英语写作基础教程

英语写作基础教程 A Basic Course in Writing 主讲: Priscillapan 教学大纲 一. 教学对象 本课程的教学对象是高等专科英语专业的学生或具有同等水平的自学者._ 二. 教学目的与要求 通过本课程的教学, 使学生初步掌握英语写作技能, 学会用英文写叙述,说明性的短文和一般性应用文. (1) 用英文写叙述,说明性的短文: 要求学生能根据命列出作文提纲,在1小时内写出不少于200词的短文, 内容切题,完整,条理清楚,语句连贯通顺, 语法基本正确. (2) 用英文写一般性的应用文: 要求学生能根据提示写出 知,贺卡,便条,申请书,邀请函,简历, 格式正确, 语言得体._ 三. 教学安排 本课程3个学分, 在一个学期内开设, 每周3学时,共计54学时._ 四. 教学内容 本课程主要教学内容如下: (1) 文稿格式; (2) 句子结构; (3) 构段方式; (4) 谋篇布局; (5) 摘要; (6) 应用文._ 五. 教学原则 (1) 在教学过程中, 要充分考虑成人学习的特点和本课程的特点, 注重对学生遣词造句这两种能力的培养; (2) 在教学过程中, 教师应以指导学生自学为主, 以电视教学和课堂教学为辅, 采用多种教学手段对学生进行写作训练._ 六. 测试 _ 实行全国统一的闭卷考试.考试采用百分制,60分及格. 实施 一,课时安排 ____"英语 写作基础"课内总学时为54小时,课外时数为54小时. 二,具体学习安排_ __ (一)基本技能的学习:6课时,要求掌握标点符号的用法. __ (二)句子的写作:9课时,要求掌握句子统一性,连贯性,重点突出的写作技巧. __ (三)段落的写作 :6课时,要求掌握段落统一性的写作,学会主题句和扩展句的运用. __ (四)一般性文章和应用文的写作 :30课时,要求掌握基本应用文的写作,这是本课程的重点部分(具体内容附后). __ (五)期末复习:3课时,全面复习本学习的教学内容,模拟考试. 三,教学意见_ ___ 1) 作文课应该以教师讲解,学生练习为主. ___ 2) 授课重点应该放在写作技能技巧的训练上,理论知识可以适当少讲. ___ 3) 有条件的分校可以充分利用网上资源和现代技术设备,利用互联网上的英语写作网站扩大学生的阅读两;利用视频展示台把学生所写的优秀文章向全班批改,也可以讲普遍性的问题;等等. 考试题型 一,考试题型与要求 ___ 本课程的考试依据教学大纲的要求,重点考查应用文写作和一般文体的写作.考试为闭卷考试,总分为100分. _____ 1.应用文写作 ___ 根据提示写一个不少于50词的通知和一个不少于100词的便条,要求语言通顺,用词得体,格式正确.满分为30分; _____ 2.命题作文 ___ 根据所给题目及写作提纲或规定场景等,写一篇不少于200词的作文,要求符合文章类型特点,内容切题,语言通顺.满分为70分. 二,考试模拟试题 一,Write a notice into the box according to the following facts:(10分) ____乒乓球赛 ___ 地点: 1号球室 : ___ 北京商业学校对北京语言文化大学 ___ 时间:5月8日 用六 下午五时 二,Write a note based on the given facts:(20分) : ____ 时间:6月9月 ____ 对象:Prof. Stone_ ____ 内容:对不起,不能赴3点的约会.我的由,于被朋友锁上了,不能带来.我不知他何时返回.如果方便,我能在明日下午五时在系办公室见您吗 若不行,请明早特便条放在我的信箱里,信箱号606.谢谢._ ____ 留言者:吴敏 三,Write an essay of no fewer than 200words:(70分) : ________ Title:_ Qualification of a Good University Student ________ Aids: ________ First Paragraph:_Your point of view of being a good university student ________ Second Paragraph: What makes a good university student (with some examples) ________ Third Paragraph:_Conclusion 平时作业 英语写作基础平时作业(大作业)共四次,主要检查同学们对英语应用文写作的掌握情况.__ 1)完成 P125页 Exercise 1 (Notice Writing) 2)完成 P126页 Exercise 3 (Note Writing) 3)完成 P126页 Exercise 4 (Letters Writing) 4)完成 P126页 Exercise 5 (resumes Writing)___ 另外,任课教师可以根据教学内容,适当补充写作练习. General Remarks on Writing _Writing _makes an exact man. _Great use and popularity _Needing Much Knowledge _Useful for Reading and Spoken _Great Difficulties as well Targets of this Course At the end of this course, you should be able: _to use the punctuation marks correctly; _to write correct sentences; _to write more effective sentences ; _to compose a full essay; _to write a practical essay like a note, a letter, or a notice etc. Arrangement _ I Writing the title II Leaving the margins III Paragraphing IV Capitalization V Dividing words Writing the title Be placed in the middle of the first line Every word of the title should be capitalized No full stop should be used at the end of a title Margins A. leave margins at the top and bottom and on the side of each page. Never write on a full page. B. left side margin should be wider if the work is to be bound. C. For students, it is advisable to write on every other line. Paragraphing A. Indentation (Space) … … … … … … .. … … … … … … .. … … … … … … .. … … … … … … .. … … … … … … .. B. Block … … … … … … .. … … … … … … .. … … … … … … .. … … … … … … .. … … … … … … .. Handwriting Regrettably, an English writer is not so concerned with the aesthetics in handwriting as a Chinese writer is. Be neat and legible. A. Make your "t"s different from your "e"s; B. Make your "r"s different from your "v"s; C. If cross out a word, no brackets but a thick line across it; D. If add a word, write it above, not below; E. Two common ways of writing the letters: form loops and print Syllabification When you happen not to have enough room to write a whole word in at the end of a line: A. If the word is monosyllabic, please write it in a next line; B. If the word is polysyllabic, you maybe syllabify it if you feel necessary How to syllabify a word Just splitting a word then a hyphen then the other part of the word. occupation: oc-cu-pa-tion ( Don't split it like this: occ-upa-tion) Nowadays, a computer deals with this problems automatically Abbreviations and Numerals Abbreviations shorten some words, titles and long names. They are used in advertising and informal occasions. 