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Writing: discussions and interactive exercises

Kiran Desai, an Indian author whose novel "The Inheritance of Loss" won the 2006 Man Booker Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Fiction Award, said during a book-signing interview with CNN, "Writing is difficult." Decades ago, poet and Nobel laureate T.S. Eliot said in typical British fashion, "Writing is a bloody business."

Listed below are links to discussions and interactive exercises in writing from the best ESL and EFL resources on the Internet. Clicking the blue links will take you to the specific pages where the discussions and activities are, while clicking the website name will take you to the home page. Take time to browse these excellent websites; they are consistently good and fast loading. Besides the activities and exercises listed below, these sites generously offer, free of charge, a tremendous range of valuable resources for ESL and EFL teachers and students.

In answering the interactive exercises, you should follow carefully the prompts and directions. You should read each sentence or part aloud before clicking the answer you think is right. After the correct answer is displayed, think it over as to why it is the correct answer. (Please take note that the correct answer may depend on whether the exercise comes from an American English or a British English website.) After doing so, read the complete sentence again aloud with the correct answer.

To train yourself to think in English, try to recite the sentences with the correct answers from memory and at your full speaking volume. Or you can ask a friend to read out loud the sentences with the correct answers and you repeat them without looking at the computer screen.

[01] ABC’s of the Writing Process

Provides user friendly online resource for teachers and students in each of the five steps of the writing process – Prewriting, Writing, Revising, Editing and Publishing

[02] Easily confused words, from A Guide To Writing in English, by
Online English Grammar

Words easily confused when writing English, with word pairs, definitions, examples and sound files

[03] Amy Lynn's Poetry Pages

Tools and information that inspire and equips young poets to be better and more thoughtful writers, and how to get rid of writer’s block through structured exercises

[04] BBC Kids News

Kids news from the British Broadcasting Company out of the United Kingdom, providing young readers with a world view of the news

[05] CBC 4 Kids

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's web site for kids with news, sports, homework help and discussion area, primarily for Canadian kids but includes a Latin news section

[06] Young Writers' Clubhouse, from Deborah Morris

Encouragement for young writers by author of the Real Kids, Real Adventures series

[07] English Writing for ESL learners, from EnglishClub.com

The English Alphabet
Use of Large Letters (Capitals)
Spelling Rules
Spelling variations in English and American English.
English Punctuation
Hyphenation

[08] Writing – How to write English Texts, from English Grammar Online 4 U

Essays & Presentations
General Information on Writing English Texts
General Information on Spoken Texts
Summaries
Comments (Stating Your Opinions)
Reviews (Films and Books)
Presentation
Business English
Business Letter (Structure)
Business Letter (Generator)
Cover Letter
Curriculum Vitae, CV, Resume
Other Topics: Stylistic Devices, Rhetorical Devices; Definitions; Picture Description

[09] Writers' Window, from English Online

Provides guides to writing stories, poems, reviews, and research papers, and features Continuous Stories and selected writings of children and teenagers (aged from 5 to 18)

[10] Writing Techniques, from English On The Run

The Paragraph; How to Write a Paragraph; Transitional Signals; Punctuation Rules; Capitalization Rules; The Essay

[11] The Writing Index, from English Works! Gallaudet University

The Writing Process
Prewriting, Writing, and Revising
Paraphrasing, Quoting, and Avoiding Plagiarism
Types of Writing
Essays
Research Papers, Citations and Reference Formats
Abstracts and Summaries
Lab Reports
Business English
Letters
Journalism
Dissertations

[12] Essay Writing Center, from Essay Info

Basics of Essay Writing:: Outline, Thesis, Introduction, Body, Conclusion
Writing Guides: Articles, Free Essays, Writing Tips, Style Guide
Essay Types: 5-paragraph Essay, Admission Essay, Argumentative Essay, Cause And Effect Essay, Classification Essay, Comparison Essay, Critical Essay, Deductive Essay, Definition Essay, Exploratory Essay, Expository Essay, Informal Essay, Literature Essay, Narrative Essay, Personal Essay, Persuasive Essay, Research Essay, Response Essay, Scholarship Essay
Citation Styles: MLA, APA, Turabian, Chicago
Presentation Writing: Organization, Mechanics, Text, Visual Aids, 7 Things to Remember
Business Writing: Resume Writing, Cover Letter Writing

