Tips for Writing

R.A.C.E.R : A strategy for Short Answer Questions

BOTEC: A strategy for essay writing

B- Brainstorm: Since an essay asks for you to recall a lot of information, your brainstorm is a perfect spot to write down everything you know. This helps you to see what 'ammunition' you have to answer the prompt.

O- Organization: Decide, if your teacher has not already told you in the instructions, how many paragraphs/arguments you will have. Decide which of your arguments are strong enough to include.

T- Thesis: Write your thesis. If a three point thesis, this is where you will make the decision of the order of your paragraphs. The order your arguments appear in your thesis is the order they should appear in your paper. Tip: Hide your weakest argument in the middle.

E- Evidence: Use quotes, citations, and examples to provide evidence for each of your arguments.

C- Conclusion: Repeat your initial argument/thesis with different wording and conclude your paper/arguments.

Proofreading Strategies

Before turning in a paper, essay, or composition, consider these strategies:

Remove yourself before proofing: Step away from your paper after writing it. Then, return to it to proofread it. The break from the writing often allows us to hear/see the awkward or unclear wording we may have used.
Whisper read/Read out loud: When you proofread, actually read the paper out loud. When you do, you are likely to hear the mistakes.
Use SPORTS. SPORTS is a strategy to catching common mistakes in your writing. It stands for:

S- Sentence Structure: check that your sentence structure is varied. You do not want all simple sentences or all complex compound sentences. Vary your structure.

P- Punctuation: Check your punctuation. Look for comma splices. Analyze the sentence structure and make sure you have punctuated your complex and compound sentences correctly.

O- Organization: Make sure you have organized your paragraphs. Big things to look for in each paragraph for an essay are: topic sentence, your 50/50 quotation supporting your argument, an explanation of that quotation, and double check that you have a transition sentence to your next argument/paragraph.

R- Repetition: Students often try to make their essays longer by repeating themselves. Don't. If a sentence repeats the same information, cut it.

T- Tenses: Your verb tenses have to be parallel. Check your verbs to make sure that they are parallel. (In an essay, you want verbs in present tense) Also check your verbs to ensure that there are no instances of passive voice. Students lose lots of points due to verb tense.

S- Spelling: Check for spelling mistakes!

ESSAY CHECKLIST

Print this checklist:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/17t3jXfP7FqlldtMPytCA-C4i-yCBP6raS5X-Ot0_xb4/edit?usp=sharing

Structure

Introduction

Hook?
Bridge to plot summary?
Plot summary with title, author, and genre?
Bridge to thesis?

Thesis

Answers prompt?
Opinion?
Three reasons/points? (when applicable)

Body Paragraphs

Topic sentence with a reason from thesis within it?
Explanation?
Direct Quote?
Support and analysis?
Concluding sentence that wraps up this body paragraph and leads to the next one?

Conclusion

Restate thesis?
Overview of main points?
Final/concluding thought?

Evidence

Direct Quote?

Incorporated into your own sentence? Does it “flow” with your phrasing?
Does it support your thesis? In other words, is it the perfect quote to prove your point?
Parenthetical citation?
Does the analysis after the evidence prove the point in your thesis?

Style

Does your essay read like a plot summary? Or is it analyzing the material?
Present tense verbs?
No first or second person?
No contractions?
No dead words?
No “this”, “that”, “these”, or“those” at the beginning of a sentence without a noun following it?
No sentence starters like “There are”, “There is”, “It is”?
No “obvious” statements like “This quote shows”, “Throughout the novel”, “I believe”, etc.?
Varied sentence structure?

MLA

MLA header?
Last name and page number in top right corner?
Title: centered, uppercase, and creative?
Works Cited page?
Author, title, publisher, publication year?

Grammar

Introductory phrases/clauses with commas?
Commas setting off dialogue?
Run-ons, comma splices, fragments?
Passive voice? “By”

*This checklist is directly from our ENGLISH department at Marist. Thank you to Mrs. Leah Longoria!

R.A.C.E.R : A strategy for Short Answer Questions

RACER is a strategy for answering the short answer question thoroughly. A short answer question is asking you to APPLY and CONNECT information from class. Use this strategy to make sure you answer with success.

R- Restate the Question

A- Answer the Question (all parts!)

C- Cite evidence, or give an example (connect as many of your vocabulary terms as possible in your explanation.)

E- Extend your answer/ Explain your example or evidence

R- Recap Your answer

SHORT ANSWER EXAMPLE:

QUESTION: Would deforestation cause an increase or decrease in greenhouse gasses?

Possible connected vocab terms that I want to connect in my answer: producer, consumer, CO2, greenhouse gas, plants, photosynthesis, carbon cycle

R- Deforestation would increase greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere because...

A- trees, called producers, absorb CO2 through a process called photosynthesis.

C- For example, an area with less trees and plants (deforestation) would have more CO2 in the atmosphere because there are no producers taking out the CO2 from the atmosphere through the Carbon Cycle.

E- This extra CO2 in the atmosphere would contribute to the greenhouse effect by increasing the greenhouse gasses in our atmosphere.

R- In conclusion, deforestation is bad for our environment and atmosphere.

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