What Is Composition? Definition, Types, and Examples

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  • An Introduction to Punctuation
  • Ph.D., Rhetoric and English, University of Georgia
  • M.A., Modern English and American Literature, University of Leicester
  • B.A., English, State University of New York

In the literary sense, a composition (from the Latin "to put together") is the way a writer assembles words and sentences to create a coherent and meaningful work. Composition can also mean the activity of writing, the nature of the subject of a piece of writing, the piece of writing itself, and the name of a college course assigned to a student. This essay focuses on practicing how people write.

Key Takeaways

  • In writing, composition refers to the way a writer structures a piece of writing.
  • The four modes of composition, which were codified in the late 19th century, are description, narration, exposition, and argumentation.
  • Good writing can include elements of multiple modes of composition.

Composition Definition

Just like a musician and an artist, a writer sets the tone of a composition to his or her purpose, making decisions about what that tone should be to form a structure. A writer might express anything from the point of view of cool logic to impassioned anger. A composition might use clean and simple prose, flowery, descriptive passages, or analytical nomenclature.

Since the 19th century, English writers and teachers have been grappling with ways to classify forms and modes of writing so beginner writers can have a place to start. After decades of struggle, rhetoricians ended up with four categories of writing that still make up the mainstream of Composition 101 college classes: Description, Narration , Exposition , and Argumentation .

Types of Composition Writing 

The four classical types of composition (description, narration, exposition, and argumentation) are not categories, per se. They would almost never stand alone in a piece of writing, but rather are best-considered modes of writing, pieces of writing styles that can be combined and used to create a whole. That is to say, they can inform a piece of writing, and they are good starting points for understanding how to put a piece of writing together.

Examples for each of the following composition types are based on the American poet Gertrude Stein's famous quote from " Sacred Emily ," her 1913 poem: "A rose is a rose is a rose."

Description

A description, or descriptive writing, is a statement or account that describes something or someone, listing characteristic features and significant details to provide a reader with a portrayal in words. Descriptions are set in the concrete, in the reality, or solidity of an object as a representation of a person, place, or thing in time. They provide the look and feel of objects, a simultaneous whole, with as many details as you'd like.

A description of a rose might include the color of the petals, the aroma of its perfume, where it exists in your garden, whether it is in a plain terracotta pot or a hothouse in the city.

A description of "Sacred Emily" might talk about the length of the poem and the facts of when it was written and published. It might list the images that Stein uses or mention her use of repetition and alliteration.

A narration, or narrative writing, is a personal account , a story that the writer tells his or her reader. It can be an account of a series of facts or events, given in order and establishing connections between the steps. It can even be dramatic, in which case you can present each individual scene with actions and dialog. The chronology could be in strict order, or you could include flashbacks.

A narration about a rose might describe how you first came across it, how it came to be in your garden, or why you went to the greenhouse that day.

A narration about "Sacred Emily" might be about how you came across the poem, whether it was in a class or in a book lent by a friend, or if you were simply curious about where the phrase "a rose is a rose" came from and found it on the internet.

Exposition, or expository writing , is the act of expounding or explaining a person, place, thing, or event. Your purpose is not to just describe something, but to give it a reality, an interpretation, your ideas on what that thing means. In some respects, you are laying out a proposition to explain a general notion or abstract idea of your subject.

An exposition on a rose might include its taxonomy, what its scientific and common names are, who developed it, what the impact was when it was announced to the public, and/or how was it distributed. 

An exposition on "Sacred Emily" could include the environment in which Stein wrote, where she was living, what her influences were, and what the impact was on reviewers.

Argumentation 

Also called argumentative writing , an argumentation is basically an exercise in comparing and contrasting. It is the methodological presentation of both sides of an argument using logical or formal reasoning. The end result is formulated to persuade why thing A is better than thing B. What you mean by "better" makes up the content of your arguments.

Argumentation applied to a rose might be why one particular rose is better than another, why you prefer roses over daisies, or vice versa.

Argumentation over "Sacred Emily" could compare it to Stein's other poems or to another poem covering the same general topic.

The Value of Composition

A great deal of debate enlivened college theoretical rhetoric in the 1970s and 1980s, with scholars attempting to throw off what they saw were the confining strictures of these four writing styles. Despite that, they remain the mainstay of some college composition classes.

What these four classical modes do is provide beginner writers a way to purposefully direct their writings, a structure on which to form an idea. However, they can also be limiting. Use the traditional modes of composition as tools to gain practice and direction in your writing, but remember that they should be considered starting points rather than rigid requirements.

  • Bishop, Wendy. "Keywords in Creative Writing." David Starkey, Utah State University Press, University Press of Colorado, 2006.
  • Conners, Professor Robert J. "Composition-Rhetoric: Backgrounds, Theory, and Pedagogy." Pittsburgh Series in Composition, Literacy, and Culture, Hardcover, New ed. Edition, University of Pittsburgh Press, June 1, 1997.
  • D'Angelo, Frank. "Nineteenth-Century Forms/Modes of Discourse: A Critical Inquiry." Vol. 35, No. 1, National Council of Teachers of English, February 1984.
  • Hintikka, Jaakko. "Strategic Thinking in Argumentation and Argumentation Theory." Vol. 50, No. 196 (2), Revue Internationale de Philosophie, 1996.
  • Perron, Jack. "Composition and Cognition." English Education, The Writing Teacher: A New Professionalism, Vol. 10, No. 3, National Council of Teachers of English, February 1979. 
  •  Stein, Gertrude. "Sacred Emily." Geography and Plays, Letters of Note, 1922.
  • What Is Expository Writing?
  • AP English Exam: 101 Key Terms
  • Focusing in Composition
  • Description in Rhetoric and Composition
  • Topical Organization Essay
  • Modes of Discourse (Composition)
  • The Writer's Voice in Literature and Rhetoric
  • Understanding Organization in Composition and Speech
  • A Guide to All Types of Narration, With Examples
  • Moving Past the Five Paragraph Essay
  • Paragraph Length in Compositions and Reports
  • Composition Type: Problem-Solution Essays
  • Development in Composition: Building an Essay
  • Definition and Examples of Analysis in Composition
  • How to Write a Narrative Essay or Speech
  • Definition and Examples of a Transition in Composition
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How to Write a Composition

Last Updated: December 6, 2023 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Christopher Taylor, PhD . Christopher Taylor is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of English at Austin Community College in Texas. He received his PhD in English Literature and Medieval Studies from the University of Texas at Austin in 2014. There are 7 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 802,917 times.

You don't have to be a good writer to write well. Writing is a process. By learning to treat writing as a series of small steps instead of a big all-at-once magic trick you have to pull off will make writing a composition much easier and much more fun. You can learn to brainstorm main ideas before you start writing, organize a draft of those main ideas, and revise your composition into a polished essay. See Step 1 for more information.

Composition Template

composition writing in english

Pre-Writing

Step 1 Read the assignment closely.

  • What is the purpose of the composition?
  • What is the topic of the composition?
  • What are the length requirements?
  • What is the appropriate tone or voice for the composition?
  • Is research required? These questions are good for you to ask.
  • Pre-writing: gathering your thoughts or research, brainstorming, and planning the compositions
  • Writing: actively writing your composition
  • Editing: re-reading your paper, adding sentences, cutting unnecessary parts, and proofreading

Step 3 Do a free-write...

  • Try a timed writing by keeping your pen moving for 10 minutes without stopping. Don't shy away from including your opinions about a particular topic, even if your teacher has warned you from including personal opinions in your paper. This isn't the final draft!

Step 4 Try a cluster or bubble exercise.

  • Write the topic in the center of the paper and draw a circle around it. Say your topic is "Romeo & Juliet" or "The Civil War". Write the phrase on your paper and circle it.
  • Around the center circle, write your main ideas or interests about the topic. You might be interested in "Juliet's death," "Mercutio's anger," or "family strife." Write as many main ideas as you're interested in.
  • Around each main idea, write more specific points or observations about each more specific topic. Start looking for connections. Are you repeating language or ideas?
  • Connect the bubbles with lines where you see related connections. A good composition is organized by main ideas, not organized chronologically or by plot. Use these connections to form your main ideas.
  • Don’t worry about coming up with a polished thesis statement or final argument now; that can come later in the process.

Step 6 Make a formal...

  • Your thesis statement needs to be debatable. In fact, many thesis statements are structured as the answer to a well-formulated question about the topic. "Romeo & Juliet is an interesting play written by Shakespeare in the 1500s" isn't a thesis statement, because that's not a debatable issue. We don't need you to prove that to us. "Romeo & Juliet features Shakespeare's most tragic character in Juliet" is a lot closer to a debatable point, and could be an answer to a question like, “Who is Shakespeare’s most tragic character?” [4] X Research source
  • Your thesis statement needs to be specific. "Romeo & Juliet is a play about making bad choices" isn't as strong a thesis statement as "Shakespeare makes the argument that the inexperience of teenage love is comic and tragic at the same time" is much stronger.
  • A good thesis guides the essay. In your thesis, you can sometimes preview the points you'll make in your paper, guiding yourself and the reader: "Shakespeare uses Juliet's death, Mercutio's rage, and the petty arguments of the two principal families to illustrate that the heart and the head are forever disconnected."

Writing a Rough Draft

Step 1 Think in fives.

  • Introduction, in which the topic is described, the issue or problem is summarized, and your argument is presented
  • Main point paragraph 1, in which you make and support your first supporting argument
  • Main point paragraph 2, in which you make and support your second supporting argument
  • Main point paragraph 3, in which you make and support your final supporting argument
  • Conclusion paragraph, in which you summarize your argument

Step 2 Back up your main points with two kinds of evidence.

  • Proof includes specific quotes from the book you're writing about, or specific facts about the topic. If you want to talk about Mercutio's temperamental character, you'll need to quote from him, set the scene, and describe him in detail. This is proof that you'll also need to unpack with logic.
  • Logic refers to your rationale and your reasoning. Why is Mercutio like this? What are we supposed to notice about the way he talks? Explain your proof to the reader by using logic and you'll have a solid argument with strong evidence.

Step 3 Think of questions that need to be answered.

  • Ask how. How is Juliet's death presented to us? How do the other characters react? How is the reader supposed to feel?
  • Ask why. Why does Shakespeare kill her? Why not let her live? Why does she have to die? Why would the story not work without her death?

Step 4 Don't worry about "sounding smart."

  • Only use words and phrases that you have a good command over. Academic vocabulary might sound impressive, but if you don’t fully grasp its meaning, you might muddle the effect of your paper.

Step 1 Get some feedback on your rough draft.

  • Try writing a rough draft the weekend before it's due, and giving it to your teacher for comments several days before the due date. Take the feedback into consideration and make the necessary changes.

Step 2 Be willing to make big cuts and big changes.

  • Moving paragraphs around to get the best possible organization of points, the best "flow"
  • Delete whole sentences that are repetitive or that don't work
  • Removing any points that don't support your argument

Step 3 Go from general to specific.

  • Think of each main point you're making like a mountain in a mountain range that you're flying over in a helicopter. You can stay above them and fly over them quickly, pointing out their features from far away and giving us a quick flyover tour, or you can drop us down in between them and show us up close, so we see the mountain goats and the rocks and the waterfalls. Which would be a better tour?

Step 4 Read over your draft out loud.

Expert Q&A

Christopher Taylor, PhD

  • Write a point, and expand 2 lines on that particular point. Thanks Helpful 9 Not Helpful 2
  • Open source software called Free Mind can help with the pre-writing process. Thanks Helpful 7 Not Helpful 2
  • You can always add more circles to your guiding diagram if you think the much you have is not sufficient. Thanks Helpful 5 Not Helpful 3

Tips from our Readers

  • Remember to always proofread your composition after you have finished! Small typos like a missed comma or a misspelled word are easy to miss the first time around.
  • If you want to outline your composition, try using a mini white board. This makes it easier to erase things and restructure your outline if you need to.
  • It's hard to write with distractions, so try to pick a quiet place where you won't be disturbed to work on your assignment.

composition writing in english

You Might Also Like

Write a Persuasive Essay

  • ↑ https://www.student.unsw.edu.au/writing-your-essay
  • ↑ https://www.deakin.edu.au/students/studying/study-support/academic-skills/essay-writing
  • ↑ https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/544/01/
  • ↑ https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/685/05/
  • ↑ https://libguides.newcastle.edu.au/how-to-write-an-essay/essay-structure
  • ↑ https://www.citewrite.qut.edu.au/write/writing-well/essay.html
  • ↑ https://writing.wisc.edu/handbook/grammarpunct/commonerrors/

About This Article

Christopher Taylor, PhD

To write a composition, start with a brainstorming session to get your thoughts down on paper. You can create a formal outline during this time, or experiment with bubble exercises and free-writing. Next, create a clear thesis statement to base your composition around. Then, write an introduction, 3 main paragraphs, and a conclusion that summarizes your argument. Read through and revise your content, and don't forget to proofread thoroughly! To learn more about the "rule of 5" and how to back up your statements in a composition, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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8 Steps to Write a Good Composition (part 1)

Are you having trouble with your writing skills? Read this and you will find good and simple advice to make things much easier and your compositions much better. Even impressive. Just follow the 8 steps we will show you.

composition writing in english

Most people feel somehow at a loss when they have to write a composition or an essay. They think for a moment, and then they start writing and writing and writing till they consider it is time to finish, and so they finish. That is probably the worst approach to composition writing. You must be talented and very experienced if you expect to write good compositions that way. To begin with, you could familiarize yourself with satirical essay examples to understand what your essay should look like. But whatever the topic you need, here you will find instructions for general compositions.

The first thing to consider is that a composition is not simply a piece of writing. It must be composed, it must have a structure and a cohesive organisation. Compare these two examples:

A-   My brother’s tall and handsome and with blue eyes and, yeah, well, maybe a bit fat, but not much, you know, something like your cousin, but maybe not that much. And he’s very funny, ha ha, I’ll tell you about what he did yesterday, but not now. And brown-haired. Almost dark. Well, not dark but… well, yeah, dark. Oh, I said funny, but well, when he’s got a bad day, uff, he scares me sometimes…

B-   My brother is tall, handsome and has got blue eyes. He is a little fat, but not much. His hair is dark brown. I like him because he is very funny and always makes me laugh. Nevertheless, he can also be quite serious sometimes.

As you can easily perceive, A is a good example of oral English, but it would be totally unacceptable for a composition. On the other hand, B is the right thing to say when writing, with simple, organised ideas. But B would be considered too pedantic and even unacceptable when talking in a normal conversation.

Using a correct language is part of it, but not enough. Both A and B are correct language, but  Spoken and Written language are different, they use, to some extent, different vocabulary, different grammar and, especially, a different way to express things!

composition writing in english

Many think that planning is a waste of time, especially if you are sitting for an exam and time is limited. But the truth is that planning your composition will not only make the task easy and much better; it will also make it all faster. At least once you have practised a little bit.

First, you have to know what topic you’re going to write about. In most situations you will already know this when you sit down to write. And then, you must start making an outline:

1- opening sentence = topic + approach 2- ideas connected to the opening sentence 3- details about those ideas 4- closing sentence

When you are happy with the outline, it comes the time to do the writing, and here you should follow these other 4 steps:

5- write a title 6- organize ideas into paragraphs 7- write the composition 8- correct your composition

In this article we well help you to make a good outline, which is the basis of this method. We will complete the 8 steps in a second article (see part 2, to be published very soon). So let’s get started.

1- topic + approach = opening sentence (O.S.)

composition writing in english

Think of the opening sentence as a little perfume bottle: the topic is the material (the glass), the approach is the shape of the glass, and all the composition will be the perfume inside the bottle. If some perfume falls outside the bottle, it will evaporate (and spoil your composition).

Think of a word or several words that will identify the topic. Think of a word or several words that will identify the approach. The topic is what your composition is about. Your approach is usually what your opinion about the topic is, or just the way you see it, or what you want to say about that topic. When you have the topic and the approach, write the opening sentence with both ideas.

Topic - Life in a village Approach - better than cities Opening sentence - Nowadays, most people prefer living in cities, but I prefer to live in a village because life there is much better and healthy.

Another example of O.S.- Life in a village is very different from life in the city. (topic: life in a village / approach: different from city)

2- ideas (points) connected to the opening sentence

composition writing in english

Example of good points:

  • no pollution
  • people know each other
  • friendly people
  • contact with nature
  • life is cheaper

Example of bad points:

  • I live in Rome (not relevant to the O.S.)
  • Villages in the south of Spain are bigger than in the north (wrong, we must compare life in the village with life in the city, not comparing different villages)
  • Last year I visited a very beautiful village (not relevant to the O.S.)
  • Night life is boring (it contradicts the O.S. unless you compensate this with a “but…”)
  • People gossip and are nosy and messes with your life (modifies or contradicts the idea in the O.S.)
  • In the 14 th century many villages were created (who cares? We’re not talking about history)
  • My friend Tom lives in a village (not relevant, unless you use Tom’s opinion to support yours)
  • My friend Tom, from a village, is very friendly (digression: this idea is not directly connected with the O.S.. It is directly connected to the point “friendly people” and only indirectly connected to the O.S., so it’s no good)

3- details about the points  

Each point is the seed of a future paragraph (or section or chapter, if it is a long writing). For every point, think of a few details to explain that idea.

Example: - friendly people

  • people help you
  • people talk to you in the streets
  • people invite you to a drink in the bars

4- closing sentence  

composition writing in english

1- a restatement of the opening sentence (you say the same idea but using different words) Example: There’s no doubt about it: life in a village is much better than life in a city .

2- a summary of the points (ideas) . Example: With a cheaper life, a close contact with nature, a healthy environment and surrounded by nice people, villages are the ideal place to live .

3- a look to the future . Example: I really think I should leave the city and look for a nice house in a village as soon as possible .

4- a related thought that grows out of the body (usually a conclusion from the points). Example: That’s why our urban societies are more efficient, but its people are less human .

5- mixed type (a combination of several types of conclusions) Example: That’s why I’m planning to move to a village, because life there is much better than in the cities (type 3 + type 1, even the whole sentence can be an example of type 4)

So if you follow this advice, you will find that writing turns easier and the results are much better than when you simply sit and write. Just remember the bottle of perfume:

  • The glass : The opening sentence. Your first sentence, which will contain all the ideas of your piece of writing inside.
  • The perfume : All the things you have to say. Don’t let even a drop fall outside the bottle.
  • The cap : The last sentence in your composition. The one that will close it and make it a finished piece of work.

Once you have a good outline, you must use it to write your composition, essay or whatever you must write. Things are now much easier when you know all the time exactly what you have to say, confident that you’ll never get tangled, blocked or messed up in your writing. We can also guide you in this second phase (steps 5-8), but that will be in our next article:

8 Steps to Write a Good Composition (part 2)

Written by Angel Castaño

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ENGL001: English Composition I

  • If English is your second or third language and you are looking to improve your English language skills, you may consider completing our "English as a Second Language" courses first. You can find those here: sylr.org/ESL

Course Introduction

  • Time: 32 hours
  • Free Certificate

Because this course is designed specifically for students in a university setting, the second unit will focus on academic writing. We will learn how to respond to an assignment or test question by using the "PWR-Writing" or "Power-Writing" Method (PWR: prewrite, write, revise) while learning the ins and outs of building a solid thesis and supporting that thesis with evidence. The remaining units will focus on good writing practices, from style to proper citation.

Course Syllabus

First, read the course syllabus. Then, enroll in the course by clicking "Enroll me". Click Unit 1 to read its introduction and learning outcomes. You will then see the learning materials and instructions on how to use them.

composition writing in english

Unit 1: What is College-Level Writing?

We begin this course by refining our ideas about what we are doing when we write. Let's begin by acknowledging that writing is a difficult, complex process. It does not come easily; it takes quite a bit of work and thought. Writing is more than words on a page, but a way to communicate ideas.

In college-level writing, we say written communication is  rhetorical , which means our rhetorical situation (the purpose and audience of our writing) and our use of rhetorical appeals, such as ethos , logos , and pathos , determine our writing decisions. We define these terms in this unit, discuss how to identify them as you read, and discuss how to incorporate them into your own writing.

Writing is a process, rather than a product. You often need to write your ideas down to organize and clarify what you think about a subject. We discuss ways to use this process to manage your writing, develop your ideas, and make the task of drafting an essay seem less overwhelming.

Throughout Unit 1, we ask you to complete several activities that will culminate in an essay writing assignment. The topic for these activities and the essay is what it takes to succeed in an Internet-based college course. As you develop your response, come up with at least three activities you should do, or characteristics you should employ, to succeed in this and other courses.

Completing this unit should take you approximately 9 hours.

Unit 2: What Makes Academic Writing Unique?

University students need to know how to write an effective academic essay. At its core, any academic essay is essentially an argument. This does not mean you are penning a series of aggressive verbal attacks; rather, you are using language to persuade someone to adopt a certain perspective.

For example, you may be asked to write an essay on how the revolution changed the culture in your country. Your response is an argument, in which you try to persuade your audience that the war changed cultural norms in three or four specific ways. As you create your argument, think about your writing as a conversation between yourself and an audience.

The way you choose to build and support your argument has a great deal to do with how you see yourself as part of the conversation. If you envision your work as a response to an existing prompt, the reader with whom you are "speaking" should shape the way you write.

For example, imagine someone asks you why a politician acted in a certain way. You will probably respond in one way if the questioner is your five-year-old cousin, another way if they are a friend who is your same age, and yet another if they are your boss. You should approach every writing project with this same awareness of audience. Keep these ideas about argument and conversation in mind as we explore how to develop an academic essay.

The rhetorical situation we discussed in Unit 1 should influence the argument you choose, the type of essay you write, and the way you organize your ideas. In Unit 2 we review these issues in detail and discuss a highly-structured approach to writing an argument. By the end of this unit, you should be ready to write an academic essay.

