Exploratory task 2.8

There are some ways to help the students prepare better for a writing assignment at a pre-writing phase. How do you understand the purpose of the following propositions? Some have been done for you (Adapted from Scrivener, J.1994. Learning Teaching. Henemann. P.159)

Propositions

The purpose

· Students think about the topic before they write · Students brainstorm ideas and approaches to the topic of writing · Students discuss the topic with other students · Students see examples of similar writing · The class discusses a piece of similar writing together · Students make preliminary notes and learn to link sentences · Students practice the language · Students work on a rough draft on writing

To activate prior knowledge To clarify one’s own and get new ideas

One of the approaches to run pre-writing activity is brainstorming. Useful guidelines for running a brainstorming session can be found in Hopkins, A. 1989. Perspectives. London. Longman (quoted after T. O'Brien.1996. P. 11). The rules are: work in s small group, let your mind wander freely, make a list of all the ideas however outrageous they are, avoid organizing ideas at this stage, make the brainstorming session short (3-5 minutes). As a result a mind-map can be created (Byrne, D. 1988. P. 117. Hedge. T. 1988. P. 30)) Brainstorming activity can take a more sophisticated format of the pyramid grouping. The participants first generate their ideas individually or in small groups and then join in bigger groups sharing and producing ideas. Finally, smaller groups can join in the whole class for producing the final variant of ideas or materials. Brainstorming is the first stage in the process of writing: brainstorm, organize, write.

Exploratory task 2.9

Read the following list of ideas produced by students during their brainstorming session given to “healthy diets”. Based on the ideas make up a plan of the essay “Tastes differ” (Adapted from Raimes, A., 1983. Techniques in Teaching Writing. OUP. P. 136)

Ideas produced during brainstorming	Plan of the essay
· A lot of people are vegetarians · People can’t live on vegetables alone · You need some meat for protein · Fat is bad for you · A diet of vegetables is the best · Candies and ice-creams cause problems · Weight is against health · Variety in foods is great · Why haven’t we mentioned fish?

Exploratory task 2.10

You are going to write an essay “Good fences make good neighbors”. Brainstorm the concept of a “good neighbor” and produce a mind-map. Produce a plan of your writing. Write a short essay.

Good neighbor

Plan of the essay

Essay Good Fences Make Good Neighors  

To reflect on your writing use the check-list (After Hopkins, A. 1989. P 20)

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