[13] ExampleEssays.com

Free preview of sample essays, with the rest requiring paid subscription

[14] For Kids: Secrets and Surprises about Writing

Children's book author Pamela Jane tells how she gets ideas for writing

[15] Principles of Good Composition, from Guide To Grammar and Writing

With comprehensive discussions on various levels (Sentence, Paragraph and Essay)

Paragraph Level
Sentence Variety
Consistency of Tense and Pronoun Reference
Avoiding Primer Language
Sentence-Combining Skills
Coherence and Transitions
Paragraph Development

Essay Level
Principles of Composition: Getting Started, Structure, Tone, Transitions, Editing, Logic, Formats, Rhetorical Patterns, Argumentative Essays, Research Papers, among other topics, with sample essays

[16] How to Write an Essay

A step-by-step tutorial on how to write an effective essay for late high school or early university.; Topics include Research, Proposal, Compiling your notes, Planning the essay, Writing the essay, The finished product, Extras that make essays stand out, and Examples of good and bad writing

[17] Step by step, paragraph revision, from Interlink Language Centers

[18] Writing Machine, from the IT Integration Project of The English Centre, University of Hong Kong

Introducing the academic essay; Topics, titles, introductions; The body of the essay; Inside the paragraph: cohesion and topicalisation; Inside the paragraph: functional and propositional development; Writing conclusions; Academic versus nonacademic writing; Sources of data and bibliographies; Note taking from written sources; Editing and proofreading

[19] The Writing Room, from John’s ESL Interactive

Writing Tutorials; The Writing Process; Sentence Structure; Simple Sentences; Compound Sentences; Complex Sentences; Sentence Fragments; Run-on Sentences; The Passive Voice; Writing Paragraphs

[20] Guide To Writing a Basic Essay from Kathy Livingston

Decide on your topic
Prepare an outline or diagram of your ideas
Write your thesis statement
Write the body
Write the introduction
Write the conclusion
Add the finishing touches

[21] Kids News Room

Kid Style News for Kid Style People, a twice-monthly newsmagazine featuring news, games, information and submitted articles from kids and schools from around the United States, and offers student, parent, and teacher educational resources

[22] Application Essay Writing 101, from 1-language.com

Lesson One: Tackling the Question
Lesson Two: Brainstorming a Topic
Lesson Three: Structure and Outline
Lesson Four: Style and Tone
Lesson Five: Intros and Conclusions
Lesson Six: Editing and Revising
Online ESL Writing Worksheets (Motivating and thought-provoking ESL Writing worksheets for students)

[23] Writing, from Language and Learning Online (Monash University)

General writing
Writing essays
Writing reports
Writing postgraduate literature reviews
Editing your honours or postgraduate thesis
What makes a good essay
What makes a good review

Writing for subjects
Art & Design
Arts
Business and Economics
Education
Engineering
Information Technology
Law
Medicine
Pharmacy
Science

[24] Activities, from Lauri’s ESL Website

Make a Story 1 (Flash)
Make a Story 2 (Flash) (Thanks to Jeremy Taylor)

[25] Learn English Writing, from Learn English Free with Teacher Joe

Sample compositions with comments and improvements; Write English paragraphs using the "PREP" formula; Write Powerful Introductions! Write Memorable Conclusions! Write English sentences well.

[26] Writing, from Michael Buckhoff’s ESL Website for Teachers and Students

Appropriate Word Choice Exercises; Correcting Comma Splices, Run-ons, and Fragments Exercises; Editing Practice Exercises for the TWE; TWE Sample essay; Making Sentences More Concise Exercises; Recognizing Common Errors in Writing Exercises (subject-verb agreement, pronouns, differentiating between adjectives and adverbs, and verb tenses); Recognizing other ESL Errors in Writing Exercises (articles, auxiliary and main verb usage, using modals, and have + past participle, i.e.., ed, en, or irregular forms); Scoring Practice TWEs Exercises; Sentence Variety Exercises

[27] ESL Writing Skills, from 5 Minute English

Using Parentheses ; Using Quotation Marks; Capitalization; Spelling when adding "-ing"

[28] Oswego High School Online Writing Guide

Lessons on how to create outlines, write traditional essays, thematic essays, and DBQ essays, and crafting a thesis statement and writing a thesis paper

[29] Paper Lake Times

Students learn journalism through articles and quizzes, write their own stories and interview sources, and receive advice from working journalists.