Throughout Unit 2 we ask you to complete a number of activities which will culminate in writing an argumentative essay. Choose one point you promoted in your Unit 1 essay topic and develop it further. The assigned topic for the Unit 2 activities and the essay is how your selected activity or characteristic affects success in an Internet-based college course.

Completing this unit should take you approximately 11 hours.

Unit 3: How Do I Use Sources?

A well-placed reference, quotation, or paraphrase from an outside expert can make all the difference when you are making an argument. In fact, many academic writing assignments require you to include these types of supporting arguments to support your case. These supporting arguments can convince your reader that other respected, intelligent individuals share your perspective; it can argue your point with winning style or rhetorical power; and it can prop up your argument where you may need help.

In this unit, we explore how to leverage the work of others to strengthen your argument, while you ensure that you (and not the individual you reference) take the spotlight. We also address plagiarism and the steps you can take to avoid it.

Completing this unit should take you approximately 7 hours.

Unit 4: Finishing Touches

Your writing style refers to the way you write a sentence and how you assemble your arguments within a sequence of sentences so they make sense to your audience. A "sound" writing style is not a luxury; it is necessary to communicate your ideas clearly and effectively. For example, you may write with perfect grammar, but if your style needs work, your audience may not understand what you are trying to convey.

While opinions on the best type of writing style is inherently subjective and may even be based on cultural standards or preferences, in this unit we provide you with some guidelines that are most academics generally agree upon. Our first goal is to learn how to write as clearly, persuasively, and elegantly as possible. Our second goal is to apply these skills and learn how to revise and edit our work. Revision and editing are important stages of the writing process. It allows you to fine-tune your ideas so your reader can easily follow your argument.

Completing this unit should take you approximately 5 hours.

Study Guide

This study guide will help you get ready for the final exam. It discusses the key topics in each unit, walks through the learning outcomes, and lists important vocabulary terms. It is not meant to replace the course materials!

composition writing in english

Course Feedback Survey

Please take a few minutes to give us feedback about this course. We appreciate your feedback, whether you completed the whole course or even just a few resources. Your feedback will help us make our courses better, and we use your feedback each time we make updates to our courses.

If you come across any urgent problems, email [email protected].

composition writing in english

Certificate Final Exam

Take this exam if you want to earn a free Course Completion Certificate.

To receive a free Course Completion Certificate, you will need to earn a grade of 70% or higher on this final exam. Your grade for the exam will be calculated as soon as you complete it. If you do not pass the exam on your first try, you can take it again as many times as you want, with a 7-day waiting period between each attempt.

Once you pass this final exam, you will be awarded a free Course Completion Certificate .

composition writing in english

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Writing Guide with Handbook aligns to the goals, topics, and objectives of many first-year writing and composition courses. It is organized according to relevant genres, and focuses on the writing process, effective writing practices or strategies—including graphic organizers, writing frames, and word banks to support visual learning—and conventions of usage and style. The text includes an editing and documentation handbook, which provides information on grammar and mechanics, common usage errors, and citation styles.

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English 101

  • Types of Written Compositions
  • Choosing a Topic
  • Thesis Statement
  • Writing Process
  • MLA Citation

What is A Composition

composition writing in english

Narrative Essay (Telling a Story)

Novels, short stories, novellas, poetry, and biographies can all fall in the narrative writing style. A narrative composition is when the writer tells a story about a real-life experience. This appears to be an easy task, but the narrative composition challenges students to think and write about themselves which can be difficult for some. One of the goals of a narrative composition is  to involve the reader by making the story as vivid as possible. Because narrative compositions are usually written in the first person, it helps engage the reader. “I” sentences give readers a feeling of being part of the story.  Moreover, a well-crafted narrative composition will answer the question "What happens next" and build towards drawing a conclusion or making a personal statement such as teaching a lesson.  

Key Points:

  • A person tells a story or event.
  • Has characters and dialogue.
  • Has definite and logical beginnings, intervals, and endings.
  • Often has situations like actions, motivational events, and disputes or conflicts with their eventual solutions.

Examples of When You Would Use Persuasive Writing:

  • Short stories
  • Autobiographies or biographies
  • Oral histories

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” said Jaelyn.

“You never used to be such a girl!” retorted Orin, pushing open the door.

Reluctantly, Jaelyn followed.

This is a narrative because it’s telling a story. There are different characters conversing, and a plot is unravelling.

https://www.time4writing.com/writing-resources/types-of-essays/

https://owlcation.com/humanities/Four-Types-of-Writing

Descriptive Composition (Painting a Picture)

A cousin of the narrative composition, a descriptive composition  paints a picture with words. A writer might describe with vivid, concrete, and precise words a person, place, object, or a even memory of special significance. However, this type of composition is not description for description’s sake. The descriptive composition strives to communicate a deeper meaning through the description such as proving a thesis or claim. In a descriptive composition, general guideline is that the writer should show, not tell, through the use of colorful words and sensory details. The best descriptive compositions appeal to the reader’s five senses, with a result that is highly expressive.

Key Points :

  • It is often poetic in nature
  • It describes places, people, events, situations, or locations in a highly-detailed manner.
  • The author visualizes what he or she sees, hears, tastes, smells, and feels.

When You Would Use Descriptive Writing:

  • Journal or diary writing
  • Nature writing
  • Descriptive passages in fiction

Example: 

The old car slowly chugged down the street like the caboose of a steam engine train. The car goes up the hill it goes Ka boom , kachunk. The car is old and weathered with rust covering the entire body like cancer consuming its victim. Wheels and tires wobble like a drunk bum on his way home from the bar. Hub caps are gone along with all the mirrors and extras on the car. Black smoke flows out the rotten tail pips like the smoke out of and old cobb pipe.  ~© Jace Oeleis 2005~ (Source: English 120-Descriptive Paragraph)

This is descriptive writing because the paragraph uses vivid and descriptive words and phrases such as adjectives, adverbs, action verbs, figures of speech, etc. to describe an old car.

Expository Composition (Stating Just the Facts)

Expository writing's main purpose is to explain. The expository composition  is an informative piece of writing that presents a balanced analysis of a topic. In an expository composition, the writer explains or defines a topic, using facts, statistics, and examples. Expository writing encompasses a wide range of essay variations, such as the comparison and contrast essay, the cause and effect essay, and the “how to” or process essay. An expository composition is one of the most common types of writing. You always see it in textbooks and how-to articles. Because expository compositions are based on facts and not personal feelings, writers avoid imparting their emotions or using the first person point-of-view.

  • Usually explains something in a process.
  • Is often equipped with facts and figures.
  • Is usually in a logical order and sequence.

When You Would Use Expository Writing:

  • Textbook writing.
  • How-to articles.
  • News stories (not including opinion or editorial pieces).
  • Business, technical, or scientific writing.

Many people associate the taste of pumpkins with fall. In October, companies from Starbucks to McDonalds roll out their pumpkin-flavored lattes and desserts. Here is how to make an easy pumpkin pie using only five ingredients. First, make sure you have all of the ingredients.

This writing is expository because it is  explaining  how to make a pumpkin pie.

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You, Writing! A Guide to College Composition

(25 reviews)

composition writing in english

Alexandra Glynn, North Hennepin Community College

Kelli Hallsten-Erickson, Lake Superior College

Amy Jo Swing, Lake Superior College

Copyright Year: 2018

Publisher: Alexandra Glynn

Language: English

Formats Available

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Reviewed by Tara Montague, Part-time instructor, Portland Community College on 3/6/22

The text is comprehensive; it covers all of the topics I would expect it to. It has a lengthy (10-page) glossary, but no index. I am undecided as to how useful the glossary is. read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

The text is comprehensive; it covers all of the topics I would expect it to. It has a lengthy (10-page) glossary, but no index. I am undecided as to how useful the glossary is.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

I have no concerns about the accuracy or bias of the content.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

For the most part, I feel like the content is up-to-date, though I believe the website and app litmus test (148) could be revisited. I believe any updates would be easy and straightforward to implement.

Clarity rating: 5

This text does a great job of speaking to students with accessible, conversational prose and of defining terms and concepts.

Consistency rating: 5

I don’t have any concerns with the consistency of the text in terms of terminology and framework.

Modularity rating: 5

I think the modularity is strong, which makes this text a great candidate for one of the online reading formats with hyperlinked contents. There are many subtopics within larger topics within larger sections. I will likely use this text by selecting sections to assign; the modularity makes this easy to do.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

The authors have used the “Basic Writing Process Chart” (page 12) to organize the chapters of the text. For the most part that makes sense as an organizational principle. If I were designing the organization, I think I’d have Exploration before Audience and Purpose, but I can also see that the authors’ arrangement makes sense. I also felt like the very long Modes of Writing section (pp. 56-79) was a little out of balance and out of pace with the rest of the text.

Interface rating: 3

The only available format for this text is PDF, and I don’t think it’s marked up or accessible. The 170-page text is a long, word-processed document. This creates navigation issues as the text is long and linear, with no hyperlinks from the table of contents. Word maps are used to add some color and graphic appeal, but the fonts are difficult to read. (Captions are, however, included.) The use of a few icons here and there is a little confusing. The interface is a big barrier to me because I believe it would create a barrier to learning for many of my students.

Grammatical Errors rating: 4

While I didn’t notice grammatical errors, I found some editing errors, including incomplete links, some typos, and a misspelling.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

There is some diversity in examples. I didn’t notice anything exclusive or offensive. Many of the examples are related to life experiences that everyone would have. I am not sure that the “Anglo-Saxon” vs. “Latinate” distinction is helpful or relevant at this point..

This text is a solid choice for an introductory writing course. I found the editing and proofreading sections especially useful; they have impressively accessible and clear (and not over-long) discussions. I particularly like the breakdown of style. My biggest issue with this text is that the only format it’s available in is a continuous essay-style document converted to a PDF without hyperlinks. This makes it a bit difficult to work with and not the most accessible or appealing for students.

Reviewed by Lindsay Tigue, Assistant Professor, Eastern New Mexico University on 12/31/21

This book covers most of the topics I cover in my Composition courses and it includes a lot of helpful information on the topic of writing. read more

This book covers most of the topics I cover in my Composition courses and it includes a lot of helpful information on the topic of writing.

I did not notice any errors in my review of this textbook.

This book contains relevant examples, but overall the suggestions of writing, editing, and revision do not feel as if they will go out of date.

The text is written in accessible and readable language without talking down to students in any way.

I found the texts quality and terminology to be consistent throughout.

I could definitely see pulling relevant chapters and using them as stand-alone resources in a course as the text is designed to be used whole or in parts. I found several parts especially useful--like the chapter on thesis statements and titling the essay. I definitely see myself pulling specific chapters to use with students.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

This text is well-organized and the table of contents lays out a clear organization for the text.

Interface rating: 4

The text is clean and easy to read and includes helpful images. It would be even more helpful if the table of contents sections were linkable to that part of the text.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I did not notice any grammatical errors in the text.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

I found the text inclusive.

I appreciate the clear, helpful information on college writing in this text. I found the parts about thesis statements, introductions and conclusions, and titling especially helpful. I don't think I have ever seen a Composition textbook tackle titling an essay in such a clear, helpful way for students. I appreciate the visuals and how even handwritten examples of things like mind mapping are included to show students what that would really look like in their notes. The only thing I would like to see is the chapters linked in the table of contents to that part of the pdf. At least in the download I was looking at, there were no links. The text doesn't have a very designed look and could be more visually interesting. However, the information is useful and easy to read so that is fine. Overall, I found this text useful and I will definitely pull chapters of it for my Composition course.

Reviewed by Elizabeth Bidinger, Professor, Worcester State University on 7/7/21

This textbook provides excellent coverage of the fundamental topics that are covered in most FYW courses, and is especially well-suited for one that doesn't emphasize writing with sources and research. It is unusually thorough on the basics of... read more

This textbook provides excellent coverage of the fundamental topics that are covered in most FYW courses, and is especially well-suited for one that doesn't emphasize writing with sources and research. It is unusually thorough on the basics of the writing process, such as planning, drafting, organizing, and revising, which I find very helpful. Clearly written sections beautifully explain and illustrate skills like organizing paragraphs and writing introductions and conclusions. Especially useful is the chapter on revision, which includes a student essay with inserted suggestions for revision, followed by a revised draft. This text provides the most thorough and instructive discussion of audience of any FYW textbook that I can recall, which I find a perfect place to start. No index, but a comprehensive glossary defines virtually every composition and rhetoric term that might be used in a FYW course. While this book covers the basics in fluid, highly accessible prose, some of its discussions are perhaps too general and even elementary. The section on different modes of writing provides such superficial descriptions of different types of writing that it manages to make them all sound fairly uniform and lacking in the distinctiveness that should make them sound fun to write. It would be an ideal FYW textbook if there was an attempt to supplement the basics with some sophisticated and challenging discussions on critical thinking and cultural criticism, as well as a wider range of examples of writing in different modes. The troubling implication of a college text that covers basic writing skills in depth but totally omits intellectually and aesthetically engaging materials is that students who need to review essay and paragraph organization wouldn't be inspired by reading, or capable of producing, prose that is rich with irony, humor, nuance, or difficult truths. The student example of a report is titled, "What I Did on My Summer Vacation" (Chapter 7: Drafting), which I fear many college students would find offensively rudimentary. I would have also really liked some exercise prompts.

The information in the book is accurate, error-free, and completely responsible and sound.

The authors do a fine job of keeping the focus on the fairly timeless basics of how to craft effective prose, so very little would become outdated in the near future and the few timely cultural references to things like BLM are presented in a way that makes them relevant now and, I would guess, for many years.

One of the great strengths of this book is its clear, conversational, highly readable prose. The explanations are easy to follow and every potentially unfamiliar term is provided with adequate context.

This text is consistent in form, approach, structure, and authorial voice. It conveys professionalism and expertise.

Modularity rating: 4

The book's chapters are designed so that each provides a detailed discussion of a discrete skill set, so that it would be very easy to assign a single chapter within a module or unit. I'm giving it a 4 rating instead of a 5 in this area because I would have really liked self-contained chapters on a few different modes of writing that included planning strategies for each kind of essay described. A discussion of the process of finding a topic could be more illustrative and inspiring if it's geared towards a specific kind of writing, but also, it would be nice to have a self-contained chapter on writing a narrative essay that could be used by itself for a unit focused on that assignment.

The book is thoughtfully organized to follow the steps of the writing process, so for a first-semester, FYW course, the organization works very well. The single chapter on research being added at the end might seem a troubling suggestion, in the view of others, that research is completely separate from the writing process, but I personally find the approach of separating writing skills from research skills to be less intimidating to new college students.

Interface rating: 5

I had no problems accessing or navigating any section or component of this text. I do think it could be presented in a more visually engaging and accessible way, with more highlighted text boxes that separate and emphasize key takeaways.

I found the text to be grammatically sound and effectively written.

There is certainly nothing insensitive or offensive in this book. However, a casual glance at the works cited in each chapter shows how overwhelmingly canonical and traditional the majority of the textual examples and references are: D. H. Lawrence, Steinbeck, Jefferson, Melville, R. L. Stevenson, Shakespeare, Oscar Wilde, Nietsche, Steven Pinker, and G. K. Chesterton. There's a brief excerpt from a children's book by James Baldwin, and a couple examples that refer, in fairly generic ways, to works by Angelou and Douglass. The text would be greatly enlivened, deepened, and culturally enriched by textual examples from a wider range of cultures, communities, literatures, and Englishes.

This is an exceptionally useful book for first-semester, first-year college students, because of its patient, in-depth, and generous explanations of basic writing skills for college writing. For this reason, it would be an excellent resource for a FYW course if it were supplemented with additional readings that helped students see how their own experience and perspective can be transformed into energetic and powerful prose.

Reviewed by Danielle Santos, Adjunct Professor, University of Massachusetts Lowell on 6/14/21

For an introductory Composition course, this text covers what I teach. I like the examples given, and many of the diagrams are helpful &amp; similar to what I already use. However, I wouldn't have minded more prompts for practice exercises as I... read more

For an introductory Composition course, this text covers what I teach. I like the examples given, and many of the diagrams are helpful & similar to what I already use. However, I wouldn't have minded more prompts for practice exercises as I tend to gravitate towards texts that include those. I do think the text lends itself well to developmental instruction (which I also teach), so while accessible and easy to read for all students, I could see myself using it more for certain Composition courses than others.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

I do think the material accurately covers the concepts presented. I am happy to see a short section on annotated bibliographies (because I typically require these when I assign research papers), but I noticed the example wasn't structured correctly in alphabetical order/presented in the appropriate way. A small detail, but something that I would still have to provide my own example for.

The concepts covered are certainly relevant to the times. It's possible that some examples will be outdated in a couple of years and more relevant examples could be substituted.

The conversational, friendly tone is definitely an asset of this text. The authors present the concepts in a straightforward manner with solid explanations, all the while avoiding excessive jargon. This is an accessible text for all levels of learners.

The text is consistently organized and presented, and the voice of the text carries through each chapter.

I think the information is sectioned out well and clearly presented. There are some chapters where the material is more dense; others seem rather short. Chapter 7 is particularly lengthy, but one could easily refer to only the information necessary (specific modes of writing, for example). Chapter 11 is also a long one, and it seemed to be especially text-heavy for the first half of it. I think that chapter would've benefitted from further visuals when discussing how to find sources, using keywords, etc.

"You, Writing!" takes a pretty traditional organization for a Composition text. It starts with the writing process and situation, progresses through topics, thesis statements, and organization, and rounds out with grammar and research. For courses that typically structure basic writing skills early in the semester followed by a research project, this organization works well; however, one could also assign the reading out of sequence and it would be fine.

The interface looks good. I appreciate the additional resources in the form of web links, but a few did not work (I feel this can be common for this type of resource).

There are a few errors in the text, but the writing is clear and consistent. Grammatical errors are minor (though I do believe they should be fixed for a textbook on writing!).

The text is culturally sensitive and inclusive. It includes examples, names, and current events that are culturally-attuned.

Overall, there are a lot of aspects of this text that I liked. I would most likely use it in my course, supplementing with readings and exercises. I appreciate the fact that it is comprehensive and easy to read.

Reviewed by David Beach, Associate Professor, Radford University on 5/21/21

Glynn's text serves as a comprehensive rhetoric to help first-year college students navigate the expectations of expository college writing. A good supplemental text for any FY expository writing course. read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

Glynn's text serves as a comprehensive rhetoric to help first-year college students navigate the expectations of expository college writing. A good supplemental text for any FY expository writing course.

Most information on rhetoric and composition are on the mark. I always struggle with the traditional way of teaching "thesis." In FYC, we interpret "thesis" as the controlling idea of an essay. However, the way it is often taught is to develop the controlling idea, then find supporting evidence to that idea. This is not how college students should approach research. Granted, a working thesis may help point students in a particular direction, but if we want our students to be good researchers and writers, then they need to grapple with ideas to come to some conclusion (thesis), and they do this by working from the inside out, not starting with a thesis.

Everything in Glynn's text is relevant...until MLA and APA publish new editions! However, the fundamental information on MLA and APA will be able to stand.

Clarity rating: 4

Glynn's text is overall lucid and accessible, with mostly clear explanations of jargon and technical terminology. By their nature, rhetoric, grammar, and mechanics are not native languages to most FY college students, and I think Glynn does a good job helping FY college students become proficient in the language of writing.

"You, Writing!" reinforces ideas throughout the text through scaffolding and by being consistent in terminology and framework.

Modularity rating: 3

While there are some good infographics throughout the text, there are meaningless graphics peppered throughout in an attempt to make the text visually appealing. As it is, the book is a bit text-heavy, despite it being a book about rhetoric and composition! Today's students are visually oriented, so more infographics definitely helps.

Clear, logical organization throughout the text, exploring how we come to writing, how we can write, and the tools and skills needed to write effectively.

As a PDF, the text is solid, with the ability to move to pages easily. It would be helpful to have a hyperlinked sidebar menu so the students can move to sections based on topic instead of page number.

The only grammatical errors are those that were intended to show as examples.

Glynn uses a diverse and wide variety of references throughout the text. Though not a fan of Stanley Fish, I understand using his points for the sake of argument!

I plan to use this text in my first-semester FY writing courses as it is a strong, open-source resource that students can use throughout their college careers and later.

Reviewed by Michele Ren, Associate Professor, Radford University on 5/4/21

The book is certainly comprehensive and provides a glossary; I wish I could give 4.5 because a clickable table of contents would be wonderful. read more

The book is certainly comprehensive and provides a glossary; I wish I could give 4.5 because a clickable table of contents would be wonderful.

Caught a typo pretty early on (page 12 "conclusionn"), but the content itself is accurate and unbiased. Re. accuracy, I especially appreciated that the list of "transition words" is specifically discussed as a way to make transitions within a paragraph rather than between paragraphs. Many texts simply list those words but do not discuss ways of using them and students inevitably will insert a "furthermore" when adding something that is neither further nor more.

Uses specific contemporary detail for writing examples in a way that makes the text relevant for students, but not in a way that it would seem outdated any time soon.

Easy to read, short sections, lots of spacing and bold and graphics to break up chunks of text in ways that are not distracting.

Chapters follow a similar format with subtitles, bulleted information, graphics, and spacing between paragraphs when larger chunks of text are needed to explain a concept. Fonts and font styles (bold, italics) and justification are used consistently from chapter to chapter.

Chapters are short and subdivided in ways that would make creation of handouts or assigning small passages/sections easy.

The placement of thesis and research in different places gives me pause, especially when research is used after an argument is created (I worry about confirmation bias rather than doing research and then formulating a topic), but, the book is set up in a way that sections could be assigned in different order, and the authors address the difficulty in defining one specific writing process in the graphics they provide on pages 12 and 13.

Again, a clickable table of contents would have been so lovely!

These are composition instructors, so errors are minimal. But, again, "conclusionn" page 12 did jump out at me. Also: "Black Lives Matters" should be "Black Lives Matter"

I appreciated the attention to diversity in examples (Black Lives Matter - in spite of the misspelling, Native American traditions), although maybe not college women trying to avoid the "freshman fifteen."

