Writing & Grammar Ladder · High school · Grade 6–10

Composition

From paragraph to essay: the writing process, topic sentences and transitions, narrative, descriptive, expository and persuasive writing, thesis statements and outlines, evidence and quotations, paraphrase without plagiarism, MLA, APA and Chicago citations, revision, and letters and emails.

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43 topics in 8 units. Builds on Grammar. Leads to Rhetoric and Advanced Writing. Not sure this is the right course? Find your rung.

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Unit 1 The Writing Process

3 topics

Prewriting, drafting, revising, editing and publishing, with a purpose and a reader in mind.

  1. The Writing Process
  2. Purpose and Audience
  3. Finding and Narrowing a Topic

Unit 2 Paragraphs

6 topics

Topic sentences, supporting details, unity, transitions, order and concluding sentences.

  1. Topic Sentences
  2. Supporting Details
  3. Paragraph Unity
  4. Transitions
  5. Organizing a Paragraph
  6. Concluding Sentences

Unit 3 Kinds of Writing

7 topics

Narrative, descriptive, expository and persuasive writing, and the difference between a fact, an opinion and a claim.

  1. Narrative Writing
  2. Showing and Telling
  3. Descriptive Writing
  4. Expository Writing
  5. Ways to Explain
  6. Facts, Opinions and Claims
  7. Persuasive Writing

Unit 4 The Essay

8 topics

Thesis statements, outlines, introductions, body paragraphs and conclusions, the five-paragraph essay, and how to grow beyond it.

  1. Thesis Statements
  2. Strong and Weak Theses
  3. Outlining
  4. Introductions and Hooks
  5. Body Paragraphs
  6. Conclusions
  7. The Five-Paragraph Essay
  8. Growing Beyond Five Paragraphs

Unit 5 Evidence and Sources

7 topics

Kinds of evidence, quotations, summary and paraphrase, plagiarism, judging sources and research questions.

  1. Kinds of Evidence
  2. Using Quotations
  3. Summarizing
  4. Paraphrasing
  5. Avoiding Plagiarism
  6. Judging Sources
  7. Research Questions

Unit 6 Citing Sources

6 topics

MLA (9th edition), APA (7th edition) and Chicago (18th edition): what each is for and how its citations are built.

  1. Citation Styles and Their Uses
  2. MLA Works Cited Entries
  3. MLA In-Text Citations
  4. APA References and Citations
  5. Chicago Notes and Bibliography
  6. Reading a Citation

Unit 7 Revising and Editing

4 topics

Revising for ideas and order, useful feedback, editing and proofreading, and cutting wordiness.

  1. Revising for Ideas and Order
  2. Giving and Using Feedback
  3. Editing and Proofreading
  4. Cutting Wordiness

Unit 8 Letters and Emails

2 topics

Formal letters and clear emails.

  1. Formal Letters
  2. Writing a Clear Email
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