If it is possible I need the prewriting points and basic sample documents filled out and sent to me when completed they are a part of the assignment. I also need a rough draft and a final version of the essay. If I have to pay for these specific things I am willing to at a reasonable price
This is a personal narrative and I am only 20 so please keep it relevant
After reading and discussing Frederick Douglass’s “Learning to Read,” develop a 500 word narrative essay (introduction paragraph building up to a clearly stated thesis, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion paragraph) addressing one of the following general topics. You will need to narrow the topic and make it your own—include concrete examples and details.
You are relating your own experience(s). This assignment is a narrative and is not meant as a general discussion of reading, education, or Douglass. You do not need to mention him in your essay. I expect you to use first person pronouns (but NOT second).
Discuss the importance of reading and how it has affected your own education and life – recall an incident (or incidents) from your childhood that affected you, either positively or negatively, related to reading. You might think of who taught you to read, of sitting on your grandparent’s lap listening to Are You My Mother? for the fifth time in an hour while you tried to read along, or of the struggle you encountered with dyslexia before it was diagnosed.
Discuss the importance of education to you and how it has affected your life, focusing on a specific thing you learned or why you chose your major–recall the time something “clicked” for you in school or the time a particular instructor made an assignment clear and learning became easier. You might reflect on events that led you to choose your major.
Your introduction paragraph will start with an attention-getter, a “hook” to grab your audience’s attention. Follow that with at least three sentences of background which build up to the thesis statement. The thesis statement has to identify your main point and include references to your three supporting ideas, in the order you discuss them in your essay.
The second paragraph will be the first body paragraph. It will start with a topic sentence that covers the main focus of that item of development, followed by at least three sentences that provide concrete examples and develop the idea. That paragraph will end with a conclusion sentence that wraps up that idea and leads to the next body paragraph.
The third paragraph will be the second body paragraph. It will start with a topic sentence that covers the main focus of that item of development, followed by at least three sentences that provide concrete examples and develop the idea. That paragraph will end with a conclusion sentence that wraps up that idea and leads to the next body paragraph.
The fourth paragraph will be the third body paragraph. It will start with a topic sentence that covers the main focus of that item of development, followed by at least three sentences that provide concrete examples and develop the idea. That paragraph will end with a conclusion sentence that wraps up that idea.
The fifth paragraph will be the conclusion which summarizes the whole essay, briefly recapping the ideas developed, focusing on the most important aspect of each supporting idea developed. Do NOT start with the phrase “In conclusion” (it’s boring and overly predicatable). Your opening sentence should provide a general summary (do NOT re-use your thesis) of the material presented. The next three sentences should sum up each of the three ideas covered in the body paragraphs. The final sentence should provide the audience something to consider, perhaps making them think about future applications.
Be aware that one sentence fragment will lower your grade to no higher than a “C”; excessive fragments will lower the grade to approximately a 50%.
For ALL writing assignments, use the provided .doc files on Blackboard as your “templates” so that you prepare your files in the assigned format. READ them, for they provide you with information concerning how to complete the assignment or prepare the documents.
In all of your writings, if you wish to make a good grade, please consider the following (these ARE things I WILL mark on your papers):
Don’t use “you” pronouns. They imply the reader and are not appropriate in many cases, unless writing a process paper.
Avoid using “there are/is/was/were” phrasing. It makes you rely on weak linking verbs when you could use an action verb.
Use active voice verbs, not passive voice. You want the subject to perform the verb, not a weak subject that is acted upon and has no control.
Vary your sentence structure so that you don’t have just S-V-O phrasing. Use introductory phrases, introductory adverb clauses, compound sentences, compound-complex sentences. Make your sentences different lengths. When all of your sentences are the same length, it makes the paper visually boring.
Use appropriate language. You’re in college. Avoid weak adjectives such as “big,” “good,” “bad,” “pretty,”….you get the idea. Don’t use “rinky-dink” vocabulary, avoid slang, and do NOT use abbreviations. You will not LOL in college composition classes and need to use more formal language.
The noun “kid” refers to a baby goat (seriously, look it up). If you are referring to a child, use the appropriate noun, such as “toddler,” “infant,” “student,” “teen,” or other appropriate terms.
Your pronouns need clear antecedents. Unless you have made a clear connection, I will not know who “they” refers to.
Your pronouns need to be consistent. One common error students make is making a singular reference to someone and then following with a plural reference to they or them. This is incorrect. You will find it easier to stay consistently plural if possible.
Follow the format which is given to you in the sample files provided on Blackboard. Don’t be inventive with your own font and spacing and margins. Use the supplied files as “templates,” meaning that you open them and then type over the supplied information.
Save ALL FILES AS .DOC OR .DOCX FILES. Please do NOT submit files which are saved in other formats, especially .dot files which have a tendency to do odd things to my computer.
Proofread your papers so that you do not have trouble with misspelled words, punctuation (especially commas), homonyms, run-ons, comma-splices, and fragments.
Do not start sentences with coordinating conjunctions (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so). Use these words to JOIN words, phrases, and clauses.
When referring to people, use “who.” When referring to things, use “that.” When referring to situations, use “which.”
Use concrete examples in your papers. Be as clear and specific as you can (i.e., don’t just say a “dog”—say a “brown Labrador puppy”).
When you start a sentence with an introductory phrase or clause, remember to use a comma after it, to signal where the introductory word group stops and the main sentence begins.
Since you are writing some papers that are personal reflection papers, it is acceptable to use first person pronouns (I, me, my, mine, we, our, ours, us). You will NOT use first person pronouns in the summary paragraph.
Please note:
The presence of fragments, the incorrect use of “you” pronouns, using weak linking verbs (esp. “there are/is/was/were” phrasing), and poor grammar/punctuation WILL result in a lower grade. Consult the grading rubrics before you submit your rough and final drafts and review your work carefully. Use the Edit/Find function in Word to help proofread your essays.