My university has an older OER composition handbook that I have been using for awhile; I am actually considering replacing it with this one because examples are newer and it may work for both freshman courses. I would love to see a clickable TOC, though!

Reviewed by Erica Braverman, Part-time instructor, Portland Community College on 1/12/21

This book is great for a writing class geared toward academic writing. It covers the basics of instructing a first-year student of how to go through the writing process and what they can expect while doing so. I especially liked the section on... read more

This book is great for a writing class geared toward academic writing. It covers the basics of instructing a first-year student of how to go through the writing process and what they can expect while doing so. I especially liked the section on revision, which clearly laid out critical questions the student can ask themself when making decisions. I also liked the attention to different processes, giving students information about what they are and encouraging students to find the one that works for them.

This book has credible, clear information. The information is presented in a non-prescriptive way, giving agency to students to try things out and find what works for them. The authors also include sources for students to do further research on their own if they want.

The book includes cultural, historical and literary examples to explain concepts. The authors were shrewd in choosing cultural references that are relevant to students now but will also age well (e.g., Google). I also appreciated the attention to writing that has real-world relevancy for students, such as writing resumes or a letter or email to a manager. I thought some of the examples used, however, would not be as interesting to students who aren't as focused on academic studies or obtaining a four-year degree (Shakespeare; Moby Dick; latinate used in Abraham Lincoln's speech). I thought the authors missed an opportunity to engage students who might not make writing, research, or academia their career, but are still interested in learning to write and communicate better in real-world situations outside of the classroom.

The authors explain concepts well, but perhaps a bit too thoroughly. The chapters contain long blocks of text that might seem intimidating to beginner-level students. Again, the examples given tend toward "high-culture," and might not help students connect concepts to their lived experiences.

The book is consistent and easy to navigate.

Instructors can break up the information as they want with relative ease.

It's designed with the student in mind, taking them through the writing process step-by-step. The chapter on editing, though, consists of a lot of information on grammar, sentence structure, etc., which students might find overwhelming. I wanted the information to first be more succinct, before getting into the specifics and details.

The text is easy to read and navigate. I especially liked the way the authors explained how the steps of the writing process may not always be linear. They first listed out the steps, and then marked them up in a graphic to show how the order might be different.

The text is clean and clear of errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 3

I personally would not use this textbook with my community college students because I don't think the examples would particularly interest them or pertain to them (mostly literary, historical, scholarly examples--very few cultural or real-world examples they could relate to their lived experience).

Reviewed by Matthew Chelf, Adjunct Instructor, Portland Community College on 12/9/20

You, Writing! wonderfully covers the whole of the writing process in 170 pages of approachable, audience-friendly language. Like many contemporary texts on first year college composition, You, Writing! stresses writing as a process, not a product.... read more

You, Writing! wonderfully covers the whole of the writing process in 170 pages of approachable, audience-friendly language. Like many contemporary texts on first year college composition, You, Writing! stresses writing as a process, not a product. In addition to covering academic writing, the text also includes other modalities such as professional writing (emails, resumes) and social media postings. What unites the text is a consistent focus on writing as audience-focused.

The text participates in many of the themes you find in first-year college composition texts. With that said, I did not find anything inaccurate or that I would be uncomfortable sharing with students.

In the text’s introduction, the authors seem to anticipate a common criticism of writing, and the humanities in general: why is writing relevant to more lucrative and pursued careers that require a STEM degree? Given the relationship between writing and reading, I found this to be a relevant note to start on, and the authors answer the question “why write?” by demonstrating how many of the skills within writing (critical thinking, communication) transfer to real world applications and careers, like Google for instance. To get their point across, the text is organized in quick, pithy sections laden with different formats that will appeal to students coming of age in the digital era.

The language and sentences are clear and straightforward. There is nothing confusing or complicated. For example, the authors do a great job explicating thesis writing. Often, we teachers treat the components of thesis writing as cumbersome moving parts, but here the elements of a good thesis are three: interesting, limited, specific (32). Using the previous discussion of audience-centered writing, the authors demonstrate in three subsequent subsections how the three qualities of thesis writing play out in unique examples.

The tone, language, and format remains consistent yet dynamic throughout the text. One major theme in particular--audience-focused writing--reminds the reader of previous passages in the text, so as the reader moves forward they integrate new knowledge with previous information. This repetition is wonderful, and each chapter builds upon itself.

I enjoy the brief, concise chapter-and-subchapter format and find them student-friendly. Paragraphs are never more than several sentences. Examples, images, subheadings often follow paragraphs so there is rarely more than 3-4 paragraphs grouped at a time. The table of contents is very thorough, which makes it simple to pick what you want to assign and what you may want to skip. The text is holistic enough, though, that I could see myself assigning the text as a whole.

As I stated, I enjoy the brief, concise chapter-and-subchapter format and find them student-friendly. The chapters build upon each other in a logical fashion. At the end of chapters, there are resources for further reading.

The authors include graphics, charts, bulleted lists, and illustrations to accompany ideas, themes, and lessons in the text without cluttering the page or the meaning. I found the text easy on the eyes and presented in a very streamlined fashion.

I did not find grammar mistakes. In fact, there are even chapters later in the text about grammar.

Sprinkled with references to contemporary life like Twitter, Black Lives Matter, and the intricacies of identity like gender and socio-economic background, part of the success of You, Writing! is that it recontextualizes first year college composition to the current cultural landscape. Moreover, the organization of the text in its streamlined, modular fashion is well suited to the cultural reading style that young students seem to have owing to growing up with the Internet. In other words, I think this text is well suited, culturally, to digitally fluent students.

Reviewed by Charles Prescott, Professor of English, Berkshire Community College on 6/28/20

The text effectively and comprehensively covers the main topics and strategies included in an introductory composition course. I especially appreciate the Basic Writing Process Chart as a graphic introduction of the key steps of the writing... read more

The text effectively and comprehensively covers the main topics and strategies included in an introductory composition course. I especially appreciate the Basic Writing Process Chart as a graphic introduction of the key steps of the writing process, immediately followed by hand-drawn arrows indicating how messy and recursive that process can be. There are also good examples of how to come up with ideas to write about, how to establish organization, and how to revise. The glossary of key terms, like the rest of the text, is both thorough and approachable to guide new college students through the writing process.

The book is accurate in dealing with the subject matter. I did not find any material I would consider inaccurate.

The strategies presented in the text for brainstorming, drafting, and revising are highly relevant and broad enough so that they should not need updating. The sections on research strategies and citation, especially in APA, may need more frequent updating. However, the less-is-more approach to the basics of citation, should make it relatively easy to update in the text. The text presents enough information so that the individual instructor can easily fill in any holes or mention updated strategies while teaching the course.

The clear, approachable writing style the authors use is by far the best feature of this text! Not only is the writing process presented in a clear, step-by-step manner, the text is actually fun and funny to read! Examples of how to brainstorm topics and how to compose drafts of specific types of essays are clear and approachable. I expect my students to get a lot out of this text, and to enjoy reading it as well!

The text uses the Basic Writing Process Chart to create consistency, explaining each of those steps thoroughly with examples. Visual cues like handwritten annotations also help to build a strong sense of consistency throughout the text. Some of the transitions between sections in the Drafting chapter are a bit clunky, but overall the presentation is consistent.

Modularity is a strength of this text. Smaller sections on brainstorming techniques and grammar could easily be inserted into discussion of other composition topics.

For the most part the organization of this text is fine, but including discussion of different rhetorical modes in the Drafting chapter is a bit odd. I would prefer to see discussion of different styles of writing (narrative, informative, persuasive) as separate chapters, rather than listed as part of Drafting. However, I acknowledge that’s more of a personal preference than a real critique.

I did not notice any interface problems.

I did not notice any distracting grammatical errors. The text is clean, clear, and approachable, making it an ideal model of what good writing can do in the context of an introductory composition course.

The text includes some discussion and examples of culturally relevant topics, such a Black Lives Matter. I did not specifically notice Cultural Relevance as a strength or weakness of the text.

I find You, Writing! to be a fun and flexible, unintimidating introduction to composition. Its combination of a playful tone, emphasis on process, and explanation that writing should not be too bound by that process strikes me as just the right mix. I anticipate that the students will find it a very helpful resource, and that I’ll enjoy teaching with it.

Reviewed by Caroline Stanley, Associate Professor, Bridgewater State University on 6/22/20

The text is comprehensive in covering the major topics pertaining to basic writing. It provides many useful tips about the writing process including proofreading, correcting run-on sentences, and overcoming writer’s block. Likewise, the glossary... read more

The text is comprehensive in covering the major topics pertaining to basic writing. It provides many useful tips about the writing process including proofreading, correcting run-on sentences, and overcoming writer’s block. Likewise, the glossary is comprehensive and well-written.

The content appears to be accurate and error-free.

The content is up-to-date and rife with examples that are relevant for the college population. Examples are not likely to become obsolete or else can be easily updated.

Readers will appreciate the fact that the paragraphs are short, and the writing is concise. There is little jargon or technical terminology used and new terms are defined very clearly. The authors provide interesting examples and the writing style is casual, relatable, and humorous.

Consistency rating: 4

The text is consistent in terms of its terminology and framework. Likewise, the writing style remains consistent across the chapters.

The text is modular in that each chapter “stands on its own” and can be assigned separately from the others. Each chapter is useful regardless of the order in which it is assigned and the length of each chapter is manageable.

The text is well-organized and the chapters are presented in a logical order.

Some of the “charts” (see page 45) presented are actually lists of words. These lists would be more effective if displayed in a table.

Grammatical Errors rating: 3

There are some grammatical errors, some pertaining to tense or subject-verb agreement (i.e., “psychologist Abraham Maslow describe,” pg. 19; “The most important section are,” pg. 19). Though these errors do not obscure meaning, they could (and should) be corrected.

The text is inclusive of a variety of races, ethnicities, and backgrounds. It may be of interest to some instructors that, when discussing how to write a strong thesis statement in chapter 5, the author briefly discusses the Black Lives Matters Movement. In doing so, the author provides content that may be especially relevant for those wishing to expose students to the concept of racial bias.

I find the language to be simple and easy to understand. Some may consider it too elementary for a college sample and more suitable for high school readers.

Reviewed by Colin Rafferty, Associate Professor, University of Mary Washington on 6/19/20

Covers the full spectrum of introductory writing studies, including big picture things like generating ideas and organizing them as well as more local issues like style and grammar. A glossary of commonly used terms is helpful, as the discussion... read more

Covers the full spectrum of introductory writing studies, including big picture things like generating ideas and organizing them as well as more local issues like style and grammar. A glossary of commonly used terms is helpful, as the discussion of citations and research. It's a book that's clearly rooted in theory but avoids getting the reader bogged down in it--perfect for the general academic writing class.

Very little in the book is inaccurate; perhaps it might have addressed the emergence of the singular "they" in recent years, but beyond that, the book is almost entirely error-free.

Its focus on the writing process rather than the end product, while still emphasizing its importance, allows the book to stay fresh for generations of students. I was very pleased to see that the book notes the existence of multiple drafts between the first and final ones. Barring a seismic shift in the world of writing pedagogy, this book will remain useful for years to come.

Incredibly accessible to the general audience. The voice is familiar and welcoming without trying too hard to be on the level of the students. As I stated before, it's a book that has done the theoretical work so that the reader doesn't have to get caught up in jargon and esoterica.

The three authors have managed a consistent voice throughout the entire book, and nothing transitions jarringly or confusingly. They remain constant throughout in how they refer to the elements of writing, and at no point do they introduce new knowledge without explaining to the reader just what it means.

Even as I was reading the book, I was thinking about how I could use certain chapters and sections in my existing composition course. The book is easily adaptable to a variety of situations, and the authors are careful to make sure that the chapters, while informing each other, can stand alone, which allows for the professor to use as she sees fit.

Despite the book's potential for modularity, the best way to encounter it is to read it straight through. The ideas follow logically upon one another, and the authors build the sense of writing as a process through their own organization of the text.

Easily readable and clear throughout, even when graphics enter the text.

Nothing that obscures meaning.

Inclusive throughout, whether in the choices of examples--BLM shows up at one point, which is appropriate for my Fall 2020 classes--or in the names used in the text. A good book for all. (Now, about that singular "they"...)

A solid book for the composition classroom. I look forward to adopting it for my general writing seminar this fall.

Reviewed by Katie Durant, Adjunct Professor, Middlesex Community College on 6/17/20

This book covers all the major topics I teach in my class currently. It is written clearly with many interesting examples to help students understand the concepts. The index is very helpful and the glossary in the back defines many of the key... read more

This book covers all the major topics I teach in my class currently. It is written clearly with many interesting examples to help students understand the concepts. The index is very helpful and the glossary in the back defines many of the key terms in an easy to read format.

This book is accurate in dealing with the subject matter. I covers much of what I have taught for years in a clear and comprehensive way. I found no bias or errors (besides one typo).

This book is relevant as it mentions only cultural happenings and figures that are significant like lasting political movements and figures as well as well-read authors. There is one mention of a writer who is referred to as living but is now deceased, but that does not affect the relevance of the text. Because the book focuses on basics, it is unlikely that it will need any content updates besides possibly the mention of the author.

The book demonstrates a relatable voice without using vocabulary and sentence complexity that is out of reach for a developmental or beginning-college level. It is easy to read and has a comfortable pacing. There is little jargon or technical terminology in this book, but where new terms are introduced, the definitions are provided in a comprehensive way.

The book retains its consistency throughout. From the beginning to the end the voice of the author is relatable, and the book's vocabulary is not overbearing.

Because each section of the book is self reliant, the book is modular and each chapter can be used alone or in conjunction with other chapters. The self-contained nature of this book makes it more useful in different classes.

The flow of topics in the text is logical and effective with one topic building onto the previous ones. The only exception is the section on basic grammar skills like making complete sentences. This information is found in the last chapter on proofreading. While proofreading does require these skills, It would be more logical to move this section to the beginning chapters and refer back to the basic grammar in the revising section.

The author was careful to create a simple interface without distracting of confusing diagrams and images. One can navigate it easily.

I only found one typo on the text. The rest of it retains the grammatical standards that it teaches.

This book used examples from real life when making points, and I found these to be culturally relevant, inclusive, and effective. The author mentions the Black Lives Matter movement and discusses the writings of Martin Luther King, Jr. to cite two examples of inclusivity and cultural relevance.

I will be picking up this book to teach a composition course and portions of it for a developmental writing course. Its clear and conversational tone as well as its modularity make it an ideal OER resource for my class.

Reviewed by Matthew Gilbert, Adjunct Instructor, East Tennessee State University on 4/16/20

This book provides a comprehensive approach for all levels of writers for a range of writing projects. The text works effectively in providing a breakdown of all major aspects of composition: how to determine the audience or purpose of the... read more

This book provides a comprehensive approach for all levels of writers for a range of writing projects. The text works effectively in providing a breakdown of all major aspects of composition: how to determine the audience or purpose of the assignment, how to develop a thesis statement and supporting arguments, and how to write a draft and follow through development and revisions from start to finish. The text is targeted towards beginning college writers, though it is not limited to beginners. The text approaches a wide range of assignments/academic tasking, including but not limited to, professional email etiquette, argumentation, and critical analysis. While the book does demonstrate a wide representation of college writing expectations and skills, the generality of it requires instructors to supplement other materials to further develop student understanding beyond the basic levels. The table of contents provides precise detailing of the materials throughout and I found the glossary incredibly useful.

The book is surprisingly accurate and well-composed. The writers demonstrate a wide and thorough understanding of the writing process conventions of language, style, tone, etc., and they provide informative lessons on where to find current formatting instruction. The grammar section of the text is quite brief but effectively introduces students to many of the major areas of concern in academic writing; However, if a teacher wants to focus highly on grammar, supplemental information or a different text would be more beneficial.

Majority of the information provided works universally and provides a strong foundation to students without experience in writing academically or professionally. The text provides a strong overview or how to brainstorm and develop ideas, how to organize and structure an essay around a claim, how to pitch your idea to an audience, how to properly use subordinating clauses, and how to write introductions and conclusions. The authors provide resources for further studies like Online Writing Labs, where students can find up-to-date APA formatting for example. The writing seems contemporary and addressed composition from current pedagogical approaches.

The writer does well to not only instruct students with their precise writing styles and examples but to showcase these lessons through the text writing itself. The writing is concise, concrete, and easy to read. As an example of the clear writing that sets this book apart from more commercial texts: “Some instructors will also call the clause, ‘As I walked down the store’ an introductory phrase that needs a comma after it. Whatever the instructor calls it, the comma needs to be there.” This passage not only provides clear instruction but highlights the authors’ understanding of diverse terminology that teachers may use in the classroom.

The book maintains its terminology and framework throughout the chapters. Each chapter addresses key steps in the writing process, which works comprehensively with previous chapters to build on developed knowledge.

Structurally the book works well in the order that the lessons and chapters are positioned, though I find that students learn better when they have positive examples to learn from. For this reason, I would recommend that proofreading skills are moved closer to the front, but this can easily be addressed with supplemental lessons and instruction. The text works well in order, but it can be adapted to suit the needs of the instructor and the classroom with a little foresight.

The writing process steps are quite organized in a manner that is easy to scaffold. As mentioned in the structure, I think that proofreading could be moved sooner in the text so that students can learn from seeing proper usage. I also feel that the research, plagiarism, and citation section could have been moved closer to the front; however, the text can be adapted to suit the classroom needs with a little planning. The authors make an excellent point that the writing process is not linear; therefore, the text can be taught out of order to a similar effect as teaching from start to finish of the text.

The text was quite legible so I had no difficulty reading lessons or examples. The images and charts are visually appealing and very contemporary. I think the overall approach to text construction works well to appeal to students regardless of their learning types.

The grammar is excellent and works well to instruct students by example!

The writing samples illustrate a diverse range of writers and backgrounds. This will work well to avoid intimidating students, especially beginner writers.

Overall, I find this text to be written with precision. It seems like an appropriate way to approach composition/ writing instruction for beginner writers and writers who need to broaden their range of writing approaches.

Reviewed by Susan Pesti-Strobel, Adjunct Instructor, Linn-Benton Community College on 1/12/20

_You, Writing!_ by Glynn et al. guides the student writer through successful moves of academic writing. This book would be a very useful companion for both students and instructors. It is clear that the writers have extensive experience with... read more

_You, Writing!_ by Glynn et al. guides the student writer through successful moves of academic writing. This book would be a very useful companion for both students and instructors. It is clear that the writers have extensive experience with teaching college composition and, accordingly, they cover the writing process for a collection of generally assigned types of papers in early writing courses. They also provide a multi-modal, visually accessible format with plenty of white space to keep it from an overwhelming experience for student writers. The same student writers get a lot of encouragement to build on what they already know and have practiced during their career so far, but they also get plenty of friendly nudges toward taking it to the next level. The authors offer writing samples, ranging from phrases or sentences to paragraph-length samples to sample essays, each of which is a quite helpful teaching tool. Chapter 9 on revising, one of the tougher concepts in freshman composition classes, is a particularly welcome overview of helpful ways to tackle the final stages of the writing process. The relatively detailed section on style is an especially welcome discussion, again, a concept that often gets scant attention in comprehensive composition textbooks. A useful glossary completes the book. I would be tempted to adopt this textbook for my classes, but the one element that gives me pause is the rather belated discussion of research.

The textbook is readable, clear, and for the most part, error-free. It appears, though, that the promised discussion of comma splices, something I find myself addressing heavily in my classes, is missing (see p. 123 and on).

The content is absolutely relevant and reflects the current take on teaching college composition, but without the danger of becoming obsolete soon. It looks to me that it would be relatively easy to update and implement the text.

The text is indeed written in an accessible language that is easy to comprehend by its intended audience. The authors use technical terminology necessary to the content.

The text is internally consistent in terms of terminology. The visual framework could, however, be more consistent throughout. The style - color, format, etc. - of call-outs could be made more consistent for the whole text.

As with most of us teaching college composition, assigning units from a writing textbooks will usually follow the schedule of actual writing assignments. This text lends itself to short, select reading assignments to complement the curriculum.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 3

Overall, the topics are organized in a logical pattern. The one snag for me is the belated discussion of research - it is one of the last chapters. Consider the mantra of college writing across the curriculum: "Research everything!" With that thought in mind, I would prefer this chapter earlier in the book, especially because, and inevitably, the authors do reference the importance of research throughout.

The text is free of significant interface issues. I do suggest a more consistent usage of textboxes throughout, however.

The text is free of grammatical errors.

Even though the text refrains from addressing particularly sensitive social/cultural topics, it provides a good springboard for a variety of topics that can inspire student writers to branch out on their own.

I recommend this text for consideration in freshman composition courses. I am definitely putting it on my list of "promising titles."

Reviewed by Sheri Anderson, Composition Instructor, Colorado State University on 12/24/19

"You, Writing!" comprehensively addresses the basics of writing in a casual, easily-accessible way. It would be an extremely useful textbook in a freshman composition class. It covers a variety of writing genres, as well as some basics that we, as... read more

"You, Writing!" comprehensively addresses the basics of writing in a casual, easily-accessible way. It would be an extremely useful textbook in a freshman composition class. It covers a variety of writing genres, as well as some basics that we, as instructors, often assume that our students already know (yet they often don't), such as how to title your paper and how to annotate a text.

There are many writing samples throughout this textbook which make it a great reference for students. The examples of "high," "casual," and "low" writing styles, and rewrites to make famous excerpts a different writing style, are a smart way to demonstrate to students what academic writing is (and isn't). The lessons on grammar are framed rhetorically by being placed within a chapter about proofreading at the end of the (Ch. 10). I found this textbook to be clearly written and comprehensive in covering the basics of freshman composition.

The copy in this textbook is clean and error-free, which makes it easy to read and understand.

The information in this book is relevant and reliable for composition classes. It is clearly organized, making it easy to use and reference.

