Chapter 11Grammar and the Writing Process

By Jennifer Cerda

Revising and EditingDefinitionsRevision- the refinement of structure and

content.Editing- the correction of grammar and

punctuation errors.Attention: Writers sometimes attend too

much to mechanics and punctuation. They circle grammar and punctuation errors without commenting on the ideas themselves.

Also, careful attention to correct grammar and punctuation may help clarify relationships or establish connections between ideas.

The main focus that contributes to the success of student writing should include:

The concept of audience Having a purpose in mindForming a clear concise focusDevelopment/Structure of ideasThe organization of ideas and

support

Audience Who is the audience?What is their prior knowledge

about the topic?Why should they be interested in

the topic?

FocusIs the focus clear?Is the writer committed to their

focus throughout the paper?

DevelopmentIt there a development of ideas?Are the ideas supported?Are the examples appropriate?Do the examples have an

explanation of their significance?

OrganizationIs the paper in a logical order?Is there a pattern of ideas?Does the pattern contribute to

the main/controlling idea?

The Writing Process PrewritingDraftingRevisingEditingFinal Draft

Things to take into consideration while editing include:Correctness Fluency and coherence Consistency (time and tense)Style and word choice

Feedback is important!

Without contextualization students assume grammatical correctness is the most important feature of a piece of writing.

Novice teachers often spend more time circling errors than they do commenting on student papers or explaining at student conferences why errors are significant enough to warrant attention.

Feedback is necessary during the revision and editing part of the writing process.

ResourcesFor word choice, style, and tone:Dictionary Thesaurus

◦Example: Tom hates peas and carrots.Synonyms for hate: abhors, abominates,

despises, detests, loathes, etc.Note: Tom abominates peas and carrots is an

awkward sentence.A thesaurus merely provides possible word choice options from which the writer must

choose the one that fosters the overall context.

Technology as a resourceTechnology is also a good

resource for editing.Example: Microsoft word 2002Red lines appear underneath

misspelled and typographical errors (typos).

Green lines appear under sentences that contained possible grammatical or contextual errors

Issue with Word documentsThey fail to catch misused homonyms such as their, there, and they’re; to, too, and two.

Examples of how to use homonymsThere, Their, and They’reDid you see that cat over there?There are two cats on the couch.Their cat’s name is Onyx.They’re taking their cats to the vet today.Two, Too, and ToI have two cats.You have cats too?We need to name that cat.We have to take our two cats to the vet too.

Word choice & Registers The process of adapting word choice and other

aspects of language use the various situations is often referred to as a register.

Register implies degrees of formality in a given context.

Example: The letter a student might write to a friend is different from a cover letter.

The level of social connection to the intended readers and listeners makes determining levels formality a very instinctive process.

Common problem: Sometimes novice writers think that their use of a style may fit the occasion but in fact it doesn’t.

Another aspect of register Involves the use of

specialized language or jargon and also the use of slang or colloquialisms.

Examples:Legalese-referring to

lawyers and the court system.

Computerese-referring to technology systems.

JargonPresumes a knowledge base that

the general public or non specialists often do not possess.

Writers need to be aware of the audience and sensitive about whether to use jargon when speaking to that audience.

SlangRefers to the vast array of made-

up or altered words and phrases that are not part of standard vocabulary.

Caution: be against using slang and colloquialisms in writing.

Creating fluency for revision

Embedding and conjoining sentences are useful ways to enhance the overall fluency and coherence.

DefinitionsConjoining -basic approach of

combining two words, phrases, or sentences to create a more detailed and more concise text overall.

Embedding -allows for the inclusion of clauses that convey a range of relationships.

Bottom line of revisionStudents should be able to examine their

drafts, noting the length, complexity, and placement of their sentences.

This is important because it allows for students to have the opportunity to review the connections between ideas and they may see opportunities for embedding and conjoining that were not apparent before.

Students can also examine overly long, highly embedded sentences to see if they can be simplified.

Through peer review students may begin to consider options for making connections between sentences through both compounding and embedding.

That’s all the information folks!But before we go, lets have an

activity.

ActivityGet into pairs. Exchange your narratives with

your partner.Read your partner’s narrative

while keeping in mind the main concepts of:

Audience, focus, development, organization, correctness, fluency, consistency, style, and word choice.

Provide feedback!