1) Be sure to use them before you know. 2) Be sure of the dots ( . ). Abbreviations 1)___ Before names (family names), titles are abbreviated: Mr. Green Ms. Adella Dr. Bethune 2)___ Titles of academics, government officials, and priest can be abbreviated, followed by the full name: Prof. Li Gov. Henry Ford Sen. Robert 3)_____ Academic degrees and family designations preceded by full names can be abbreviated: Robert Smith, Ph. D. John Jones Jr./Sr. 4) Names of well-known organizations, firms, places, and long technical terms can be abbreviated by using the initial letters of the words: UNESCO FBI WHO TOEFL GATT 5)_____ Time designations when used with specific numbers are abbreviated: 135 B.C. 6:00 a.m. 6) Words referring to portions of address can be abbreviated when they appear in address on envelopes, letter headings, or inside addresses: Rd. Dept. Pro. P.R.C. Capitalization 1)The use of capitalization is unique and important in writing. (1) The china made in China is first class. (2) he bought that article of japan in Japan. (3) Their child was shanghaied in Shanghai. (4) John wanted to go to the john. (5) The turkey here is not as good as in Turkey. _ 2)The capitalization is used in the following 10 aspects: (1) the beginning of a sentence Wonderful! Where there is a will, there is a way. Can you hear me at the back Capitalization (2) For the first letter in each line of a poem. The Arrow and the Song I shot an arrow into the sky, (3) The first letter of a directed quotation / speech: "Who is on duty today " the teacher asked. " Don't worry," he said, trying to comfort me. " We will help you make up for the lessons." (cf. "To be frank with you," he said, "you should not have told him that." Capitalization (4) The first letters of the essential words in proper nouns ( names of people, countries, organizations historical events, planes, etc.) Darwin Shakespeare China Jesus Christ the Great Wall the Red Cross Boeing 747 (5) The first letters of designation of relatives before family names: Uncle Geoge Aunt Maggie Niece Mary Grandma Lee Capitalization (6) Almost all abbreviations except a.m., p.m., etc., e.g., c/o, i.e., tec (7) the first letter of essential word in trade marks, service signs, posts, greetings, etc. Information Desk Hands Off Open Strictly No Smoking (祝你生日快乐!) Happy birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! (8) the title of all significant words in the title of a theme, article, essay. newspaper, periodical. But a form word of less than five letters is not capitalized unless it begins the title. Jane Eyre Gone with the Wind My College Life Capitalization (9) the first letter of the salutation and complimentary close in a letter: Dear Sir, Dear Mr. Evans, Sincerely yours, Yours, (10) the first letter of the words of the days of a week, the month, and the major words of holidays: Punctuation Main Punctuation marks 1. the period(.) 2. the question mark ( ) 3. the exclamation point (!) 4. the comma (,) 5. the semicolon (;) 6. the colon (:) 7. brackets ([ ]) 8. the quotation marks (" " ' ') 9. parentheses ( ( ) ) 10. The dash (―) 11. ellipsis points ( … ) The Period ( . ) 1. The period (full stop) is used at the end of a declarative sentence, a mildly imperative sentence, and an indirect question. Honesty is the best policy. Hand in your homework, please. . The period marks the end of a sentence. The word after it begins a new sentence and has to be capitalized. She graduated from Oxford University. She achieved great success in her studies there. 