This text is particularly clear and easily to read and understand, without trying too hard to be hip and young. Students will appreciate the clear descriptions and examples within the text, as well as the inclusion of an appendix at the end of the textbook, which offers a glossary of terms which they might need to

This text uses a rhetorical framework for teaching writing, while simplifying the basics of tone and genre to make them more accessible for the student writer.

This textbook lends itself to smaller readings within a class curriculum very well. It could be used out of chapter order while still maintaining its integrity, and chapters can be easily broken into smaller, daily readings.

The chapters within this text are well-organized.

This book's text is easy to navigate, and its text and visuals are easy to read both online or as a pdf download.

The text within this textbook is clean and error-free.

This book is relevant across cultural boundaries and makes use of examples that cross a variety of backgrounds.

Reviewed by Kristin Macintyre, Instructor of Composition, Colorado State University on 12/21/19

This text appears in eleven chapters, and each chapter covers an important component in the writing process. The chapters cover basic (but important) steps such as defining audience and purpose (chapter 3), finding a topic (chapter 4), and writing... read more

This text appears in eleven chapters, and each chapter covers an important component in the writing process. The chapters cover basic (but important) steps such as defining audience and purpose (chapter 3), finding a topic (chapter 4), and writing a thesis statement (chapter 5). In addition, the text acknowledges writing in different modes (or genres), such as persuasive writing, informative writing, and professional writing. The text also covers brainstorming, drafting, editing, revising, and organizing, as well as citation and research strategies and gives plenty of specific tips on engaging with meaningful writing practices.

I didn't notice any glaring errors!

I think the items in this textbook are very relevant. The concepts are simple yet foundational. There are some links to additional resources that I can see changing over time, but I do appreciate the additional references and plan to use them! (Thinking here about the links to Purdue OWL slides/videos on page 23). Overall, I think the text is relevant, and where it makes outside reference, the text is easily able to be updated or modified.

I found this textbook very clear. The text does a nice job delivering its points in a concise manner, and it doesn't require the reader to infer meaning. Each chapter is complete with clear headings and digestible paragraphs, and the text makes frequent use of examples to illustrate its points. I think that this text would prove accessible for many students in the first-year composition classroom, regardless of their writing proficiencies.

I found this textbook very consistent. At no point did I feel that the quality of the text was compromised, and I do appreciate the consistent tone throughout. Overall, I think the text is wonderfully self-contained and does not require much modification or elaboration in any of its chapters.

I very much plan to borrow portions of this textbook. I think its ability to be divided and adapted to other lessons is a particular strength, since I am often looking to scaffold and grow my own lessons. I've already begun to mark impressive/clear examples, definitions, and explanations that I'm excited to invite into my classroom next semester.

Organization is another strength of this text. This, of course, goes hand-in-hand with the text's clarity. As I mentioned above, I'm impressed by the text's ability to divide writing into digestible, understandable components. Nothing here feels convoluted or unnecessarily complex. I enjoyed the logic of the book and think its chapters are clear and easily accessible. This also makes jumping around the book easy--a quality that lends itself to both teachers and students of writing.

The formatting of the textbook does feel a bit elementary or unthoughtful at times. There are just a few diagrams that are hand-drawn, which makes a few spots in the book feel a bit underdeveloped. Otherwise, the interface is very workable.

I didn't notice any grammatical missteps.

Though I'm not sure this book would be considered culturally inclusive, I certainly did not find it culturally exclusive. Its focus is primarily the writing process, and its examples do not venture into culturally offensive territory. I would feel very comfortable assigning this textbook on diverse campuses.

I really enjoyed this textbook and am planning to borrow lots of material from it! Thank you to the authors; I've struggled to find a book that feels adaptable to my courses. The information here feels relevant, consistent, and complete. I will be recommending the book to my colleagues!

Reviewed by Jessica Kane, Assistant Professor, Michigan State University on 11/14/19

The book covers the major steps for academic writing, and while it had some examples of non-academic sources, it seemed to focus pretty overwhelmingly on "essays" in various formats. That's exactly what some programs want, though a bit limited for... read more

The book covers the major steps for academic writing, and while it had some examples of non-academic sources, it seemed to focus pretty overwhelmingly on "essays" in various formats. That's exactly what some programs want, though a bit limited for others.

I generally found the content to be accurate

The book steers away from examples that will quickly become obsolete, and uses writing from a variety of time periods to help illustrate its point.

The definitions of different terms at the beginning of the chapters is especially helpful.

Consistency rating: 3

I was surprised to find that the text devoted (for example) eight pages to audience and 40-something pages to specific grammar details. While the organization went from higher-order concerns to lower-order concerns, meaning that all the editing and grammar information came towards the end, it felt lopsided in that respect. The chapter about research/finding sources came at the very end, perhaps because the authors were trying to make the discussion of organization, argument, audience, etc. relevant for projects that don't involve research, but that also surprised me.

The different sections are well-contained and easily readable.

As with consistency, I found the amount of space given to different elements of writing to be strange. The text is set up to be chronological, to take the reader through the steps of writing, beginning with audience and ending with proofreading. The first eight chapters flowed logically from one to the next, the ninth and tenth chapters ("Editing" and "Proofreading") came at a chronologically logical time but just took up so much space, and the eleventh chapter ("Research Process") seemed strangely tacked on to the end

Text interface is clear

The book's grammar is sound

The text did a good job bringing in multiple voices

An overall strong text, particularly for classes or programs that are very focused on teaching students academic writing. It generally did a good job explaining why different elements of writing and the writing process matter, it used both professional and student writing examples, and it is written to be easy to read. My major critique is the overwhelming focus on academic writing, which is an important element of first-year writing courses but not (I believe) the only element. The "professional writing" section is limited and less helpful, I would generally point students to other resources when we discuss professional writing.

Reviewed by Megan Morris, Adjunct professor, Richard Bland College on 10/16/19

The textbook thoroughly covers the subject of writing, including differences between high school and college writing, generating ideas, developing a thesis, different modes of paragraph development, research and citation, and sentence skills. The... read more

The textbook thoroughly covers the subject of writing, including differences between high school and college writing, generating ideas, developing a thesis, different modes of paragraph development, research and citation, and sentence skills. The amount of space devoted to these areas is not e even, however. While much detailed attention is given to the specific terminology of Greek logic, for example, the text might have benefited from more extensive concrete examples of critical reading and how it plays out in practice in student writing. While I really liked the sample annotations of the poems, many student writers in introductory English classes are working with prose rather than poetry. Furthermore, simply seeing the annotations would not necessarily help struggling students see how to write an essay or a paragraph that develops their critical reading of the text. Likewise, I would have liked to see more concrete examples of paraphrasing and introducing quotations later in the text; the section that discusses those issues seemed somewhat abbreviated, and those are typically major areas of student concern. All of that being said, however, the textbook's coverage of most areas of first-year writing was quite comprehensive, and the introduction of a few outside texts would easily remedy gaps such as the one I mentioned above.

I observed no problems with the text's accuracy, and I also noticed no bias in the way that it's written.

The text is up-to-date, including the most recent changes in MLA formatting, and --particularly as the conventions of English don't change very fast--I don't foresee any difficulty with updating this textbook as necessary. The social and cultural references I noticed in the textbook (such as Twitter and Steven Colbert) are up-to-date and seem likely to resonate well with students for some time to come.

The language of the textbook is generally very clear and easy to follow. I see numerous efforts throughout to make readings and examples relevant and accessible to students, and the authors also integrate a variety of useful charts and diagrams for students who prefer to think graphically.

In a few places, I did have a few concerns about clarity. In the chapter on argumentation, for instance, some of the distinctions made between different types of argument seemed to specific or arcane to be particularly useful to many English 100 and English 101 student. While distinguishing between inductive and deductive reasoning is very useful, for instance, distinguishing between "rhetorical argument" and "academic argument" seems a bit superfluous for the target audience. While that particular section is short, it distracts students a bit from the major issues at hand.

While the text generally lays out clear steps--the diagrams that outline writing processes are particularly nice--a few of the lists of steps seem somewhat cumbersome. In the Critical Reading chapter, for instance, the number of steps may be intimidating to many students.

The textbook is consistent throughout; I noticed no disparities in the use of terminology, for instance.

While the chapters themselves are long, they include useful divisions throughout, all of which are hyperlinked from the menu. It would be easy for an instructor to hyperlink only certain sections of the chapter for use in class. The sections seemed to stand quite well independently; it would be easy, for instance, to read the chapter on the writing process before the one on argumentation.

Generally, the book's organization is logical and in keeping with the typical flow of college composition textbooks. The only major exception was the chapter on the writing process. I'd at first thought that the editors had placed the chapter on argumentation first because it might cover issues like thesis and topic sentences, but that isn't the case;those topics appear most clearly--and, importantly, most accessibly for student writers--in the section on the writing process. I did feel that following the textbook in sequential order would result in students writing an essay before they'd been fully prepared to do so. I would be more inclined to place "The Writing Process" immediately after "Critical Reading," then assign the chapter on argumentation immediately before the discussion of the research process. That being said, however, it's easy to separate chapters into their component sections and assign them to fit smoothly within the broad structure of the course.

The text's interface looks really strong. I particularly liked the way that the text integrates links to a variety of media, including YouTube videos, to help student readers further explore concepts that they find either interesting or difficult.

I observed no major grammatical problems or typos.

The textbook appears to me to to be inclusive, and I didn't observe any issues with cultural sensitivity. Both issues are important to me because my college's student body is very diverse.

It's worth noting that I'd originally considered assigning this textbook for a developmental class, but I think that it's pitched too high. It would work better in the regular freshman English sequence.

Reviewed by Erica Heim, Graduate Employee / Composition Instructor, University of Oregon on 6/14/19

This text outlined all basic steps to the writing composition process, and then some. The entirety of the traditional writing process was outlined, from reading to brainstorming to organizing to drafting to revising and proofreading, but it... read more

This text outlined all basic steps to the writing composition process, and then some. The entirety of the traditional writing process was outlined, from reading to brainstorming to organizing to drafting to revising and proofreading, but it acknowledged that these stages can change order or recur; it just depends on the student. It also provided a thorough look at citations in different formats.

Besides a few intentional incomplete sentences (I believe constructed as a colloquial mechanism to relate to the pedestrian reader), the book was accurate both in content and in style.

This text is absolutely relevant to our era, and looks ahead to where we are going. It makes explicit the significance of writing in many different spheres, including social media posts and cover letters for resumes. This ubiquitous applicability ensures that the student may readily connect lessons to his or her everyday life.

The clarity might be what I appreciated most about this book. Some texts leave the student to infer their meanings, but this one made lessons crystal clear. In its clarity this text is also widely accessible, which is significant for students whose first language is not English or for whom high school English classes did not provide them with an adequate introductory education. Overall the clarity of this book makes it ideal for teaching in first-year college composition courses.

This book was certainly consistent. There were no surprises in any chapters, and students can follow along easily where the book is taking them.

The modularity is another thing I really appreciated about this text. Having sections with subsections makes it easier as an instructor to reconfigure reading assignments and construct a lesson out of several different (but relevant) subsections. Also each section was a feasible length so that different lessons could be combined without the reading assignment being too time-consuming.

Organization can always be improved, but the way this text presented its ideas was logical and clear. Readers can follow along easily without getting lost or needing to reference back to other sections.

This text's interface was easily navigable.

As mentioned previously, the grammar and syntactical structure of this text was 'correct' for the most part. There were a few instances of incomplete sentences or colloquial expressions, but those were likely intentional as a way to underscore a point or relate to the student reading.

This book was not culturally offensive. I am hyper-aware of those kinds of instances wherein an implicit cultural bias is made, and I am always looking for those instances - whether consciously or not. This text did not raise any alarms.

Overall this text was both accessible for students and moldable for teachers. It covers the basics of writing composition in college and demonstrates not only that anyone is capable of writing, but also that everyone is already writing in some way in their lives. It was crystal clear in communicating the processes of reading and writing, and also covered the ever-important topic of citations quite thoroughly. With a plethora of examples, this text illustrated the different shapes writing can take, and the different mechanisms writers can choose to employ. Ultimately, this text is thorough in content, accessible in style, and organized in such a way that an instructor can make it her own.

Reviewed by Margaret LaFleur, Instructor, Minnesota State on 5/29/19

This was quite comprehensive for a general overview of Composition. The authors don't get too deep into any given style of essay, which is helpful for instructors designing their own courses as it would allow them to build off of the general... read more

This was quite comprehensive for a general overview of Composition. The authors don't get too deep into any given style of essay, which is helpful for instructors designing their own courses as it would allow them to build off of the general examples. It also covers the Research Essay, which is key for any comprehensive Composition guide.

The authors took obvious care to write an accurate guide. There are a few instances that are accurate, if brief. The grammar chapters, for instance, are helpful but not overly detailed. This makes it helpful as a reference or starting point, but may not address all of student concerns. However, this would just require instructors to supplement, as all the information is accurate.

Good writing is somewhat timeless, even as language and styles evolve. There is a lot of discussion of process, which is the timeless aspect of good writing. Students need to be encouraged to work through the act of writing, not get hung up on a perfect finished process. In this sense the book is very relevant and helpful.

The authors make an evident effort to be clear and direct in the writing. It is definitely accessible to a wide range of readers. Additionally the authors take time to define words and ideas for students. For example, when discussing style they take time to explain "denotation" and "connotation" which are great concepts (and vocabulary!) words for students to learn as they are also learning to write.

Very consistent! In addition to a similar tone and framework the book also includes many familiar listing techniques and terminology that is common to other Composition books out there.

Like many Composition books this textbook follows the general outline of a Composition course. It starts at the beginning of the writing process, discusses drafting, then editing, and includes the Research Essay at the end of the book. These are broken up into smaller sections which would be easy to break down and assign. Generally the breakdown makes the most sense along the chapter breaks, as the chapters are clearly designed to be read in whole.

As noted above it follows an organizational pattern very familiar to Composition guides. Nothing ground breaking, but that's for the best.

I had no trouble navigating this book, and appreciated the use of simple and relevant images when they were included. The glossary and index help with the navigation as well.

Luckily the grammar is great, or it couldn't serve as a resource for those still learning grammar!

Because the language is straight forward and clear there are no accidental insensitive or offensive comments included. There are modern or current references, so it doesn't feel like students are reading dated work.

This is an excellent overview of Composition. It would require supplemental material and examples, I believe, but gives an instructor a very comprehensive basis to build off of.

Reviewed by Rebecca Owen, Adjunct Instructor , Chemeketa Community College on 5/6/19

This text is an excellent and conversational approach to college writing. It covers all the necessary topics, from styles of writing to grammar. The examples it uses are interesting and current, which makes it easy to read and follow. The glossary... read more

This text is an excellent and conversational approach to college writing. It covers all the necessary topics, from styles of writing to grammar. The examples it uses are interesting and current, which makes it easy to read and follow. The glossary in particular is quite effective! I also thought the explanations on logos, ethos, and pathos were well-defined for this level of writing student.

Nothing concerning in terms of accuracy and bias. This text could be adapted to suit any number of college composition courses.

Subject-wise, this book could be timeless. Some of the examples used (like in the grammar explanation chapters) were references to current pop culture events and figures. This could be something edited and shaped in future editions.

Very clear, very straightforward writing. It felt accessible, and it was written in such a way that might make a student nervous about writing feel more comfortable. The conversational style was a strength of this text.

Terminology and framework were acceptable. Some chapters might have benefited from explanations or activities to help boost students' understanding (especially in sentence types in the grammar sections).

Short, specific chapters that were easy to follow. I would definitely consider assigning portions of this text as supplementary reading for an online class, for instance.

The entire book is presented in an easy to read and follow fashion. The graphics are a nice touch that give it a bit of fun and personality, too.

I read this text on my iPad, and I had no trouble navigating through its entirety. Clear, streamlined writing that looked nice on the page.

I didn't see anything alarming in terms of grammatical errors.

Yes, this is definitely true--one example made mention of Trayvon Martin and Black Lives Matter in sample paragraphs. Others used songs or celebrities as subjects of sample essays and paragraphs. It felt relevant to this current era, and I think students would be comforted by how relevant it is.

I really liked how accessible and friendly this textbook seemed to me as the reader. Clear, specific explanations go a long way to make the writing process less of a mystery and more engaging and fun.

Reviewed by Tiffany Duet, Instructor, Nicholls State University on 4/29/19

The text includes pertinent content regarding writing processes and modes of writing. While it does an adequate job of explaining concepts regarding argumentation, the text neglects to provide logical fallacies (specifically ad populum) in... read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 3 see less

The text includes pertinent content regarding writing processes and modes of writing. While it does an adequate job of explaining concepts regarding argumentation, the text neglects to provide logical fallacies (specifically ad populum) in explaining methods of persuasion. Furthermore, some example essays in Chapter 7 lack the sophistication which is required in college-level assignments. Commentary on more challenging modes such as rhetorical and literary analysis, as well as research-based persuasion, seems underdeveloped. The text lacks an index but does include an extensive and informative glossary.

Overall, content concerning rhetorical strategies and writing style is accurate and informative. However, citations in examples of annotated bibliographies do not follow current APA or MLA guidelines, and the text includes other errors in MLA citation format.

Overall, the content is contemporary. A few examples which do pertain to the targeted age group may become obsolete within a few years. Yet, these examples should be relatively easy to update as they are isolated.

The authors avoid using advanced academic jargon. Terminology concerning the writing process is easily accessible to beginning composition students. Writing style is straight-forward and even conversational at times.

While the use of quoted material is not consistently formatted throughout the text, authors do use terminology consistently. Authors effectively use a “basic writing process chart” as both a visual aid and an organizational framework for content.

The text is divided into readable sections with appropriate heads and subheads.

The text is organized clearly around its “basic writing process” concept. Using running heads with chapter titles might help readers better comprehend the text’s organization.

The text includes helpful links to online resources. However, the “back button” returns the user to the table of contents instead of the pages containing the hyperlinks. This problem would be remedied if hyperlinks opened supplementary material in new windows. In addition, I discovered at least one invalid URL. Usability could also be improved by linking chapters on the table of contents to their corresponding pages.

While the text includes a few spelling/typographical errors, it is grammatically sound, overall.

The authors make a clear effort to include examples which are culturally inclusive. No offensive or insensitive material was detected.

The textbook does a very good job of showing the real processes of writing, messiness and all. This content should make those who struggle with the process comfortable in their own efforts to acquire or hone writing skills. Its readability will also prove helpful for the beginning composition student.

Reviewed by Jennifer Wilde, Adjunct instructor, Columbia Gorge Community College on 12/14/18

This book covers all the stages of a writing project, from determining the audience and purpose of a writing assignment, to developing a thesis statement and proofreading the final revision. It is geared to the beginning college writer and... read more

This book covers all the stages of a writing project, from determining the audience and purpose of a writing assignment, to developing a thesis statement and proofreading the final revision. It is geared to the beginning college writer and includes how to approach various assignments/academic tasks: emailing a professor about a missed quiz, constructing a literary argument, arguing a political position. Because it is so comprehensive and is generalist in its approach, there is not much time to dive deeply into any particular approach or assignment; however, because it is concisely written, the authors manage to give advice about just about everything an undergraduate may be asked to write, with a few exceptions. These include the general analytic essay, and the case report. The former assignment is useful for college writers because unlike the narrative or persuasive essays, it forces them to write with a specifically academic tone and to rely on data and logic. The book has an incredibly useful glossary, and the tablet of contents is extremely detailed.

The book is highly accurate. The writers are knowledgeable about the writing process, conventions of English, style, and where to locate up-to-date MLA and APA formatting information. The section on run-ons and sentence fragments is brief but informative. The list of subordinating conjunctions is not comprehensive. I find the phrase "dependent word" to be easier to use with writing students, but that's just a preference. The word "however" is listed as a conjunctive adverb, which it is, but not as a subordinating conjunction, which it also is (as in the sentence "However you look at it, English grammar is confusing". ) I think this whole grammar section is rather brief, trying to teach sentence skills in a few dozen pages; however, if it is meant as a review of the material for students who presumably have already learned it in a lower level class, it may be sufficient. (That "however" functions as a conjunctive adverb.) The passage of high versus low style is interesting, and not something I've seen before in writing texts. As opposed to the section on grammar, this part of the style section seems to go on too long.

Most of the material is timeless: how to generate ideas, how to organize an argument, how to pitch your writing to the audience and purpose, how to use semi-colons, how to approach introductions and conclusions, to name a few important sections. The authors helpfully provide resources such as the Online Writing Labs for students to locate and use as needed for information that is likely to change, such as the latest APA formatting rules. The writing samples feel very contemporary and not dated. (Well, except for the Gettysburg address, but that's a classic.)

The authors really lead by example here. The writing is unfussy, crystal-clear, highly specific and easy to read. Here is an example of the fine writing that sets this book apart from the oodles of writing books: "The technical way we use the word “argument” in writing simply means offering a written text into an ongoing debate with the hope of securing agreement among people of good will who currently disagree with you or hold a different view. This is the nature of deliberative democracy..." This passage exemplifies the way the authors define their terms as they go along; nothing feels like jargon because they explain their word choices.

The book is consistent in its terminology and the way the chapters are framed. Each chapter pertains to a step in the writing process. I have a small quibble with this because all the grammar and sentence skills are lumped into the chapter on proofreading, which seems too late.

It makes sense to read this book in order for the most part. I would recommend reading the section on proofreading earlier, so that writers can look at good sentences before they generate their own (that may just be me.) However, it is definitely possible to assign one chapter at a time and it is not strictly necessary to read them in order. Some students will not need to read about high and low style, while others may want to skip the section on ethos, logos and pathos (they shouldn't skip it, but if they aren't dealing with rhetoric it may not be necessary.)

I like how it is organized along the steps of the writing process: exploring, generating a thesis, writing, revising, proofreading, etc. The section on grammar perhaps should come a little earlier, and the section on research, citation and plagiarism also feels like it comes rather late in the process. However, the authors point out early in the book that the process is not linear, and student writers often loop back to where they started as research or writing alters their point of view.