[30] Paradigm Online Writing Assistant

Choosing Your Subject
Freewriting
The Whole and Its Parts
Planning, Freewheeling, Adjusting
The Journalists' Questions
Various sections on organizing, revising, editing, informal essays, thesis/support essays, argumentative essays, exploratory essays, and documenting

[31] Paragraphpunch.com

Online writing tutorial; takes students through the actual steps of writing a paragraph

[32] Writing User-Friendly Documents, from Plain Language

Introduction - How Can We Be Better Writers?; Summary of Techniques for Better Writing; Engage Your Readers; Write Clearly; Write in a Visually Appealing Style; More About Techniques for Better Writing; Identify Your Audience; Organize Your Documents Carefully; Use a Question-and-Answer Format; Use "You" to Speak to the Reader; Use Pronouns to Represent the Reader and to Refer to the Agency; Use Active Voice; Use Short Sentences; Address One Person, Not a Group; Use the Present Tense; Use "Must" to Indicate Requirements; Place Words Carefully; Use If-Then Tables; Avoid Words and Constructions that Cause Confusion; Use Lots of Informative Headings; Divide Your Material Into Short Sections; Limit Each Paragraph to One Topic; Use Lots of Lists

[33] Plain Language Online Training

PlainTrain or the Plain Language Online Training Program, offers helpful tips and techniques for improving your communication skills with the use of plain language; topics include Digest; Introduction; Reader And Purpose; Organizing Ideas; Appropriate Words; Simple Sentences; Effective Paragraphs; Design; and Testing

[34] Guides to Writing, from Presbyterian College

Principles of good writing for various subject matters (Art; Biology; English; History; Mathematics; Music; Political Science; Psychology; Religion; Sociology)

[35] The Process of Writing, from Rio Salado College Online

[37] 11 Rules of Writing

Concise guide to some of the most commonly violated rules of writing, grammar, and punctuation andintended for all writers as an aid in the learning and refining of writing skills

[38] Writing With Writers, from Scholastic.com

Biography Writing; Descriptive Writing; Folktale Writing; Mystery Writing; Myth Writing; News Writing; Poetry Writing; Speech Writing; Writing a Book Review

[39] Silver Chips Online

Online version of award winning student newspaper of Montgomery Blair High School's (www.mbhs.edu), Silver Spring, Maryland, USA; a forum for community expression run entirely by students and working closely with print counterpart

[40] Story Quest

Tells how to write and share a good story; topics include POWERS Writing Process (Prepare; Organize; Write; Edit; Rewrite), The Standard Writing Process; How to Proofread Your Paper; How Should Your Paper Look; The Brain Drain Writing Process

[41] Writing for the Web, from Sun Microsystems

Written by Jakob Nielsen, distinguished engineer; PJ Schemenaur, technical editor; and Jonathan Fox, editor-in-chief, www.sun.com on how users read on the Web and how authors should write.
Topics include Difference Between Paper and Online Presentation; Working With a Designer:; Scannability; Navigation; Writing to Be Read: Headlines and subheads; lists, captions, and hyperlinks; Writing to Be Found; Terms to Avoid; Editorial Review of Web Pages:; Web Facts: Significant improvements in all metrics

[42] Writing Resources, from The Emory Writing Center Emory University

Conceptualizing Your Essay; Quoting Sources; Research; Conclusions; Introductions; Titles; Thesis Statements; Revision and Editing; Argumentation; Documentation Formats; Support & Evidence; Grammar; Paragraphs; Style; Transitions; Avoiding Plagiarism

[43] The Five Paragraph Essay Wizard

Resource for grades 5-9 and advanced learners for students to learn to write a five paragraph essay; topics include Structure of the Essay; Getting Started; How to Write the Essay; Editing, Revising, and Evaluating; Expository Essay and Prompts; Narrative Essay and Prompts; Persuasive Essay and Prompts; General Writing Prompts for Your Use; Tips and Techniques for Effective Essays

[44] Online Writing Lab, from The OWL at Purdue

The Writing Process
Creating a Thesis Statement
Developing an Outline
Proofreading Your Writing
Starting the Writing Process
Writer's Block/ Writer's Anxiety
Professional, Technical, and Scientific Writing; Job Search Writing; General Academic Writing; Research and Citation; Grammar and Mechanics; English as a Second Language; Literary Analysis and Criticism; Writing in the Social Sciences; Writing in Engineering; Creative Writing; Teaching Writin