2.The period is used with most abbreviations. But some people prefer not to use the period with abbreviations. They just write Mr, Ms, etc. Names of well-known organizations, broadcasting corporations are often written without periods, like UN, UNESCO, NATO, VOA, BBC. 3. Three spaced period make the ellipsis mark, which indicates the omission of one or more words within a quoted passage, or pauses in speech; Um… I think, um… she is um… pretty um… hardworking. The Comma ( , ) 1. A comma is used to join coordinate. It is put before the conjunction (and, but, or, for, so, nor, or, yet,): We wanted to go on, but other people disappeared. He tried hard, yet he failed to convince her. We should remember that coordinate clauses have to be joined with a comma and a conjunction. One comma alone cannot do the job though it is possible in Chinese. Sam is four years old, he is quite bright. Sam is four years old, and he is quite bright. Using a comma to link two clauses is a common mistake, which has a name: the comma fault or the comma splice. But we can use a semicolon, a dash, or a colon between two coordinate clauses. Sam is four years old; he is quite bright. Sam is very happy: he's got the first prize. The Comma ( , ) 2. A comma is used after an adverbial clause or phrase. When the rain stopped, we continued to work in the fields. On hearing the news, she went faint. Some listeners, bored by the lengthy talk, closed their eyes and dozed. 3. Commas are used to separate a series of words or phrases with the same function in the sentence. The comma before the conjunction and last item is optional. It can be omitted there is no danger of misreading. The children sang, danced, jumped, and chased each other. 4. Nonrestrictive clauses and phrases are set off by commas. Restrictive clauses and phrases are not set off by commas. The speaker, after glancing at his notes, began to talk about the next point. The Comma ( , ) 5. In dates, a comma is used to separate the day and the year if the order is month-day-year; no comma need be used if the order is day-month-year. Hong Kong was returned to China on July 1, 1997. She was born on 15 September 1980. 6. With numbers over 1,000 or more, commas or little blank spaces may be used to separate digits by thousands. From right to left, a comma is placed after every three numerals. 12,221,548 53,507,214 The question Marks ( ) 1. The question mark is used after a direct question. Do you know Mr. Smith "Could you please explain to me the meaning of this sentence " she asked. 2. The question mark is used after a statement turned into a question ( said in a rising tune ). You like it You want to buy it The first time to the United States 3. A question mark put between parentheses indicates the writer's uncertainty about the correctness of the preceding word, figure or date. Cao Xueqing was born in 1715 ( ), and died in poverty in 1764 ( ). The Exclamation Mark ( ! ) 1. The exclamation mark is used after an exclamatory sentence, or an emphatic interjection, or a phrase expressing strong emotion. Wow! What beautiful flowers! Help! It is on fire! The exclamation mark indicates strong emphasis and therefore it should be used sparingly. It is preferable to close a mild interjection with a comma or a period. (Do not use it frequently!) 2.Sometimes the exclamation mark is used after a slogan. Long live the Peoples Republic of China! NATO Out! The Semicolon ( ; ) 1. The semicolon is used between two coordinate clauses which are not linked by a conjunction. We wanted to go on, but other people disappeared. She was interested in history years ago; today her main interest is art. Each of the above two sentences can be turned into two separate sentences without any change in meaning except some lack of closeness in them. 2. Conjunctive adverbs like therefore, however, nonetheless, hence, otherwise, besides, moreover, etc., should not be used as conjunctions to link two coordinate clauses. Before them there should be a semicolon, not a comma. He promised to come the meeting; however, she would been caught in the storm. 