I had to blow it up quite a bit to make the text legible. This was not difficult, however. The images and handwritten charts are charming and informative and they are visually pleasing. Navigation is no problem. I love the index and glossary!

The grammar is impeccable, as it should be!

The student writing samples appear to have been drawn from a diverse group of writers.

It is beautifully written. It seems just right for the young, early college writing student. It is too generalized to serve as an advanced writing text for a specific discipline. I would recommend that the section on conventions be turned into an appendix - it doesn't fit neatly into "proofreading" and it is more useful as a reference than as a chapter.

Reviewed by Michael Albright, Assistant Professor, MnSCU on 10/24/18

This text covers a range of composition and rhetoric topics, while allowing for the convenience of selecting concerns that are most relevant to particular courses or students. read more

This text covers a range of composition and rhetoric topics, while allowing for the convenience of selecting concerns that are most relevant to particular courses or students.

The authors are careful to attribute their sources and do so in a way that provides clear modeling for readers. The book is polished and accurate.

The text is refreshing in its relevance and timeliness. The authors include common cultural and social references to reinforce their ideas and main topics.

One of the text's virtues is its accessibility. It is crafted for students and addressed to readers in a non-threatening and approachable way.

The text maintains consistency in terms of formatting and content.

The text is blocked into chapters and subsections, and the Table of Contents allows for easy redirection. There are some rather large blocks of prose that span for several pages at a time, which could prove daunting for students who are not prepared or equipped to pore over large swaths of text.

The overall organization is logical and intuitive.

The text is navigable and free of any technical errors or distortions. Some of the work's most appealing aspects are its authentic screenshots, markups, and charts.

The text is cleanly written and polished.

The text is geared toward multiple readers of diverse backgrounds. It is neither biased nor insensitive.

You, Writing! provides a refreshing and accessible approach to first-year composition, as it sets out to present a range of useful and translatable concepts in a disarming manner. Students and instructors will benefit from clearly defined sections and authentic examples, which supplement extensive commentary on rhetorical issues ranging from thesis development to Anglo-Saxon or Latinate language use.

This text would serve as a fine primary reader for composition students, while certain sections would prove immensely valuable as supplementary content give the depth of the book as a whole.

composition writing in english

Reviewed by Zachary Canter, Adjunct Faculty, East Tennessee State University on 10/10/18

The table of contents is very detailed, and a helpful glossary is included at the end of the book. A chapter on using logic and reasoning and avoiding logical fallacies would be helpful. There is no index. read more

The table of contents is very detailed, and a helpful glossary is included at the end of the book. A chapter on using logic and reasoning and avoiding logical fallacies would be helpful. There is no index.

Content Accuracy rating: 3

The content is both accurate and unbiased; however, the discussion of sources (pp. 138-143) is inadequate. Sources are only classified as “excellent,” “good,” and “other,” with very little information on how to evaluate them. Peer-reviewed journal articles are only briefly mentioned, and the quality of information from library databases over Internet search engines is not stressed enough.

The content of the text is relevant, and most examples come from classic literature, so they will not become dated. Writing is explored in a way that balances the use of technology with traditional methods.

The text is very accessible, being conversational and helpful in tone. The informative writing example, “What I Did on My Summer Vacation,” did seem somewhat elementary for a college text (pp. 53-54). The other examples were good, but I would have liked to have seen more, including a sample research paper.

Terminology is consistently used and defined throughout the text, and there is a logical framework to the whole.

The text is very adaptable to any freshman college or high school composition course. Readings on the writing process would work best if assigned chronologically, but each chapter could potentially stand on its own or be incorporated with additional readings.

The text is well-organized and offers a good overview of the writing process (especially planning).

The interface is adequate. An interactive table of contents with internal links to chapters and sections would be convenient. Links to outside sources work, but all links to the Purdue OWL only go to the homepage instead of the particular reference cited.

Grammatical Errors rating: 2

The text contains multiple minor errors, which is somewhat problematic for a writing textbook that stresses the need for editing. For example, “hear” should be “heard” (p. 11), “conclusion” is misspelled twice (pp. 12-13), “your” should be “you” (p. 20), there is an unnecessary parenthesis (p. 41), book titles are not italicized (p. 53), the word “to” should come after “Plato” (p. 54), “an” should be “and” (p. 57), there should be a comma instead of a period before “sin” and “put” should be capitalized (p. 60), there are problems with parallelism (pp. 69 and 71), the word “one” (for “tone”?) inside the parentheses of point 8 does not make sense (p. 81), the first sentence under the subheading “Style and Clarity” is incomplete (p. 91), there is a missing period (p. 96), “live” should be “life” (p. 100), and there is an extra indentation (p. 140). In addition, there is some inconsistency in the use of the Oxford comma.

The text is culturally sensitive, inoffensive, and inclusive. In addition, it is refreshingly apolitical, focusing on the kinds of writing students will need in their college courses and careers, rather than hot-button debates, activism, or extreme political correctness.

This book offers an excellent overview of the writing process, explains terms well, and maintains a very friendly tone throughout. Unfortunately, there are numerous minor errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation, which some careful editing would correct. As a composition textbook, it would benefit from a chapter on using logic and reasoning, while the chapter on research needs some further development.

Table of Contents

  • Chapter One: Why Write?
  • Chapter Two: A Writing Process for Every Writer
  • Chapter Three: Defining Audience and Purpose
  • Chapter Four: Exploring: Finding a Topic
  • Chapter Five: Writing a Thesis
  • Chapter Six: Organizing
  • Chapter Seven: Drafting
  • Chapter Eight: Revising
  • Chapter Nine: Editing
  • Chapter Ten: Proofreading
  • Chapter Eleven: Research Process

Ancillary Material

About the book.

This text is meant to be used in any first year College Composition class or as a general guide to college writing. The book focuses on writing as a process, not a product. The goal is to help students discover their own writing process, tryin g out different methods and strategies to find what works best for them

About the Contributors

Alexandra Glynn has been teaching English for about ten years. She holds an M.A. in English Literature from St. Cloud State University. She sometimes publishes about teaching English in the Minnesota English Journal. She also translates lyrics into English as well.

Kelli Hallsten-Erickson has been teaching developmental writing, Composition I and II, and a variety of literature courses at the two-year level for fifteen years. She is currently at Lake Superior College, encouraging student s to stay warm during the long winter by keeping their fingers burning across their keyboards, constructing interesting essays.

Amy Jo Swing has been teaching writing and English since 1993. She holds a B.A. in English and Creative Writing from Purdue University and an M.F.A. in Poetry Writing from Texas State University San Marcos. She teaches all manner of writing at Lake Superior College in Duluth, Minnesota, where she is also a writer of poetry and middle grade fiction

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Academic Module 1: Creating Academic Content

14 Writing Academic Compositions: Processes and Products

U.S. college courses often require students to compose written assignments, ranging from short answer questions of a few sentences to much longer multi-page papers. Regardless of the length of the composition, all written assignments require students to complete specific steps (process) to reach the desired outcome (product). Generally, when students work on composition assignments, they complete the following steps: brainstorming, creating a graphic organizer, making an outline, creating the first complete draft, and editing/revising. As students advance in their acquisition of academic English and take on longer, more complex composition assignments, they often complete more than one cycle of drafting, editing, and revising.

In this chapter, you will learn more about each of the key steps in composing (a four-paragraph essay, for instance) as part of meeting your ELAI 990 learning outcomes as well as using the APP strategy of composition writing. [1]

The steps in composition writing

Generally, students may complete five steps when they compose a paragraph or an essay. This is especially helpful when students are less familiar with the process of composition writing. As students become more familiar, they may be able to successfully consolidate some of these steps, especially when they write timed in-class compositions.

Step 1: Brainstorming

Have you ever heard the term ‘brainstorming’ before? What do you think this refers to?

If you look up the term in a dictionary, you may come across the following definition: “generating ideas through group discussion”. This is accurate. However, students may not always have a group to generate ideas for assignments, and it is helpful to learn how to do simple brainstorming by oneself as well.

Let’s focus on the first part of the dictionary definition: ‘generating ideas’.

When you come across a topic for the first time, it is helpful to take a piece of paper (or on a computer/tablet/smartphone) and write down some initial ideas that come to your mind related to the topic. At this stage, students may draw upon their knowledge in one or more languages. This is something that you likely do in your everyday tasks, especially if you grew up in a bilingual/multilingual environment. In addition, students have a very strong command of a language other than English may also find it helpful to do the initial brainstorming in that language and then transition to English. At this stage, it is the ideas that are more important, regardless of what language they are expressed in.

To generate ideas, you may create a very simple idea map where you write the main topic in the center and then write down, clustered around that topic, one or two words or a very short phrase that comes to your mind and is connected to the topic (you may even draw a line from the topic to the new related ideas that you are expressing in the form of one or more words). By spending a few minutes on completing this simple task, you can quickly identify what you already know about the topic, all in one place in a visual form that’s easy to see. This will also give you more confidence that you do know something about the topic (sometimes students get stuck because they feel they do not know the topic at all). Finally, creating a simple brainstorming map will also help you figure out some of the gaps in your own knowledge about the topic–things that you do not know and need to know. This is especially handy when you already know what the composition writing task requires you to focus on (for instance, you may have to list causes or effects, or identify problems, or offer solutions, or take a position related to the topic).

Step 2: Creating a Graphic Organizer

At this step, students may start transitioning to (academic) English and use longer phrases to flesh out their ideas more and  to  organize those ideas in a graphic format across different levels of information. How many levels of information you identify at this step will depend on the APP of your assignment, but generally in a four-paragraph essay, students should list at least four levels of information in their graphic organizers: the thesis, the two main ideas (that will then become the topic sentences in the two body paragraphs), the major details to support the main ideas, and the minor details to support the major details. Remember, the more you move down the levels, the more specific the information will become.

Creating a graphic organizer will also help you identify the gaps in your knowledge that you need to fill in order to create a complete graphic. You may, for instance, need to find relevant facts to list as minor details or you will identify the academic English vocabulary items you need to know in order to fill in the different levels. A graphic organizer will also help you identify which information is less relevant or unnecessary and remove it from the organizer. For example, you may have three main ideas to support the thesis when you begin, but the parameters of the essay require you to use only two. At this step, you will identify which two the main ideas of the three to select, and you could select the best two based on importance, relevance, or parallelism. Finally, when you make a graphic organizer, you will be able to ensure that it is balanced, with a similar number of ideas for each of the body paragraphs that you will then outline in the next step.

Let’s look at the examples of a graphic organizer for a paragraph assignment and a graphic organizer for an essay assignment below to see how the ideas may be structured in a graphic organizer (To see the images in a larger format, click on each image). Keep in mind that the structure below is one example, and as you become more comfortable with making graphic organizers, you will be able to vary the structure based on the specific APPs of the assignments.

A sample graphic organizer for a paragraph assignment

composition writing in english

A sample graphic organizer for a four-paragraph essay assignment

composition writing in english

Step 3: Drafting an Outline

For longer composition assignments, such as multi-paragraph essays, creating an outline based on the graphic organizer can be very helpful, especially for students who struggle with writing longer sentences and creating flow within and across paragraphs. Let’s look at the examples of a paragraph outline and an essay outline below to see how outlines may be structured. Keep in mind that, just like a graphic organizer, the actual structure that you use for specific compositions will depend on the APP of the assignment.

A sample paragraph outline

  • Topic sentence: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
  • Minor details: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
  • Major detail 2: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
  • Conclusion: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A sample essay outline

  • Hook: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
  • Background information: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
  • Thesis statement: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
  • Minor details: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
  • Restatement of the thesis: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
  • Additional information: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
  • Closing strategy: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Step 4: Composing the first full essay draft

The next step in the essay writing process is to take the outline and convert it into the first full essay draft, comprising four paragraphs, in this instance. At this stage of essay writing, students should focus on ensuring that the ideas flow logically within and across paragraphs, and that they use suitable transitional words, phrases, and sentences to connect the ideas. Students should also start paying attention to the word count at this point to ensure that they follow the guidelines provided. Once the first full draft has been created, students should use the rubric provided as well as a checklist to ensure that they have not forgotten some important element. For instance, if the rubric requires the student to make at least one reference to a reading, the student should ensure that they have done so by this stage.

Step 5: Revising the draft

As a final step in the composition assignment, students should both proofread and edit their compositions as needed. At this step, students should pay special attention to spelling words correctly, using appropriate punctuation and indentation, employing correct grammatical structures, and so forth. This may also be a good time to visit the Writing Center to get additional feedback, although you may visit the Writing Center at any stage of the composition assignment.

We are going to practice all of these steps in the class throughout the semester as well.

The APP of composition writing

Now, let’s look at the tasks of annotating and making notes through the lens of audience, purpose, and parameters, or APP.

Let’s start with the first criterion–the audience.

  • When you write a paragraph (e.g. in the form of a short answer to a question) or a longer composition (e.g. a four-paragraph essay) or a multi-page assignment (e.g. a 10-page paper that you may have to write in a credit course), who is your audience? Generally, students write short and long compositions for their professor to read (and to demonstrate that they have understood the target concept or idea well). As a result, you must structure and customize the content in the paragraph(s) for your professor, in which case, you need to make decisions about which language you would use to communicate your ideas (e.g. English in a U.S. college course) and what tone/register would be appropriate (i.e. academic/professional). In other words, who your audience is informs what you say and what you write in a college course. Therefore, it is very helpful to identify clearly who the target audience is for any academic assignment.

Now, let’s look at the second criterion–the purpose.

  • When you compose a text, it is essential that you keep the purpose or the reasons why you are writing the text in mind. For instance, is the purpose to describe, to inform, to persuade, or to convince? Depending on the purpose, you will need to choose the appropriate pattern of organization and the tone to use in your writing. For instance, if you write an essay where you have to provide two reasons why multilingualism is beneficial, you will need to use a persuasive tone and list two benefits of multilingualism along with details to describe these benefits in detail. Students who fail to do so or  misidentify the purpose at the beginning of the composition process end up writing a composition that is off-topic or with the wrong focus.

Finally, let’s look at the last criterion–the parameters.

  • In composing an assignment, you need to pay close attention to the guidelines provided to identify the assignment parameters, for instance in terms of word length, number of paragraphs, formatting, recommended font type and font size (for typed assignments), and so forth. This is especially helpful for students who may be new to college-level writing in general or the U.S. college culture specifically. When in doubt, check with your professor!
  • As you advance in your academic careers, the composition writing tasks are likely to become more complex, such as in the form of multi-page essays and research papers. Such advanced composition tasks may require other steps in the process of essay-writing, and you will learn those skills in your credit courses. The steps you learn here will help create the foundation on which you will then advance in your academic writing in credit-based coursework. ↵

Demystifying Academic English Copyright © by Rashi Jain is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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5 tips on how to write an impressive composition.

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New year, new school, new opportunities for growth! Read our article as we share some tried and true tips for parents and children in the lead up to the first day of primary school.

A Whole New World Awaits

New classmates, new teachers, new school environment — your child’s tiny world is about to get a lot bigger. With these changes come opportunities for personal, social and cognitive growth.

The Countdown And Preparation Begins

In these weeks as you count down to your child’s first day of school, you may be wondering, “What will school be like for my child? Will my child be able to cope in the new environment?”

Parents can help by being proactive —  research from professionals at Duke University   suggests that establishing a strong communication channel with your child’s teachers helps and so does monitoring changes in your child's behaviour or mood when he or she first starts school.

Whether at home or in school, we’ve got some great tips for every stage of preparation that will help you (and your child) pave a smooth journey towards the new school term in January.

1. Create A Routine That Works

Studies have shown that  routines help children feel safe and secure . Set up a routine that works for your child — whether it’s a shower before dinner or an afternoon snack before naptime, it’s important that your child gets into a routine that he or she is comfortable with. 

2. Identify Friendly Figures In School

Helping your child identify teachers or staff he or she can go to for assistance is important. When your child recognises trustworthy figures of authority, he or she will feel more secure in the new environment.

Related Article: Gear Up For Primary 1

3. Prepare An 'Emergency' Fund

You may want to consider setting aside an “emergency fund” for your child. Placing extra money in a separate wallet or purse to be kept in his or her school bag means that your child will still have access to money if he or she misplaces pocket money. However, you should set some strict rules about when this money can be used.

4. Test Out That Transport Route

It may be a good idea to have a few dry runs of your child’s journey to and from school to help your child familiarise himself or herself with the route. Help your child identify key landmarks and remember the specific place where he or she will be dropped off or picked up from everyday.

Related Article: Raising A Responsible Child

5. Set Mini Goals To Achieve Together

Help to make the experience seem less daunting by setting mini goals for the first day of school. Start with small tasks like “Leave the house on time” or “Remember to bring my water bottle home” or “Meet one new friend in class today”. These mini goals give your child something to look forward to on his or her first day of school!

Download Our Special Guide To Surviving And Thriving In Primary 1

The Learning Lab would like to extend our help as you and your child are preparing for Primary 1 and the new adventures that lie ahead. Download our fun and informative guide filled with 25 great tips to help your child survive and thrive in Primary 1!

Writing is a creative medium for expressing thoughts and perspectives on diverse subjects. However, it can be difficult for your child to accurately convey his or her thoughts fluently in writing.

Writing essays and other literary compositions are an integral part of student life that extends to adult life. And although your child is far from the world of employment, it is worth noting that most jobs require writing skills at some capacity.

Here at The Learning Lab, we believe that effective written communication is a meaningful skill that helps our students become better at relaying information, conveying their thoughts and forming trusting relationships.

Nurture your child’s mastery of written English by introducing him or her to what we consider the five basic elements to writing an effective composition.

composition writing in english

1. Determine the Central Idea of the Composition

An essay, as with most written compositions, has an introduction, a body and a conclusion.

The central idea connects these three parts to create one theme. It gives the composition direction and purpose, making it enjoyable and easy to read.

To bring out the central idea throughout the written composition, it is important to first identify the key words from the question. If the title or headline for the composition is provided, the key words would likely be supplied as well.

For example, if your child is tasked to write about “The Person I Admire the Most”, the key words are “person” and “admire”. In this case, the central idea would not only be about the person, but also about the qualities that make that person admirable and why.

composition writing in english

2. Check That the Composition Has a Smooth and Cohesive Flow

Another element that makes a written piece effective is effortless flow. This involves weaving words, phrases, sentences and paragraphs together, in a logical manner, to support the central idea.

To achieve coherency, we recommend drafting an outline⁠ — ⁠an organised set of questions that will give your child clarity and direction in crafting the composition.

Using the same topic, “The Person I Admire the Most”, the outline may look like this:

Introduction

  • Who is the person I admire the most? 
  • What makes this person distinctive?
  • What are the qualities I admire about this person?
  • Why do I admire these specific qualities about this person?
  • How does this person inspire me to become a better version of myself?

The outline helps both the writer and the reader understand the point of the composition in a smooth and logical manner.

composition writing in english

3. Support Statements with Evidence

A composition supported by evidence in the form of interviews, dialogues, speeches, testimonials, personal accounts or citations from reliable sources suggests credibility and is more persuasive to the reader.

At the primary school level, students can provide anecdotal evidence — evidence collected in a casual or informal manner. They can rely on personal testimonies to provide real-life accounts and experiences to back up their ideas.

In secondary school, students are presented with several different topics or questions and may pick the one they wish to write about. These range from writing fictional stories to providing their thoughts on real-world topics like the impact of global warming.

As such, students in secondary school are encouraged to read up on worldly events so they remain updated on current issues and can incorporate quotes or facts into their composition where needed.

composition writing in english

4. Evoke Emotion and Sustain Readers’ Attention

People read not only to be informed but also to be entertained, and perhaps to gain a new perspective about a subject or even to find inspiration. 

A well-written composition captures and sustains a reader’s attention. Your child can achieve this by using descriptive words or phrases to bring out specific emotions in readers. Figures of speech are also helpful in injecting creativity in his or her written compositions. 

Using metaphors and similes, for example, helps the reader understand a subject by comparing it to something else. If your child is describing a dull performance, he or she can write something along the lines of, “watching the show was like watching paint dry.'' 

Artful narratives help the reader relate to your child’s story more as compared to writing a matter-of-factly composition.

composition writing in english

5. Work Towards a Distinctive Style

While the elements above are all very important in crafting an engaging and compelling composition, “style” is the one factor that can make a student’s composition stand out from the rest.

We don’t mean personality. What we mean by style is the manner in which a student consistently and distinctly writes. It’s the artistic flair with which ideas are put together in words. 

Mark Twain, for instance, is best known for his humour and sharp social satire. Jane Austen’s writing is filled with irony and often features female protagonists, while JK Rowling’s prose is easily recognisable through her vivid imagination and invention of strange words.

At The Learning Lab, our teachers look at facts as well as opinions. We want to be able to assess, through students’ writing, how clear and creative these ideas are processed and presented.

Lastly, it’s worth reminding your son or your daughter that there are no set rules in writing. This is what makes the English language attractive and interesting — its contextual flexibility, socio-cultural variations and playfulness.

“And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” ― Sylvia Plath

composition writing in english

Bring Out the Wordsmith in Your Child

The foundation of effective communication is literacy; the ability to read and write. But at TLL, we want our students to go beyond learning how to simply read and write.

In our English programmes, a lot of emphasis is placed on allowing our students to exercise their powers of putting the English language on paper; gaining confidence, picking up the tricks of the trade and tackling common problems along the way.

Through our simple yet effective 6-step structured approach to writing, we introduce students to good writing, teach them specific writing techniques and help them understand the importance of characterisation, tone and imagery.

From generating ideas and structuring the flow of the story for a story curve to detailing the characters’ successes or failures in the climax, click here to find out more about TLL's structured 6-step writing approach.

composition writing in english

Early Years

Nursery 2 – kindergarten 2.

