chapter 12 copyright © 2002 by the mcgraw-hill companies, inc
TRANSCRIPT
CHAPTER 12CHAPTER 12
Copyright © 2002 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Copyright © 2002 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
CHAPTER 12: Revising Your GED Essay
When you revise your essay, you do two things:
• Examine your essay for ways to strengthen its content, organization, and wording
• Examine your essay for Edited American English: grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure
Go over your essay twice, because revising content is a very different task from revising grammatical errors.
Copyright © 2002 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
CHAPTER 12: Revising Your GED Essay
Make sure your essay has the following traits:
• The whole essay is relevant to the essay topic.
• The introduction is clearly written and has a thesis statement.
• The essay has three body paragraphs, and each has a topic sentence.
• The body paragraphs have enough supporting details.
Copyright © 2002 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
CHAPTER 12: Revising Your GED Essay
Use the following techniques and tools to polish your writing:
• Give specific reasons, examples, and details to support the thesis.
(Continued)
A tax decrease is needed A tax decrease is needed because people because people need more buying power to keep up with need more buying power to keep up with inflation.inflation.Nearly tripping on the doorsill,Nearly tripping on the doorsill, a a disheveled disheveled drunk drunk in a rumpled business in a rumpled business suitsuit staggeredstaggered into the Starlight Hotel’s into the Starlight Hotel’s bar bar at midnightat midnight for for one last shotone last shot of of whiskey whiskey before stumbling off to bed.before stumbling off to bed.
Copyright © 2002 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
CHAPTER 12: Revising Your GED Essay
Use the following techniques and tools to polish your writing:
• Show, don’t tell.
(Continued)
Showing:Showing: My three-year-old My three-year-old daughter danced daughter danced around the room, around the room, clapping her hands and clapping her hands and laughing.laughing.
Telling:Telling: My daughter was My daughter was delighted.delighted.
Copyright © 2002 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
CHAPTER 12: Revising Your GED Essay
Use the following techniques and tools to polish your writing:
• Use transitions between sentences and paragraphs.
(Continued)
Small towns may be quiet and Small towns may be quiet and peaceful. peaceful. However,However, I prefer the I prefer the excitement and variety of a big excitement and variety of a big city.city.
Copyright © 2002 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
CHAPTER 12: Revising Your GED Essay
Use the following techniques and tools to polish your writing:
• Use synonymssynonyms to avoid repetition and tightening tightening to avoid wordiness.
(Continued)
Wordy:Wordy: In this day and age, computers In this day and age, computers are a significant part of our are a significant part of our daily lives.daily lives.
Tight:Tight: Computers are now an Computers are now an important part of our daily important part of our daily lives.lives.
Copyright © 2002 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
CHAPTER 12: Revising Your GED Essay
Use the this checklist to make sure you’ve followed the standards of Edited American English (EAE):
• Is the first word of every sentence capitalized?• Are proper nouns capitalized?• Are the sentences complete? Does each one have a subject and a
verb?• Do subjects and verbs agree?• Does every sentence end with end punctuation?• Are commas used correctly?• Are all the words spelled correctly?
THE ENDTHE ENDPractice the skills you learned in this chapter by taking the Chapter Review QuizChapter Review Quiz or the GED Practice QuizGED Practice Quiz.
CHAPTER 12: Revising Your GED Essay
Copyright © 2002 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.