3. The semicolon is used with conjunctions when the clauses contain internal punctuation. 4. A comma is used to separate a series of items with internal commas. The Colon ( : ) 1. The colon is used to introduce a quotation or a statement . It will do everyone good to remember this old saying: " One will know that he does not know enough after he begins to learn." 2. The colon is used to introduce an examination, a summary, or an appositive. He gave three reasons for his failure in the examination: poor health, insufficient time for preparation, and unusual questions. 3. The colon is used between the hour and the minute to show the time, to record the scores of games, to end the salutation of a business letter and the introductory remark of a speaker to the chairman and audience. Quotation Marks ( "…" ) 1. Double quotation marks are used to enclose direct quotations in dialogue or from books or articles. "Which American poet do you like best " Bill asked. He often cheers up at the thought of "I have a dream." 2. Single quotation marks are used to enclose a quotation within a quotation. "Which American poet do you like best " Bill asked. He often cheers up at the thought of "I have a dream." 3. Indirect marks are not enclosed by quotation marks. 4. Quotation marks are used for titles of a articles, essays, short stories, short poems, songs, etc., and for headings of chapters books. Titles of books, newspapers and magazines are generally underlined or italicized. You can find Byron's poems "She Walks in Beauty" and "When We Two Parted" in The Romantic Poets. 5. When other marks of punctuation are used with quoted words or sentences, the following rules are generally observed: a) the comma and the period are placed within the quotation marks; b) the colon and the semicolon are place outside the quotations marks; and c) the dash, the question mark and the exclamation mark are placed within the quotation marks when they are concerned with the whole sentence. Parentheses/Brackets((…)) 1. Parentheses are used to set off parenthetical, supplementary, or illustrative words. Shanwei TVU(television university) 2. Parentheses enclose figures or letters used for enumeration. This article includes two parts:(1) the introduction, (2) the conclusion Square Brackets ( […] ) 1. Square brackets are used to indicate corrections or explanations in quoted matter made by the writer who is quoting. In the newspaper, she [Lara] said… Square brackets are used instead of parentheses within parentheses. (the numbers [2,4,6,]….) The Dash (――) 1.The dash indicates a break in thought or a change in tone, or a speaker's confusion or hesitation. 2. The dash indicates an unfinished or interrupted statement. 3. A pair of dashes set off a parenthetical element. 4. The dash is sometimes used to introduce a summarizing clause after a series of nouns. 5. The dash is sometimes used just like quotation marks in a dialogue. 6. The dash may be used to introduce subheadings and authors after quotations. The Slash ( / ) 1. The slash indicates alternatives, representing the words of or or and/or. 2. The slash is used to separate lines in short quotations of poetry being quoted in running text. 3. When fractions are written in a sentence, a slash is used to separate the numerator from the denominator. 4. sometimes the slash means "per". Underlining and Italics In handwritten and typewritten papers underlining has the same function as italics in printed matter. 1. Titles of books, periodicals, newspapers, plays, movies, operas, and long poems are underlined or italicized. 2. Foreign words are often underlined or italicized. 3. Words and litters referred to as such are underlined or italicized. 4. Names of ships, aircraft and works of art are underlined or italicized. 