In addition to building a foundation for word recognition, vocabulary and sentence structure when it comes to writing, our early years programmes also inculcate fundamental skills in reading and speaking.

composition writing in english

Primary 1 – Primary 6

At the primary levels, we help develop our students' ability to analyse questions, craft precise answers and produce writing of greater quality, sophistication and length to excel in all examinable components of the English subject.

composition writing in english

Secondary & Junior College

Secondary 1 – junior college 2.

Our secondary to junior college programmes help students further develop their writing, speaking, comprehension and listening skills, enhancing their overall language appreciation and mastery. 

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Composition Writing

Definition: The process of putting words and sentences together in paragraph patterns to write about any specific topic is called composition writing. Simply, composition writing is the shorter version of Essay writing.

Composition Writing 

Composition Writing

These simple steps will guide you through the composition writing process: 1. Decide on your topic. 2. Prepare an outline or diagram of your ideas. 3. Start writing your thesis statement. 4. Write the introduction. 5. Write the body.

  • Write the main points.
  • Write the sub-points.
  • Elaborate on the sub-points.

6. Write the conclusion. 7. Add the finishing touches.

Sketch out your composition before straightway writing it out. Use one-line sentences to describe paragraphs, and bullet points to describe what each paragraph will contain. Play with the composition’s order. Make sure each paragraph is unified.

Introduction:

A beginning that sets the mood and provides necessary background, at the same time attracting our attention and making us want to read on.

Development:

Interesting characters that come to life and different from each other are mentioned.  A good plot in which something happens i.e. comic, tragic and exciting events are in the development of the composition.  It should have climax, up to which other events have been leading.

Conclusion:

It should be logical, natural and short.  It should have a satisfactory ending, usually soon after the climax, which makes the reader feel that there is nothing more remained or to be said.

Important points to be remembered: 1. Every new idea should be marked in a new paragraph. 2. Don’t repeatedly mention any of your ideas. 3. Avoid using many short sentences. 4. Use past tenses. 5. The usage of correct spelling, punctuation and accurate vocabulary with proper tenses can make you appear a good writer.

Note: Writing interestingly is a self-developing skill.

Sample Composition:

The Value of Self Confidence

My friends often ask me, “Joe, why are you so carefree all the time?” The answer is quite simple. I owe my carefree attitude to self-confidence. Now, some people may say that self-confidence is a form of conceit, and they may be right. However, my self-confidence allows me to feel relaxed no matter how difficult a task I face, so it is extremely valuable to me.

I remember the first time I participated in an English competition. Three years ago, my classmates chose me to speak in an English competition at our school. When I went onstage, I had butterflies in my stomach. Suddenly, my mother’s words came back to me: “If you want to do something, it costs nothing but self-confidence”. Since I was chosen to be there, it meant I must have the ability to succeed. “Get a hold of yourself”, I said silently. “You have prepared for this competition for the past three months. You are the best”. Strangely, my nervousness vanished after I spoke to myself with such confidence. I began to speak onstage – the feeling was wonderful. The whole audience applauded afterwards. I was successful!

Without my self-confidence, I could not have succeeded. My courage and optimism are based on this self-confidence. Various difficulties will certainly come into our lives from time to time in the future. If we face those difficulties, if we come to terms with them, we are bound to succeed. Knowing that we are capable of handling any difficulty will build our confidence and lead to success.

So, my friends be confident! Even if you’re not the best, it doesn’t matter. Don’t you always do your best to achieve your aims? Of course you do. That’s enough to give you confidence, and confidence will make you happier.

This Sample composition is taken from learn English with teacher Joe !

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Best techniques ever, thank you so much sir.

composition writing in english

Hope it is helpful Karem.

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I won to know how to retter a composition of MY NEW FRIEND

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O Level English: The Art of Composition Writing

by Mashal Rizvi

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Are you an O Level English student struggling to write a  composition ? Fret not, for you've landed on the right page! Crafting an impressive composition is essential for O Level success ; we're here to help you master it!

Understand the Basics: 

Before diving into the intricacies of how to write a composition, let's answer, " What is composition writing? " A composition in English O Levels is a written work where you express your thoughts, ideas, and creativity. 

composition writing in english

Begin with a Strong Hook: 

Your introduction is your chance to grab the reader's attention . Start with a compelling hook or a curiosity-driven mystery that makes your reader want to continue. 

Structure Matters: 

A well-structured composition is vital to coherence. Create a logical flow from the introduction to the conclusion by using paragraphs - this will give your idea a more put-together look. Good narrative composition writing examples and  O Level English past papers can guide you in this regard. 

Show, Don't Tell: 

Compose a visual feast for your readers by vividly describing your ideas and using a wide range of vocabulary . Instead of saying, " The sunset was beautiful ," paint a picture with, " The sun bid the sky farewell with golden hues captured by the tranquil waters. " Use the topics provided in the O Level past papers English Language as a guiding path for idea generation.

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Incorporate Feedback: 

Mastering the art of how to write a composition isn't a walk in the park. Embrace the wisdom of seeking feedback from your mentors or fellow writers – their constructive criticism is the key that unlocks your potential as a wordsmith. You'll be amazed at how it transforms your writing journey. An added benefit would be to practice on different O Level past papers in the English Language and then show the result to your friends or fellow peers for review.

Explore English Composition Examples: 

One of the best ways to learn is by example . Study English composition examples and O Level English past papers to understand what makes a great composition. This will give you insights into the usage of vocabulary , structure, style, and  tone . 

In conclusion, mastering composition in English O Levels requires practice, patience, and these essential study tips . Explore English composition examples, understand the structure , and infuse your writing with creativity. 

Remember, " how to write a composition " is a journey, not a destination. With dedication and these tips in your arsenal, you're well on your way to impressing your examiners and achieving an A* in your  O Level English !

For composition writing, don't forget to deep dive into the Out-Class O Level English course video!

composition writing is a vital component of O Level English language syllabus 1123.

Q. What is the purpose of composition writing in O Level English exams?

Composition writing in O Level English exams assesses students' ability to express thoughts, ideas, and creativity in a written format. It evaluates their command over the English language, including vocabulary , grammar, and sentence structure.

Q. How can I start a composition with a strong hook?

To start a composition with a strong hook, consider using an intriguing question, a compelling quote, a vivid description, or a thought-provoking statement. The goal is to capture the reader's attention and make them interested in reading further.

Q. Why is structure important in composition writing?

Structure is important in composition writing to ensure a logical flow of ideas from the introduction to the conclusion. Using paragraphs helps organize thoughts and makes the composition more coherent. A well-structured composition is easier for readers to follow.

Q. Why is exploring English composition examples and O Level past papers beneficial?

Exploring English composition examples and O Level past papers provides valuable insights into effective writing techniques, structure, and style. It allows students to understand the expectations of examiners and learn from successful compositions, enhancing their own writing skills.

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Key Tips On Writing Good Compositions For Primary School

  • Primary School Composition Writing

Key Tips On Writing Good Compositions For Primary School

6 Tips On How to Write a Good Composition For Primary School Students

Writing is one of the creative ways for us to express thoughts and perspectives on a variety of subjects. However, for your child, it can be challenging to express what they want to convey accurately.

After all, it isn’t the same as talking to your friends, since in composition, they look for proper language. Unfortunately, Singlish isn’t proper English, and it’s not allowed in any paper! Moreover, writing literary compositions is essential, so long as your child remains in school. In fact, it can even extend to adulthood, since most jobs require some writing skills.

Telling your child to “Read more books”, “Write more compositions”, or “Use better phrases” can be too generic Sure, practice makes perfect, but you also have to work smarter, not harder.

Effective written communication is important in relaying information and conveying thoughts. Hence, it is important for your child to take note of these tips that can help them get one step closer to writing an impactful composition.

Before we delve into the nitty-gritty, let us understand what is composition writing all about.

Composition writing is tested in Paper 1 of the English language paper. It requires students to write a narrative essay based on a given theme and at least one of three picture prompts. The length of the essay is 150 words for P5 and P6 students (and lower for P1 to P4 students).

Students are assessed on their ‘Content’ and ‘Language’. To score well for the former, students need to demonstrate creative, logical and relevant ideas that align with the topic. Language, on the other hand, focuses on more technical aspects such as grammar, punctuation and spelling. A well-written composition will present clear and coherent ideas expressed in an appropriately creative manner.      

But before you read this post… you might want to download this ebook first.

More than 18,725 parents have downloaded this ebook for their children. A compilation of some of the best compositions from our students.

composition writing in english

  • Common Test / Exam Compo Topics
  • Strong Intros
  • Descriptive Scenes
  • Impactful Endings
  • Powerful Vocabulary

1. Study the theme

Most picture compositions are composed of:

  • Introduction
  • Conflict / Problem

These four connect with one another to create a singular theme. It gives direction and purpose to the story to make it easy and enjoyable. When bringing out the central idea, it’s important to identify the keywords. For this, advise your child to look at the title.

Determine the Type of Composition

When it comes to the title, there can be three types of compositions :

  • Positive (e.g. A Memorable Event, An Achievement)
  • Negative (e.g. A Disappointment, A Bad Decision)
  • Neutral (e.g. A Competition, A Promise)

Get your child to read the theme carefully and identify the keywords. They could help your child figure out the type of composition they have to write.

A) Positive Composition Type

Positive composition types refer to – as the name suggests – a happy or an uplifting theme. Topics that fall under this umbrella include “A Celebration”, “A Success” and “A Pleasant Surprise” to name a few. Writing these type of composition can seem deceptively easy at first. However, the challenge lies in successfully incorporating a problem element in the story while staying true to the theme.

B) Negative Composition Type

Negative composition types include topics such as ‘Making a Mistake’, ‘Something That Was Damaged’, ‘A Disagreement’ and ‘Being Anxious’. Such compositions feature unfavourable circumstances and detail how the protagonist navigates these challenges. The overemphasis on negative composition types in the past means that students may struggle to come up with fresh takes and instead, stick to overused plot ideas.

C) Neutral Composition Type

Finally, the neutral composition type arguably provides the most room for creativity and nuance. This category encompasses prompts like “Something Unexpected”, “A Long Wait”, “Being Curious” and “An Adventure”. Although this allows for students to come up with novel ideas, care must be taken not to write out of topic.

Encourage them to categorise their compo question as well. This can help because sometimes, children may make the mistake of writing an accident as “A Memorable Event”.

composition writing in english

Yeah, no injury is worth remembering, since you probably won’t consider an incident that got you hurt as special.

2. Analyse/choose the pictures for your composition

A very common mistake is that children follow the topic… but they forgot to use any of the three pictures! This can prove fatal to their final marks because if none of the pictures are used, it’s an automatic fail in Content, which comprises half the marks in the picture composition.

There are many possible plots just from one theme. However, always ensure that your child chooses at least one of the pictures and incorporates it into the story. Make sure there is some focus of the object in the story. Otherwise, your child probably won’t score very high in Content.

Of course, your child might have trouble deciding what picture to use. To help your child’s decision, let’s take a look at last year’s PSLE’s Picture Composition as an example.

composition writing in english

One thing your child should consider is their current vocab. Ask them, “If you were to select this picture, do you have the necessary words and phrases to effectively describe it?”

For example, some may find it easier to use the first picture and use it as the primary focus of their story, because they might know a variety of words for anger (e.g. furious, livid). Your child should keep this in mind when choosing the picture since it gives them a writing advantage.

Whether you are writing a picture composition for primary 3,4,5 or 6…You may ask, “Should my child always avoid a picture because they don’t have the vocabulary/good phrases for it?”

The answer is: No.

What this means is your child should take this chance to expand their vocabulary, so that they could write for a broader range of topics. Moreover, you never know when the pictures might come up again, albeit for a different theme.

3. Plan the Composition

composition writing in english

Ever heard of, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail?” Your child should always plan for their picture compositions. While there is nothing wrong with writing on the fly, it is risky for less experienced writers. They may come face to face with the following problems:

  • Sudden transitions: What happened between two sentences remain a mystery. (e.g. I chased the thief. I caught him)
  • Change of pronouns: This happens when students decide to write from a third-person perspective and then switch to a first-person halfway, or vice-versa.
  • Writing a meaningless introduction: If the composition is about A Bad Decision, your child should not describe trivial things like the weather.
  • Lack of closure/weak ending: Your child may find themselves stuck in trying to solve the conflict they came up with or end the story.

Ask your child to pen down any ideas that come into their mind when they brainstorm for the topic.

Get them to lay out the following:

  • The characters & the roles they play in the story
  • The main problem
  • The resolution.

Think of the story as climbing a hill, getting to the top, and coming down it. From there, your child should order the points like this:

composition writing in english

Most importantly, make sure the essay is realistic!

Even though you and I wish it was possible, if someone got into a car accident, there is no way a doctor would just put plaster and send them home.

4. Writing the Introduction

The introduction is similar to a first impression: It helps readers decide if it is worth reading. That is why your child is encouraged to write compelling introductions.

True, memorizing introductions from model compositions does help, but it defeats the purpose of creative writing. Writing is like art; it tells the readers something about the writer, and no two pieces are the same.

With that said, here are some common ways your child can start off with:

Your child can begin the story with a direct speech. Get the protagonist to say something captivating and meaningful to the title. This can help move the plot along or open up a door to show what happened.

For example, in the PSLE question A Long Wait, your child may start with a line like this:

“I’ve been waiting for hours!” I grumbled.

Get your child to begin with actions, use vivid phrases to describe them. Doing this is a powerful way to capture the reader’s attention, and they’ll ask: Why is the character doing that?

An example would be:

Amanda tapped her fingers on the table, furrowing her brows as the seconds ticked by. She stared at the time in her phone and heaved a sigh for the umpteenth time.

C) Description

This could apply to:

  • The character
  • The setting

When doing this, ask your child to consider these questions:

  • What is the character doing when the story began?
  • How did he/she feel?
  • What he/she would say at that point?
  • Where did the story take place? (Note: For this one, get them to describe the setting via two out of the five senses. Alternatively, they can describe the setting as the story is written)

5. Writing the Body

Hoo, boy. This would be a long section, so fasten your seatbelts.

The most essential part of the compo is the body, because that is where most of the action is. When it comes to the body, there are three parts to consider:

A) Rising Action (Events before the conflict)

Most of the stories you and your child might have read would always include some problem that the protagonist has to face. Without it, there would be no story, and the plot can be dry. The same goes for any picture composition.

One of the mistakes students make is to state the problem right after the introduction. This runs the risk of an underdeveloped story, which can affect their Content marks. Your child needs to learn how to write the events preceding the main problem, then describe the conflict. This is better known as the rising action.

For example, your child can describe what the character(s) did or did not do that may have caused the problem they would face as the rising action.

It does not have to be long, but it must build up the story’s tension, which would lead to the climax.

​B) Climax (The main problem)

This is where the peak of the story occurs, and the turning point happens. Your child should aim to show as much action and the characters’ emotions as possible. Depending on the topic, your child may need to write one of these types of conflict:

  • Internal conflict: A moral dilemma (e.g. Your best friend stole a wallet. Should you tell the teacher, or keep it to yourself?)
  • External conflict (Man-made) : (e.g. a bully)
  • External conflict (Natural): (e.g. a fire)

C) Resolution (Falling action)

The third part of the composition’s body is the resolution, or how the main character solves the problem. This is better known as the falling action. Unfortunately, many students would rush through by writing one or two sentences due to lacking time or ideas. This comes at the cost of a sudden transition.   

A thing to note is that most resolutions, primary school kids write would involve a figure of authority to solve the conflict for them. After all, in real life, most kids would turn to the adults, such as you or their teachers, to solve the problems.

If the story involves thieves, it would always have policemen included. In the case of a fire, no doubt there would be firemen. Rarely, the main character would solve the problem themselves.

It is true that some types of compositions(e.g. A Crime You Were Involved In) would leave them little choice but to involve the adults. If that happens, your child should describe the character’s attempts to do something about the problem before help arrives.

For a better resolution, your child should ask themselves two questions:

  • What could the protagonist do to solve the conflict?
  • How did he/she feel when they attempted to handle the problem?

6. Writing the conclusion

Once the resolution is done, remind your child to wrap up with an ending. That is where your child is supposed to tie up the loose ends and close the story. It is essential to give the readers an ending they are satisfied with, and not keep them in suspense.

What your child can write in the conclusion:

  • Character’s reflections and thoughts about the story’s events
  • Their feelings over what happened
  • Their concluding actions or decisions of future actions.

Regardless, it’s advised for your child to always link the ending back to the theme or topic they are writing about.

It may sound like a lot to take in, but it’s possible for your child to learn how to write a good primary school composition. Writing is like any other skill; there are no shortcuts.

Once your child masters the six tips, all your child needs is time and practice. After all, it doesn’t matter how slowly your child progresses, as long as they don’t stop.

See more related articles on Writing Samurai:

  • Common PSLE Composition Topics – How to Handle Them?
  • PSLE English Composition – Marking Scheme with Pictures!
  • Example Model Compositions Primary School Students
  • How to Write Argumentative Essays
  • How to Write Discursive Essays

“Help! My child can’t write! How can I improve my child’s writing skills?”

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  • How to Improve Your Writing Skills Before You Head Back to College Columbia Southern University
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  • Why are students coming into college poorly prepared to write? Carnegie Mellow University
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"The online writing lab offers global support through online reference materials and services for creating citations, cover letters, major-specific writing help, and general writing advice."

  • General Writing • Overview A FAQs page that "address various general issues concerning writing."
  • General Writing FAQs • Common Writing Assigments Basic recommendations for students experiencing problems writing essays.
  • Research Overview: Types of Sources "This section lists the types of sources most frequently used in academic research and describes the sort of information that each commonly offers"
  • Citation: URLs vs. DOIs "This resource explains the difference between URLs and DOIs and briefly describes how to incorporate either form of information into your citations."
  • Research & Citation Resources "These OWL resources will help you use the research you have conducted in your documents. This area includes material on quoting and paraphrasing your research sources, as well as material on how to avoid plagiarism."
  • Best Practices to Avoid Plagiarism "Since plagiarism has serious consequences, there are many safe practices that you can employ in order to avoid plagiarism."

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  • Writing the Paper: Argument "This handout will define what an argument is and explain why you need one in most of your academic essays."
  • Writing the Paper: Comparing and Contrasting Explains " how you can (and why you should) develop a thesis that goes beyond “Thing A and Thing B are similar in many ways but different in others.”
  • Writing the Paper: Thesis Statements "This handout describes what a thesis statement is, how thesis statements work in your writing, and how you can craft or refine one for your draft."
  • Writing the Paper: Writing Anxiety "This handout discusses the situational nature of writer’s block and other writing anxiety and suggests things you can try to feel more confident and optimistic about yourself as a writer."
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  • Writing Contexts: Abstracts "This handout provides definitions and examples of the two main types of abstracts: descriptive and informative."
  • Citation: Style "This handout will help you determine and achieve the most effective writing style for the context in which you’re writing."
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English Composition Writing Manual For Students

composition writing

Composition writing is an important skill for anybody that wants to excel in the English Language subject. When you learn to compose good texts in English, you will exceed your educators’ expectations in exams.

English is among the most popular languages and subjects. However, writing composition in the English language is not easy. That’s mainly because of the English spelling and grammar rules. It’s, therefore, not surprising that even some native English speakers struggle with compositions that involve some vocabularies.

For international students that pursue English as a second language, even a short written English assignment is not easy to create. Nevertheless, anybody can learn composition writing and excel. They just need training and commitment to excel.

The Basics Of Composition Writing

What is composition writing, types of english composition writing, how to write a composition, more tips for english composition writing, frequently asked questions.

This kind of writing is considered a narrative. That’s because it entails narrating events in a sequence from the plot that a writer creates. Thus, writing a composition is like telling a story. The only difference is that you do it in writing.

The basic structure of a composition comprises the following parts:

  • Introduction : This is the section where the writer introduces the story setting. They also set a tone for the story to generate the interest of the reader.
  • Problem/Conflict : The writer presents the crux of a story in this section. Here, the characters try to overcome a problem or conflict that relates to the main theme of a story.
  • Resolution : Characters resolve the conflict or problem in this part of the composition or story.
  • Conclusion : This section marks the end of a story. It gives the composition closure.

When you write a composition, you create a written narrative or story. You put your thoughts and words into a readable and coherent text. And you can do this in three different ways or modes.

  • Poetic mode : This mode of composition is mostly used as an art form.
  • Expressive mode : This composition mode entails consciousness stream, as well as, free flow of emotions and ideas.
  • Transactional mode : Writers use this mode to advise or persuade their audiences.

Still asking, what is composition in writing? Well, just like most artists and musicians, composition writers set the tone of their work. And this enables them to accomplish their mission. Composition writers can express anything and take any viewpoint. For instance, they can impassionate anger using cool logic. They can also use simple and clean prose, descriptive passages, flowery, or analytical nomenclature.

Compositions can be categorized into different classes depending on their purposes. In a literary sense, composition in writing means putting together. Therefore, the writer assembles sentences and words to create meaningful and coherent work. It can also mean how a writer structures their piece of work.

Here are the main composition writing examples in English:

  • Description : Descriptive writing entails providing an account or statement describing someone, something, or a place. This form of writing involves listing significant details and characteristics to provide a descriptive portrayal to the reader.
  • Narration : Narrative writing involves giving a story or personal account to the readers. The narration can be a story or account of several events or facts presented in chronological order and having connections. The narration can also be dramatic, where the author presents individual scenes with dialog and actions. An author can also include flashbacks or follow a strict order in the narration.
  • Exposition : Expository writing or exposition involves explaining or expounding a place, a person, a thing, or an event. In this form of writing and composition, the author does more than describing something. They also provide an interpretation and reality. They also express their ideas and opinions about it. In some cases, the writer can lay out propositions explaining the abstract idea or general notion of the subject.
  • Argumentation : Argumentative writing is basically about presenting two sides of an issue or topic. You compare and contrast two opposing viewpoints in the composition using formal or logical reasoning. The end goal is to persuade your readers that A is better than B. Your meaning of better is what forms the content of the body of your composition.

