further this such as what level of education does the reader possess?  What is my relationship to the reader? How old is the reader? Where is the reader geographically located? Next, students see that they organized each document differently. The first is often chronological. This document focuses on the sequence of events. The second is topical. This document focuses on topics and events but not necessarily in chronological order. The third is often geographical. This often focuses on locations, assistance, and systems. Finally, students realize they also understand different modes of persuasion we learn from Aristotle: Ethos, Pathos, and Logos. One document focuses on events and fault (ethos). Another will focus on emotional elements (pathos). Finally, one will focus on logic (logos).