5. Sometimes underlining or italicizing indicates emphasis. Diction Diction means the choice and use of words. There is no short cut to good diction. Words are not right or wrong in themselves. _When a word is said to be right, that word should be not only grammatically but also contextually correct. The requirements of diction are always regarded as rules in English writing. They are "appropriateness", "Specificity", and "conciseness". Appropriateness Appropriateness of diction refers to the right choice of words to produce the right effect. New writers should take the following factors into consideration. Appropriateness A Sense of style 1._ The social relationship between the reader and the writer, or the audience and the speaker, or correspondents. 2._ The occasion such as a family reunion, a class Party, a bedroom chat; a grand wedding reception. 3. The mode of discourse (spoken or written) Five Layers of Writing Style the frozen style_ ____( 非常拘谨的文体) __ the formal style_____ ( 正式的文体) __ the moderate style_ ( 温和的文体) __ the colloquial style ( 随意的文体) __ the intimate style___ ( 亲昵的文体) 1. I hate to ask you, but I was wondering if…. _ 2. I was wondering if you could …. _ 3. I wondered if you could …. _ 4. Can you help me _ 5. I need your help. Appropriateness Use common or informal words for general purposes; use formal or nonstandard words only on special occasions or for special purposes; Use specific and concrete words when giving details; use general or abstract words when making summaries; Use idiomatic expressions and words in acceptable collocations; avoid combinations that are unidiomatic; When there are synonyms, choose the word that expresses the meaning most exactly and that suits the content and style. Appropriateness Sometimes, we new writers have the same problem as is choosing the follow words: resign quit terminate end concur agree formal popular Exactness Problems arise especially when you hate to choose a word or an expression from among a group of synonymous. The use of synonymous words or expressions can help avoid dull repetition and add precision, vividness and variety to diction. When former Premier Zhou died, a line of a poem went like this: "江河呜咽,草木悲哭,人群抽泣." _ 呜咽,悲哭,抽泣 mean "grieve". We can use "sob", "whimper" "grieve". In the following pairs, you will find the second sentence reads better that the first one be cause of the use of synonymous words. A. __ The interesting professor knows how to make an uninteresting subject interesting. B. The humorous professor knows how to make a dull subject interesting. Specificity "specific" is the opposite of "general"._ Words are said to be specific when they refer to individual persons, objects, or events. Her husband is a scientist. Her husband is a biochemist. The weather in winter in cherish is terrible. The weather in winter is cold and moist. He has big house. He has a two-storied house with four bedrooms, two living rooms, a dining room and a kitchen. chuckle, guffaw, giggle, roar, smile, grin, beam laugh _physicist, chemist, biologist, mathematician _scientist huge, great, large, immense, vast, enormous, tremendous big tiger, horse, fox, mouse, cat, insect animal Specific General Conciseness_ Conciseness or simplicity means expressing much in few words. Conciseness is a virtue of good diction. Daring last summer vacation, there was a weekend when a friend of my brother was a guest at my home. (awkwardly roundabout) _A friend of my brother visited as at a weekend last summer. (concise) You'd better think it over and consider it carefully. You'd better think it over. You'd better think it carefully. Dictionaries _ It is a good to keep a dictionary handy when we write._ It is better for you to use_ more than one dictionary. __This will help us to improve not only our writing, but also our understanding of words and expressions. Sentence Writing Requirements for a correct sentence: It should be structurally complete. It should begin with a capital letter. It should end with a full stop, or a question mark, or an exclamation m