Most students develop composition writing skills by practicing. But, what is composition writing in English and what does it entail? Well, you already know what a composition is. This section explains the main steps of drafting a composition.

Just like with an essay, the educator can provide prompts for when it comes to drafting composition. But, you still need to think about the perspective to take when writing the composition. Take your time to think about the given prompt and then brainstorm for ideas. This will make you mentally ready to write the composition.

A composition should have three major sections like an essay. These are the introduction, body, and conclusion. The introduction of your composition should have an interesting sentence or hook to grab the attention of the readers. It should make the readers interested in reading the rest of the composition.

The body of a composition in writing should expound on what you hinted at in the introduction. It should have several paragraphs informing readers about the topic. Each paragraph in the body should be unique in terms of the information it provides.

The conclusion of the composition should give your write-up a sense of finality. Readers should not feel like you have left them hanging after reading your composition.

Your choice of tone and voice is one of the most important things that educators consider when marking compositions. Therefore, chose the right tone and voice for your composition. This should depend on several factors. For instance, the topic of your composition should influence your choice of tone and voice. Similarly, your composition type should dictate the tone and voice you use. Nevertheless, choosing the wrong tone or even voice can lead to a poor grade in your composition.

Most people see composition as a rite of passage. That’s because they were required to write them at some point during their academic career. However, most people don’t know that they should maintain consistent tense and viewpoints. This is essential because it makes your story flow consistently.

A major reason for writing is to test your English language skills. Therefore, one of the most important tips on how to write a composition in English is to use as many vocabularies as possible. However, you should use the right vocabulary. Don’t use words whose meaning you don’t know.

Don’t submit your composition after writing without editing. This is very important because simple mistakes can ruin your otherwise brilliant composition. If possible, ask somebody else to read the composition for you. That’s because you’re likely to miss some of the mistakes since you’ve been working on the same write-up.

Now that you know the steps for writing your English composition, you should learn tips that can enhance your skills. Here are tips that will help you write better English compositions.

  • Think about your composition topic carefully : You won’t write a good composition if you don’t understand your topic. Therefore, take your time to think about the topic. What does the educator want you to write about? If the topic requires you to describe something, think about the best way to do that. If it requires you to analyze something, think about the best way to do it. Once you’ve understood what the topic expects you to do, brainstorm the information to include in your composition.
  • Take time to outline your composition : Creating an outline will enable you to come up with a coherent and logical composition. Outlining a composition is about planning your writing process. Therefore, draft an outline showing the main parts of your composition before you start writing.
  • Write a catchy introduction : The complexity of this section makes many learners ask, how do you write a composition introduction? How you introduce your topic to the readers will influence their first impression of your composition. Therefore, come up with a catchy introduction for your composition to capture the reader’s attention and make them want to read the rest of your write-up.
  • Maintain flow in the body : Some students ignore the flow of their ideas and arguments in the body of their compositions. However, this can make your readers lose interest in reading the rest of the write-up. To avoid this, maintain a consistent flow of ideas and arguments in your composition.
  • Summarize your composition properly : Your conclusion should summarize the main ideas of your composition. It should also state your viewpoint about the topic.

Q: What is a good composition?

A: A good composition depicts the ability of the writer to present ideas, information, or concepts in a captivating way that makes readers follow the story from the introduction to the conclusion . It also leaves the readers with a sense of finality.

Q: What is the difference between a composition and an essay?

A: A composition creates literary pieces like prose, drama, novel, and poetry. On the other hand, an essay elaborates on a place, an event, or a person.

Q: What is writing composition?

A: In writing, composition refers to the act or process of putting sentences, ideas, or information together to create a meaningful text. It can also refer to the way a writer structures their text.

Drafting a composition shouldn’t be a difficult task. You just need to understand the prompt, come up with a good topic, and understand what it requires you to do. Draft a good introduction, body, and conclusion then proofread or edit your work before submitting it to score a better grade.

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Types of Composition Writing and Examples

composition writing in english

Table of Contents

Composition Writing

Writing is not as easy as talking, there are certain rules for writing good compositions. Creating integrity of meaning and doing good research are some of these rules.

Before starting the composition, it is determined which type will be written and information is collected accordingly so in our article you will learn about composition types and rules firstly.

Types of Composition Writing

Compositions are written in different genres. The purpose of this is to ensure that the subjects described are conveyed to the other party in an appropriate language. Below you will see the different types of compositions.

Description

Narration is the writing of events in a sequential way and there are connections between events, for example, it is a suitable genre to describe what you have experienced in a day.

Exposition is an explanatory type of writing. For example, we can explain an event or a place, the purpose is not to describe it, but to explain what it means, but rather to give information.

Argumentation

Used to describe the compares and contrasts between two situations. If you are writing in this genre, you should explain whatever you are defending, giving logical reasons.

By What Rules Is A Good Essay Written?

Before you write a composition, you should make some planning. You will see the steps you need in the list below.

  • First, you need to determine what type of composition you will write.
  • Then think about what you’re going to talk about by brainstorming.
  • After this process, the main idea and two supporting ideas to support it are selected and these are exemplified, it is an important step as it forms the basis of this composition.
  • A standard essay consists of five paragraphs: 1 introductory paragraph, 3 body paragraphs, 1 conclusion paragraph.
  • The introductory paragraph is important because the reader either continues to read according to this paragraph or does not therefore, an interesting introduction should be made, and the introduction paragraph gives information about what is described in the composition and an idea is created in the reader’s mind.
  • Detailed explanations are made in the development paragraphs, it is made quality with quotations and examples. Development paragraph is frequently used with conjunctions such as “furthermore, moreover, by contrast.
  • There must be a link between each paragraph so that your composition is fluent.
  • The conclusion paragraph should not be too long, the important points are briefly explained in the last.

Never Forget These When Writing Composition!

Writing a composition is very different from speaking in everyday language.

Before you write, you need to do very deep research.

If you’re writing a composition that specifically wants to provide information, you should make sure the information is correct.

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  • Short Composition

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What is the Meaning of Composition?

The composition definition can be stated as compiling words and phrases to narrate a particular event or convey a certain message. Composition writing is a very easy method to get the point across and that too in a short amount of time. The composition can be easily understood because often they are written as a form of short composition. Some short composition writing examples are message writing, dairy entry, notice etc.

Composition

Composition

Composition Writing Format

The composition like a paragraph includes three main parts an introduction, body and conclusion. 

Introduction- This includes the definition of the topic if any and the meaning of the same. And if the topic is about informing something then the introduction includes the aim of the composition.

Body- The body of the composition includes more details about the topic and explains in a very elaborated way so there is a very clear idea about the subject the composition is conveying.

Conclusion- The conclusion paragraph should include supporting concepts covered throughout and give your last thoughts on the fundamental idea of the topic.

Write a short composition on ‘My Hobby.’

Kids Painting

Kids Painting

A hobby is an enjoyable activity that we engage in to pass the time. When we are not engaged in our daily activities, we do something we enjoy. Every one of us enjoys pursuing one or more hobbies. Hobbies allow you to stay active. Hobbies provide us with entertainment. They assist people in remaining energetic at all times. Drawing is one of my hobbies. I enjoy drawing using a variety of colours. It brings me joy to draw. My favourite time of day is when I go home from school because I have more free time to paint. On my notepad, I enjoy drawing photos of my mum and father. They're my favourite ones. Fruits like mango, orange, and banana are other favourites of mine to paint. My mother encourages me to keep drawing. Everyone at my school enjoys my drawings as well. My teachers always invite me to join in school competitions. There is a small room in my house that my father built. I've retained all of the drawings I've made in that room. I drew a mango, a pineapple, mountains, a cow and many more things. My mum and father are always ready to gift me all required art supplies. They are overjoyed that I do not waste time and sketch in my spare time.

Different Types of Composition Writing

Practice exercise.

Write a short notice as the class monitor regarding the upcoming summer vacation dates and the summer camp schedule.

Composition Exercise

Composition Exercise

Date- 1-05-20XX

This is to tell all students that during the summer holidays, which will start soon from April 25, 20XX to June 15, 20XX our school will have a summer camp that will run from Monday through Friday from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Many engaging activities in English relevant to studies, such as sports and exercise, will be available. You will be responsible for your own transportation. Those that are interested should contact their assigned teacher.

Class Monitor

Do it Yourself

1. Write a short composition on ‘A Weekend Trip’.

Trip

2. Write a short composition on ‘A fantasy world.’

A Fantasy World

A Fantasy World

3. Write a short composition on ‘ My Favourite Subject’.

Class of Students Reading

Class of Students Reading

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FAQs on Short Composition

1. What is the definition of writing a brief composition?

These are short texts aimed at a specific individual who is not present at the time but will be in a short period of time, and the writer will not be present at that time. It can be used to send a crucial message to someone who will be arriving shortly at the location. For instance, write a notice for the upcoming story writing competition or update about the upcoming exam schedule etc. 

2. What's the difference between a composition and an essay?

Any creative effort, whether it's a short story, poem, essay, research paper, or piece of music, is referred to as a composition. As a result, the primary distinction between an essay and a composition is that an essay is a form of composition, whereas composition is any creative work. The other main difference between essays and compositions is the length of the two. While essay however short is a more detailed look than a composition which is short. 

3. What is the significance of composition writing?

Writing and composition are crucial tools in literacy, education, and, most importantly, communication. People can communicate ideas, feelings, emotions, opinions, debates, and many other types of information through composition and writing.

English that goes straight to the heart

Composition Writing Examples

Composition refers to any creative work, such as a short story, essay, poem, research paper etc. In this post, we have added the top 25 composition writing examples.

Composition Writing Examples

Composition Writing Example #1

Essay on my family (250+ words).

Family is the place where you learn your first lesson in life. Your family members are the only assets that will remain with you forever. Whatever the circumstances, family members are always there for each other to support us. Good values and good morals are always taught in a family.

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In the family, we are prepared to respect our elders and love younger ones. We learn lessons consistently from our family, about honesty, dependability, kindness and so on. Although I am a student in my final year, my family always treats me like a child but always provides us with a sensation of so much love and care. My family is the best family for me. I live in a nuclear family of four members.

My father is a teacher. He is the man who heads and leads our family. My mother is a housewife as well as a beautician. She is a lovely woman. My mother is everything to me. She is the one who understands me best and most closely. My grandmother is the cutest person of all.

I love my family because they are the jewels of my life. They work hard so that we can get anything we desire makes me love and respect my parents considerably more. We play games every night and discuss various topics to spend quality time together. I give deep respect and pay the highest regard to my family not just because they are my family, but for their unmatched and incredible sacrifices for me.

Composition Writing Example #2

STORY – The Blue Jackal

A jackal one night got into a washerman’s house to steal some food. By chance, he fell into the washerman’s vat which was full of blue water. Somehow he got out of the pot but he was dyed blue. He looked very strange. He returned to the forest. No animat could recognize him. All the animals were afraid They made him their king.

The sun went down. After nightfall, the jackals howled as usual. The blue jackal could not along with the other jackals. He howled at the top of his voice. Then all the animals had no difficulty in knowing what their king really was. The tiger came and tore him to pieces.

Moral: You can fool some people for some time, but not all people for all the time.

Composition Writing Example #3

Essay on christmas (250 words).

Christmas is one of the most famous and light-hearted festivals which is celebrated across the world by billions of people. People of the Christian religion celebrate Christmas to remember the great works of Jesus Christ. 25th December is celebrated as Christmas Day across the world. Christians celebrate Christmas Day as the birth anniversary of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ of Bethlehem was a spiritual leader and prophet whose teachings structure the premise of their religion.

Christmas Day is celebrated every year with great joy, happiness and enthusiasm. Everyone whether they are poor or rich gets together and partakes in this celebration with lots of activities. On this day people decorate their houses with candles, lights, balloons etc. People decorate Christmas trees on this day in their homes or a public square. They decorate Christmas trees with small electric lights of various colours, gift items, balloons, flowers, and other materials. After that, the Christmas tree looks very appealing and wonderful.

People follow popular customs including exchanging gifts, decorating Christmas trees, attending church, sharing meals with family and friends and, obviously, trusting that Santa Claus will arrive. Children eagerly wait for Christmas day very anxiously as they get lots of beautiful gifts and chocolates. In most cases, the fat person in the family dressed up as Santa Clause with a bell in his hand which attract kids and they get lots of beautiful gifts and chocolates from Santa Clause. 25th December, Christmas Day, has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1870.

Composition Writing Example #4

Essay on health is wealth (250+ words).

The greatest wealth is our own health. A healthy body can earn great wealth but, a wealthy person cannot earn great health. We live in a fast-moving world where individuals have no time for themselves. Most part of their life withers away in search of materialistic wealth in order to outshine others but, along the way, they lose their health.

Recent studies have shown that the increased stress of the present speedy life is leading to various medical conditions. Major among those are heart and neurological problems. Good health assists an individual to keep a positive attitude toward work and life in general. Wealth matters, but, is not as important as health.

Spending lots of money on junk food in five-star hotels or on other entertainment sources like watching films for a day and so on has no advantages other than self-satisfaction. Being physically and mentally healthy helps an individual to be socially and financially healthy as well. A healthy person can earn lots of money however an unhealthy person cannot because of a lack of motivation, interest, and concentration level.

Money is the source to carry on with a healthy life however good health is the source of living a happy and peaceful life. So, everyone should take many precautions in maintaining good health. Everyone should be away from bad habits and unhealthy lifestyles. Being healthy isn’t only the condition of being free of disease, ailment, or injury but also being happy physically, mentally, socially, intellectually, and financially. Good health is an actual necessity of happy life and the greatest gift from nature.

Composition Writing Example #5

STORY – The Wolf and the lamb

There was a wolf. He was very wicked. He killed smaller animals for nothing. One day he was very hungry and moved about in the forest for prey but found none. This made him thirsty. He went to a stream to drink water.

To his great joy, he for a lamb drinking water. He wanted to kill the lamb and eat her up. He went to the lamb and said, “why do you muddle my water ?” The lamb said, “What do you say, Sir? The water runs from you to me. How can I muddle your water?” The wolf angrily said, “Do you argue with me? You scolded me a year ago.”

The lamb said, “Fine indeed. I was not born a year ago.” The wolf said, “Then it was your father who scolded me. I will not let you go.”

Saying this, the wolf fell upon the poor Jamb and ate her up.

Moral: A bad fellow has always an excuse for his misdeed.

Composition Writing Example #6

Essay on balanced diet (250+ words).

A diet that contains all kinds of necessary ingredients in almost the required quantity is called the “Balanced Diet”. A Balanced diet is one that helps to maintain or improve overall health. We should consume a balanced diet consisting of essential nutrition: liquids, adequate proteins, essential fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, and calories. We must eat fresh fruits, salad, green leafy vegetables, milk, egg, yoghurt, etc. on time in order to maintain a healthy body.

Among the minerals, we require chiefly iron, calcium, sodium, potassium, and small quantities of iodine, copper, etc. They are found in green vegetables and most fruits, Vitamins have a number of kinds like A, B, C, D, etc. Vitamin A is found in fish oil, butter, carrot, papaya, etc., and Vitamin B is found in green leafy vegetables, wheat grain, etc. Vitamin C is found in green chilli, green vegetables, amla, lemon, and citric fruits. Vitamin D is found in the first oil, butter, and rays of the sun. We also need Vitamins E and K for our health. Milk is perhaps the only single item that can be called a balanced diet in itself.

Animal protein is found in meats, poultry, and fish. The white of an egg also contains protein. Another kind of protein is found in milk (casein), cheese, curd, pulses, soybean, dry fruits, etc. Fat is found in butter, pork, coconut, all edible oils, cod liver oil, the yolk of an egg, etc. We should drink more water at least 7-8 glasses of water. A healthy body also needs some daily physical activities, proper rest and sleep neatness, a healthy environment, fresh air, and water, personal hygiene, etc.

Composition Writing Example #7

Essay on science and technology (250+ words).

In a fast-changing world, the fate of the country can be moulded through our ability to harness modern science and technology, which is a road to boost the development programs of the country. Rapid technological advances have reduced the dependency on natural resources or the factors in proportion to it.

Man is performing precisely by machines with a regular improvement in his work because of quick technological changes by virtue of scientific advancement all around the world. We have accomplished desired scientific and technological advancement and have succeeded in boosting various important international activities like information and telecommunication, television, meteorological services, medical advancement, industrial development, nuclear research, Space Research Oceanographic Research, etc.

Over the years a strong science and technology infrastructure base has been established for giving modern shape to world industries. It covers a chain of laboratories, specialized centres, various academic and research institutes, training centres, and useful development programs, which continuously provide skill, technically trained manpower, and technological support to industries for better execution. Science has advanced a great deal in the field of medical care. New technology has given a compelling medical care framework at a reasonable cost. Medical research has been carried out, broadly on nutrition, tuberculosis, reproduction, child care, leprosy, drugs, communicable diseases, cholera, and malaria, which has an extremely certain result.

If we look at the global scenario, the modern world is moving exceptionally fast. There are rapid scientific and technological changes that are occurring in a steady progression. Our country, as a global competitor, in the race of becoming a world power, needs to accomplish more in the area of Science and Technology emphasizing it as its foremost national priority in order to accomplish its objective.

Composition Writing Example #8

Essay on co-education (250+ words).

Co-education is a system of education in which boys and girls study together in a common school or college. Co-education was not prevalent in ancient times. It is a groundbreaking thought. Co-education is exceptionally practical. The number of schools required is less. The strength of the teaching staff is diminished. The government spends less money on infrastructure and laboratories. The balance of money so saved is spent on better maintenance of schools and colleges, which facilitates the students for better study.

The parents supported the case for adequate education for the children irrespective of their sex. The countrymen realized that the boys and girls have to move together and shoulder to shoulder in every walk of life in the free world. They started educating their children in co-educational institutions. That is the reason why the students of co-educational institutions do better in every walk of their life.

It is useful in producing a sensation of solidarity and a feeling of equivalent obligation among boys and girls. When young boys and girls come closer to each other, they take more care in understanding each other. That helps in creating a friendly atmosphere between the two. The boys and the girls partake in their joint exercises consistently in schools and universities.

If we want that our country ought to sparkle, we need to bring young boys and young girls together for making a power of working hands in the country, which can give a compelling reaction for greatness by accelerating the advancement in every one of the fields.

Composition Writing Example #9

Essay on education (250 words).

There are two basic purposes behind education. The first is to free people from ignorance, superstition, bad habits, and many wrong ideas. Secondly, to provide the citizens of a country with some skill or special kind of knowledge that would enable them to earn a decent living. In a highly populated country like India education is a must for both the purposes mentioned. First, there must be a hundred per cent literacy if the so-called democracy that the constitution guarantees for its citizens is to have any true meaning.

Only educated citizens can utilize democratic rights usefully. But as the population of this country rises by leaps and bounds, mere knowledge for its own sake will not suffice. People, educated people, must learn to produce things that are in daily demand. We need more technicians, more carpenters, more well-informed farmers and cultivators, and more skilled workers of different categories who can increase the goods and services they demand which are constantly rising.

There should be close coordination between producers of necessary goods and educational planners. Turning out graduates from colleges and universities would not help things because such ordinary graduates are not employable in industries. Colleges, universities, and other seats of higher education must train young men and women who are able to show tangible results in the form of useful goods needed by society. Such education alone can exorcise the spectre of unemployment that is stalking the country today and is at the root of all its serious troubles.

Composition Writing Example #10

Essay on save environment (250 words).

Environment means a healthy natural balance in the air, water, animals, plants, and other natural resources. The environment influences the existence and development of an organism. Pollution is the process of creating the environment dirty by adding harmful substances thereto. Owing to indiscriminate industrialization man has created a polluted environment. He has continuously tampered with nature which led to a threat to the sustenance of mankind.

The constant more in the world population is the main reason for environmental pollution. More population means more industry. Factories release toxic gases into the air, and filthy poisonous waters from factories and mills For also released into the waters of rivers; trees are cut down for fuel and other commercial purposes, or for procuring land for building houses. This results in a fall in the supply of oxygen that the trees provide With the felling of trees animals and birds also lose their shelter and this destroys the balance in the ecology.

To prevent these hazards from endangering human, animal, and plant life measures should be taken before the situation goes out of control. More trees should be planted. Anti-pollution scientific methods should be devised, so that toxic gases and poisonous effluents are not released by factories and mills into the air and water respectively. Cutting down trees should be made punishable by law. Poaching and hunting of animals for monetary gain and recreation should also be stopped. Finally, from early life, people should be so educated that they become aware of the vital importance of a healthy, natural, and toxic-free environment.

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Composition Writing Example #11

Essay on cleanliness (230+ words).

There is truth in the common saying: “Cleanliness is next to godliness.” Cleanliness is a great virtue. It makes a man healthy and happy. The healthy habit of cleanliness should be formed from childhood in our everyday routine. A clean environment keeps us free from pollution. Cleanliness comes out of a taste for decency.

Cleanliness is of two types—cleanliness of body and cleanliness of mind. Cleanliness of the body makes for physical health. Health is an impossibility without bodily cleanliness. The disease is the handmaid of dirt. The germs of disease breed and multiply in the dirt. Epidemic diseases like cholera and typhoid which often sweep over villages and towns and take a heavy toll on life are the result of dirty habits and the surroundings of the people.

Cleanliness of the mind is as necessary as that of the body for self-respect. No one loves and respects a man if he is not clean in mind-free from impure desires, and evil thoughts. Mental cleanliness makes for one’s success in any sphere of life. The effects of cleanliness are great. It contributes to the character of a noble personality not only with clean clothes but also with clean ideas, clean thoughts, and clean ways of life. In every walk of life, it is necessary to maintain cleanliness in body and mind as well as indoors and outdoors. Cleanliness is truly next to godliness. All should cultivate it.

Composition Writing Example #12

STORY – The stag and the hunter

One day a stag was thirsty. He went to drink water in a pool. The water in the pool was very clear. The Slag saw his own image in the pool. He was charmed to see his own horns. They were fine to look at. So he admired them much. But he was sorry to see his thin legs.

They were very ugly to look at. All of a sudden a hunter came up there with his hounds. The stag was afraid. He began to run away. His legs carried him as fast as they could. But his horns got entangled with the creepers in the bushes. He was unable to run away. The hunter came up there and killed him. His charming horns were the cause of his death.

Moral: Handsome is that handsome does.

Composition Writing Example #13

Essay on water pollution (250+ words).

According to the World Health Organization, any foreign matter either natural or other sources which contaminates and pollutes the water or the water supply making it harmful to human and aquatic life is termed water pollution. Household detergents and wastes pollute water bodies. When detergents and fertilizers containing phosphates are discharged into water, it promotes the growth of algae. Drilling oil under the sea may prove dangerous for marine life.

Water pollution may severely affect human, plant, and animal life. When contaminated water is consumed, the pathogens enter the human body. It may cause various water-borne diseases such as typhoid, cholera, diarrhoea, dysentery, and jaundice. Metals such as lead, mercury, and cadmium dissolved in water may cause several diseases if they enter the human body. When water contaminated with cadmium was consumed by the Japanese, they were affected by a disease called Itai-Itai.

Similarly, a disease known as Minamata affected the Japanese after they consumed fish that had a large concentration of mercury. When phosphorus and nitrates from fertilizers are disposed of in water bodies, they promote the growth of algae. The presence of algae in water bodies in a large number reduces the amount of dissolved oxygen in water resulting in the death of fish and other water organisms. Thermal pollution increases the temperature of the water which in turn reduces the level of oxygen in the water. This results in the death of many species of fish. Measures should be taken to prevent water pollution before the situation goes out of control. Anti-pollution scientific methods should be devised.

Composition Writing Example #14

Essay on child labour (250+ words).

Child labour has been quite a problem down the ages. Child labour means the labour done by children below the age of eighteen. Employing little boys and girls not only saves money but also helps the employer avoid labour unrest. Young boys and girls can be paid lesser wages and they do not form unions to realize demands for higher pay.

The types of work children have to do are many and various. In tea stalls and small hotels, they clean the utensils, mop the floors and serve at the table. In garages, they wash the cars, buses, and lorries. The female children serve as maid-servants in various families. Though child labour is a cruel practice it saves many families from starvation. The income of the adult members of these families is not sufficient even for their hand-to-mouth living. If the children do not work to supplement their income, the families will have to starve. So simply banning the use of child labour one could not solve the problem.

In recent times the government of India has become aware of the evils of the system. But it can be hard to do away with it all of a sudden. Abolition of the employment of child labour must be preceded by a process of improving the economic condition of the families concerned. Proper methods should be adopted so that the children are educated and not sent to workplaces that destroy both the body and the soul of these unfortunate creatures.

Composition Writing Example #15

Essay on my hobby (250 words).

A hobby is voluntary work done in leisure with pleasure. There are many fashionable hobbies such as stamp-collecting, coin-collecting, photography, etc. But my favourite hobby is gardening. I started it when I was only ten. I have a small plot of land beside our house. There I cultivate gardening. I spend one hour every day gardening. Back from the morning walk, I go to my garden with a spade and a waterful bucket. I dig up the soil, trim the plants, and water them. I also spray insecticides and apply fertilizers.

When I see the plants swaying in the wind, my heart leaps in joy. I experience heavenly pleasure as I see them grow day by day. I have chosen this hobby because it gives me not only joy but also enough physical exercise to keep my body fit.

I face some problems in cultivating gardening. Entellus often eat up flowers and destroy the plants, though I am at pains to scare them away. Gardening brings me both joy and health. Every afternoon I work for an hour in my garden and watch the buds come up and the branches nod in the breeze. Although a hobby is a source of pleasure and not of profit, my hobby combines the two. My mother looks upon it very kindly, as a part of my garden serves as a kitchen garden. A hobby is an index to a man’s character and I believe my hobby reflects my character.

Composition Writing Example #16

Essay on my ambition in life (200 words).

Ambition is a goal or objective to achieve in life. In order to succeed in life, one must have a goal. An aimless man is like a ship without a compass. So, I have to select an ambition in my life. Very soon I shall be a citizen of my country. I shall have some duties to society and my country. I must perform them. I think no country can prosper without education. So, my ambition in life is to spread education. Any noble work needs money.

So, after completing my graduation I shall join my father’s business. Business is the best source of earning money. I shall spend a large part of my profit on spreading education and treatment for the poor and sick villagers. I shall set it up. schools for children. I shall start night schools for the adults to make them literate. I shall set up a library. Books on various subjects will be issued without any subscription. I shall open training centres for young boys and girls to provide them with jobs. I do not know how far my ambition will be successful. But I shall try my best.

Composition Writing Example #17

Essay on value of time (250 words).

There is a saying, “Time and tide wait for none. The value of time is very great. We can regain lost money and lost health. But lost time is gone forever. So, we should know the use of time. We should remember that we cannot recall the time that is gone. We can stop the clock but we cannot stop the time. And so we must make the best use of every moment. This knowledge and habit of proper use of time are the secrets of success.

Our life is short. But time passes swiftly. Our life is made of moments. So, to lose a moment is to waste a valuable part of life. By making the right use of the time we can do a lot. We should avail ourselves of every opportunity. If we do not know the use of time our life becomes miserable. We should know that a stitch in time saves nine. Idle time is said to be a thief of time.

If we idle away our time, our appointed work will suffer and success will be hard to achieve. Time lost is lost forever. We are born to do a lot of work. Great men realize it. They never lose a moment. Gandhiji always used to keep a watch to watch his time. He who performs his duties punctually prospers in life positively. What can be done today should not be put off for tomorrow. We should not say ‘later’, we should do ‘now’.

Composition Writing Example #18

Essay on value of trees (250+ words).

Trees are of great importance in our everyday life. They provide us with thatch for huts, timber for buildings and furniture, firewood, food like fruits, honey, etc., and medicine. We are dependent on trees for our very existence on earth. They produce oxygen which keeps us alive. They also absorb carbon-di-oxide exhaled by us and thereby help to create a pollution-free atmosphere. Trees help to prevent the erosion of soil and floods.

Both the urban and rural people gain advantages from growing more trees. The former enjoys a pollution-free atmosphere and the latter gets fruits, fuel, goods of economic importance, and medicines. Road-side trees are planted to beautify the roads and purify the air. Trees supply fresh air to reduce pollution in urban areas and help in rural economic growth. It is important to note that 33% of the land is required as forests in any country to maintain ecological balance. Hence we must take utmost care to grow more trees and stop deforestation. Trees give men shelter and shade. They protect wildlife. Trees help men fight against environmental pollution.

So we all must grow more trees and stop deforestation. We must care for trees for our own sake. We should not forget that the great scientist Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose proved that trees are living beings. The festival, Vano-Mahotsav is observed every year during the rainy season. Thousands of saplings are planted on the occasion. More and more areas are brought under forest cover and people are taught “Plant trees and save a life.”

Composition Writing Example #19

STORY – The honest woodcutter

Once a poor woodcutter was cutting down a tree by the side of a river. Accidentally his axe slipped into the water. Losing his axe, the poor man sat down and wept. A god heard him cry and came out of the river to help him. He heard the poor man’s story, dived into the stream, and soon came out holding in his hand a gold axe. “Is this the axe that you lost ?” He asked. “No, my axe was not so beautiful as this, replied the poor woodcutter.

The god dived into the water again and brought up a silver axe. The poor man would not take this one either and said that it was not his. So the god went into the river for the third time and brought up the iron axe the man had lost. This the man received with great joy. The god was pleased that the woodcutter was honest. He gave him the silver and the gold axes as a reward in addition to the one iron.

Moral: Honesty is always rewarded.

Composition Writing Example #20

Essay on morning walk (250 words).

Morning walk and early rising go hand in hand. One who wants to go for a morning walk has to get up early. A morning walk is a healthy habit. It removes the physical lethargy caused by the night’s sleep, helps in the circulation of blood, and makes one healthy. It is good exercise after a long night’s rest and provides us with fresh oxygen from the cool morning air. It gives a good start to a man’s whole day’s work. He can finish a large amount of his work before others get out of bed. He need not hurry over any part of his work.

A morning walk enables a man to have closer contact with nature. He can see the calm, quiet and complete beauty of nature- the beauty he cannot see by day. A morning walk provides independent exercise. He need not go to the gymnasium for exercise. Morning walk, like early rising, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.

Even doctors advise their patients to have a morning walk daily, as a remedy for various types of physical ailments, especially diabetes. Moreover, a morning walk is certainly a good start for the whole day’s work. During our walk in the morning, we come into greater and closer contact with nature. A morning walk is advantageous as an independent exercise. If anyone wants to ensure proper care of his or her health, he or she can undertake a morning walk as it is very simple as well as beneficial.

Composition Writing Example #21

Essay on science (250 words).

Science is a great boon to human civilization. All signs of Progress in civilization have been made possible by science. Science has made our life easy and comfortable. It has given us electric fans, and lights. fans cool us, lights remove darkness. Lift, washing machine, etc. save our labour. Car, train, bus, and aircraft have made our travel speedy and comfortable. The computer has taken the excess load off our brains. Science has given us life-saving medicine. Surgery can do something miraculous. Space flight is another wonder of science.

Thus through the gifts of science, the man who had once lived in the cave has now landed on the science of the moon is a blessing to us. But it is a curse at the same time. Science has given us speed but has taken away our emotions. It has made our machine. The introduction of the mobile phone has destroyed the art of letter writing. Science has made war more dreadful by inventing sophisticated weapons. Peace has become scarce. Yet there are some abuses of science. It has given us the frightful nuclear weapons that can destroy the whole world.

But who is responsible for making Science a curse? Certainly, it is the evil intention of a few scientists and malignant politicians. We can use fire for cooking our food or burning other’s houses. It is not the fault of fire, but of its users. Likewise, man is responsible for the uses and abuses of science. But science cannot be blamed for this.

Composition Writing Example #22

Essay on noise pollution (250+ words).

Any unwanted loud sound which causes stress and irritation can be termed noise pollution. Of late, sound or noise pollution has adversely affected our normal life in a major way. It is chasing us in almost every step. In schools, colleges, offices, and even hospitals we have an explosion of deafening sound. The main sources of noise pollution are Means of transport, the Use of loudspeakers, the Industrial sector, and the Celebration of festivals and wedding ceremonies. We are almost deafened by the blaring mikes or the record players which are often played in full volume.

Secondly, we have noise pollution caused by various groups of people shouting out their slogans or impatient automobiles always honking their horns. During some social and religious festivals, crackers are burst indiscriminately. Noise pollution can have serious effects on human health. It may cause impairment of hearing and can cause sleep disruption. People who are frequently subjected to a high level of noise pollution may suffer from hypertension, depression, and panic attacks. It may lead to an abnormal increase in heartbeat and heart palpitation. It can also cause migraine headaches, nausea, and dizziness.

Some Measures to Minimise Noise Pollution are Prohibiting the blowing of horns, The use of loudspeakers should be banned, Airports should be located away from residential areas, and People should restrain themselves from lighting firecrackers. In recent times laws have been passed to take effective steps to control sound pollution. People must also be made aware of the dangers of noise pollution.

Composition Writing Example #23

STORY – A Greedy Dog

One day a dog stole a morsel of meat from a butcher’s shop. He was very glad to have it and thought of a hearty meal at home that evening. With the piece of meat in his mouth, he proceeded towards his home. On his way home he had to cross a river. There was a narrow plank across it. As he was going across the plank, he looked down and saw his own image reflected in the water. He took it for another dog with a bigger piece of meat.

“Ah, there is another dog with a bigger piece of meat !” he said to himself and added, “If can take that piece of meat away from him, I shall have a hearty meal also in the morning. | must have that piece at any cost.”

So thinking, he rushed at his own shadow to catch at the piece of meat reflected in the water, Instantly, he fell down into the river and lost his own piece of meat. Thus, being led by greed, he had to lose what he already had.

Moral: Grasp all, lose all

Composition Writing Example #24

Essay on television (250+ words).

Television is one of the many wonders of modern science and technology. It was invented in England by the Scottish scientist J.N. Baird in 1928 and the British Broadcasting Corporation was the first to broadcast television images in 1929. Previously the radio helped us hear things from far and near and spread information and knowledge from one corner of the globe to another. But all this was done through sound only. But television combined visual images with sound.

Today we can watch games, shows, and song and dance programs from all corners of the world while sitting in our own homes. TV can be used for educating the masses, for bringing to us the latest pieces of information audio-visually, and can provide us with all kinds of entertainment even in colour.

But as in all things, too much televiewing may prove harmful. TV provides visual images but the televiewer has a limited choice of programs. He has to adjust himself to the scheduled programs of a particular television channel. But as for the book, a reader’s imagination plays a vital role. He can freely read a book which is a personal activity and it cannot be shared with others at the same time. In many cases, the habit of watching TV has an adverse effect on the study habits of the young. When we read books, we have to use our intelligence and imagination. But in most cases, TV watching is a passive thing. It may dull our imagination and intelligence.

Composition Writing Example #25

Essay on newspaper (250+ words).

The Newspaper is the mirror of the world. Modern life cannot be imagined without newspapers. A newspaper is a regular source of important news from home and abroad. It represents the current and living history of the world. Newspapers are of various kinds dailies, weeklies, bi-weeklies, monthlies, etc. The main function of a daily paper is to publish news of general interest while the others mostly contain literary pieces and articles on important topics.

Nowadays every newspaper has some special sections dealing with politics, everyday problems, off-beat news, business, sports, editorial page, feature pages, etc. So, the newspaper is one of the most powerful organs for the dissemination of news and views among the public. It plays a very important role in educating people and guiding them along the right path. If it wants to it can fight social evil successfully. A newspaper can also do us much harm. Used wrongly it can create hatred and enmity between man and man, section and section, nation and nation.

Sometimes it publishes baseless reports or stories to create deliberate confusion in the minds of gullible people. A newspaper is as powerful as any potent weapon. It can be used for both good and evil. Much depends on the outlook and motive of the people who are at the helm of the paper. It shapes Public opinion. It can mislead people with false and fabricated news. The newspaper should give impartial and correct pieces of information. It must not feed false news.

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Nevada Today

Core writing program has received the conference on college composition and communication (cccc) writing program certificate of excellence.

The Core Writing Program has received the Conference on   College Composition and Communication (CCCC) Writing Program Certificate of Excellence . To earn this designation, a writing program must demonstrate not only best practices in writing instruction, but also responsivity to the needs of its students, instructors and institution; exemplary professional development opportunities for faculty; effective, ongoing assessment and placement procedures; appropriate class sizes based; and a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. The selection committee specifically praised the Core Writing Program’s recent curriculum revisions that emphasize language diversity and encourage students to reflect and build upon their knowledge about writing. The committee also noted programmatic achievements such fostering respectful, humane, and professional working environment for faculty of all ranks; advocating for and protecting smaller class sizes; and implementing a portfolio model of teaching evaluation. Representatives from the program will accept the award at the 2023 CCCC convention in Chicago.

This award is the culmination of years of program refinement and innovation amid challenging times. Congratulations to the Core Writing administration team (Todd, Jim, Katie, and Joanne), administrative all-star Cami, and all Core Writing committee members and staff.

See more University recognitions

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IMAGES

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COMMENTS

  1. Composition Writing: A Step-by-Step Guide

    Essentially, the definition of "composition writing" is the tone and structure a writer uses to express their position. When a composition is a work of fiction, its author typically chooses the composition mode that best expresses the work's theme. Think of each of these as a composition writing format.

  2. What Is Composition? Definition, Types, and Examples

    In writing, composition refers to the way a writer structures a piece of writing. The four modes of composition, which were codified in the late 19th century, are description, narration, exposition, and argumentation. Good writing can include elements of multiple modes of composition. Composition Definition

  3. How to Write a Composition (with Pictures)

    1 Read the assignment closely. It's important to get a clear understanding of what your teacher expects from your composition in both for topic and style.

  4. 8 Steps to Write a Good Composition (part 1)

    8 Steps to Write a Good Composition (part 1) 30/05/2023 Are you having trouble with your writing skills? Read this and you will find good and simple advice to make things much easier and your compositions much better. Even impressive. Just follow the 8 steps we will show you.

  5. Composition Writing

    The definition of Composition writing is the creation and organization of a written paper or an essay on a topic in a field of study such as literature, history, or sociology. By writing...

  6. ENGL001: English Composition I

    Courses Course Catalog English ENGL001: English Composition I Learn new skills or earn credit towards a degree at your own pace with no deadlines, using free courses from Saylor Academy. Join the 1,839,519 students that started their journey with us.

  7. English Composition: Connect, Collaborate, Communicate

    English Composition teaches text-based academic writing at most schools. In the chapter on the writing process and essay structure, activities ask for personal essays on non-academic topics. I would LOVE to have seen some real-world essay prompts for text-based assignments, even from different disciplines as English comp courses serve students ...

  8. English Composition I

    There are 10 modules in this course. You will gain a foundation for college-level writing valuable for nearly any field. Students will learn how to read carefully, write effective arguments, understand the writing process, engage with others' ideas, cite accurately, and craft powerful prose. Course Learning Objectives • Summarize, analyze ...

  9. About Writing Guide with Handbook

    No headers. Writing Guide with Handbook aligns to the goals, topics, and objectives of many first-year writing and composition courses. It is organized according to relevant genres, and focuses on the writing process, effective writing practices or strategies—including graphic organizers, writing frames, and word banks to support visual learning—and conventions of usage and style.

  10. Suscc Library: English 101: Types of Written Compositions

    English 101 English Composition 101 guide provides assistance to students who are currently in English 101. What is A Composition A composition is a five or more paragraph essay. Distinguishing between types of compositions is simply a matter of determining your writing goal.

  11. You, Writing! A Guide to College Composition

    This text is meant to be used in any first year College Composition class or as a general guide to college writing. The book focuses on writing as a process, not a product. The goal is to help students discover their own writing process, tryin g out different methods and strategies to find what works best for them About the Contributors Authors

  12. Writing Academic Compositions: Processes and Products

    Generally, when students work on composition assignments, they complete the following steps: brainstorming, creating a graphic organizer, making an outline, creating the first complete draft, and editing/revising. As students advance in their acquisition of academic English and take on longer, more complex composition assignments, they often ...

  13. English composition: 9 ways to improve your English writing skill

    English composition: 9 ways to improve your English writing skill Writing will help you develop your vocabulary and grammar, make you a better reader, and teach you how to use English to express yourself clearly. Learning English composition is significant to be a fluent English speaker.

  14. English Composition Writing Tips

    Nurture your child's mastery of written English by introducing him or her to what we consider the five basic elements to writing an effective composition. 1. Determine the Central Idea of the Composition. An essay, as with most written compositions, has an introduction, a body and a conclusion.

  15. Composition Writing

    Composition Writing These simple steps will guide you through the composition writing process: 1. Decide on your topic. 2. Prepare an outline or diagram of your ideas. 3. Start writing your thesis statement. 4. Write the introduction. 5. Write the body. Write the main points. Write the sub-points. Elaborate on the sub-points. 6.

  16. How to Write Composition

    Hello friends,Do you know how to write composition? Let's learn the composition writing in 5 easy steps in this video.Check out our grammar lessons here: htt...

  17. What is English Composition?

    Composition is a fundamental writing skill you'll use throughout college and into your career, no matter what path you choose. A writing composition puts several ideas in order so readers can understand an idea or argument. Generally speaking, careers that require college degrees also require a great deal of writing.

  18. O Level English: The Art of Composition Writing

    Structure Matters: A well-structured composition is vital to coherence. Create a logical flow from the introduction to the conclusion by using paragraphs - this will give your idea a more put-together look. Good composition writing examples and O Level English past papers can guide you in this regard.

  19. Сomposition Writing Tips

    Composition writing is tested in Paper 1 of the English language paper. It requires students to write a narrative essay based on a given theme and at least one of three picture prompts. The length of the essay is 150 words for P5 and P6 students (and lower for P1 to P4 students). Students are assessed on their 'Content' and 'Language'.

  20. Style & Writing Resources

    ENG 102 • English Composition [Allen]: Style & Writing Resources. Library resources and information for Professor Allen's ENG 102 class. Welcome Toggle Dropdown. ... "The online writing lab offers global support through online reference materials and services for creating citations, cover letters, major-specific writing help, and general ...

  21. Composition Writing From A to Z

    Frequently Asked Questions The Basics Of Composition Writing This kind of writing is considered a narrative. That's because it entails narrating events in a sequence from the plot that a writer creates. Thus, writing a composition is like telling a story. The only difference is that you do it in writing.

  22. Types of Composition Writing and Examples

    Composition Writing Types of Composition Writing Description Narration Exposition Argumentation By What Rules Is A Good Essay Written? Never Forget These When Writing Composition! Composition Writing Writing is not as easy as talking, there are certain rules for writing good compositions.

  23. Short Composition

    The composition definition can be stated as compiling words and phrases to narrate a particular event or convey a certain message. Composition writing is a very easy method to get the point across and that too in a short amount of time. The composition can be easily understood because often they are written as a form of short composition.

  24. Best 25 Composition Writing Examples

    Essay on My Family (250+ Words) Family is the place where you learn your first lesson in life. Your family members are the only assets that will remain with you forever. Whatever the circumstances, family members are always there for each other to support us. Good values and good morals are always taught in a family. Daily Test - Attempt Now

  25. Core Writing Program has received the Conference on College Composition

    Core Writing Program has received the Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC) Writing Program Certificate of Excellence | University of Nevada, Reno

  26. English Course Sequence

    ENGWR 108/300 Combo Placement First Semester. Enroll in both of the following:. ENGWR 300: College Composition (3 units, a transfer-level writing class); ENGWR 108: Accelerated College Writing (3 units, provides the tools and time to succeed in the core transfer-level class).. Each ENGWR 108 has its own required section of ENGWR 300.