[45] Strategies to succeed in Writing, from The School for Champions

Affirm Your Esteem as a Writer; Getting Started by Writing a Journal; Getting the Reader's Interest; Importance of a Good Vocabulary in Writing; Computer-Based Grammar Checkers; Creative Methods; Enhance Writing Creativity Using Graphical Outlines; Outlining Enhances Writing Creativity and Productivity; Writing by Dictation
Simple Plot and a Random Story Generator; Computer-Aided Writing; Aid for Writing a Short Speech; Aid for Writing a Book Report; Types of Writing; Screenplay writing; The Screenplay Paradigm; Speech writing; Succeed by Studying Great Speeches; Children's stories; Interpreting Aesop's Fables to Teach Values; Technical Writing; Succeed in Technical Writing - lessons on technical writing methods and getting a job as a technical writer

[46] The Write Site

An interactive language arts and journalism project for middle schools developed by ThinkTVNetwork, Dayton, Ohio (An OET/SchoolNet Project), teaching students how to do research and discover their own writing style

[47] Grammar Workout, from The Writer’s Complex (Empire State College SUNY)

Academic Writing
What is Academic Writing?; Values in Academic Writing; Key Terms in Academic Writing; Types of Academic Writing; Strategies for Academic Writing

Essay Writing Workshop (Grammar Workout)
Essay Definition; The Nature of the Beast/Academic Writing; Prewriting; Developing Ideas for Writing/Prewriting; Working with Prewriting: Moving from Self to Subject; Gathering Information; Shaping Information; Thesis Definition; Thesis Characteristics; Analyzing the Thesis to Gather and Shape Information; More Information on Analyzing the Thesis; Topic Sentence Definition; Ordering Information in the Body of the Essay; Transitions; Outlining; Building the Essay Draft Revising; Research Paper in Progress

[48] The Writing Process, from The Writing Center of Cleveland State University

Invention; Critical Reading; Thesis; Organization; Paragraphing; Word-Processing; Revision; Documentation; Proofreading

[49] Stages of the writing process, from The Writing Center of University of Wisconsin – Madison

Planning to Write: Preparing to Write a Play Review; Reading Poetry to Write About It; Reading a Nonfiction Book to Review It

Creating an Argument: Thesis vs. Purpose Statements; Developing a Thesis Statement; Planning and Writing a Research Paper

Working with Sources: Quoting and Paraphrasing Sources; Using Literary Quotations ; Citing Sources in Your Paper

Drafting and Revising Your Paper: Peer Reviews

Finishing Your Paper

Twelve Common Errors: An Editing Checklist; How to Proofread your Paper

Letters and Application Essays; Literary Analysis Papers; Proposals and
Dissertations; Research Papers; Reviews; Scientific Reports

{50] How To Answer Esssay Questions (Powerpoint) and How To Write the Five Paragraph Essay, from The Writing Page

[51] Time for Kids

Time Magazine’s new site for kids, containing national news, world news and the latest news from talented kids of the entertainment world

[52] Tips for Writing an Essay

Presents a simple five-step approach

[53] Improving Your Style, from University of Guelph

[54] Online Guide to Writing and Research, from the University of Maryland University College (UMUC)

College Writing
The Writing Process
Thinking Strategies & Writing Patterns
The Research Process
Academic Integrity & Documentation
Assessing Your Writing
Writing Plan & Project Schedule

[55] Writing. from the University of Toronto

Advice on Academic Writing
Planning & Organizing; Reading & Researching; Using Sources; Specific Types of Writing; Style & Editing; Grammar & Punctuation; ESL Answers

[56] Text Content Analysis Tool, from Using English

Simply write or paste text you want to analyze (up to 500KB in size) and this website’s free text analysis tool will give you statistics on word count, unique words, number of sentences, average words per sentence, lexical density, and the Gunning Fog readability index. More detailed statistics are available to members.

[57] The Nuts and Bolts of College Writing, from Washington College

Topics include Thinking, Style, Structure, Evidence, Mechanics

[58] What Makes a Good Story?

Through a classic short story, "A Jury of Her Peers," by Susan Glaspell, you'll solve the mystery of whether Minnie Wright killed her husband and learn the about story's literary elements and structure through an interactive exhibit

[59] Tips-o-matic, from Writing Den

Helpful tips on writing sentences, paragraphs and essays

[60] Writing, from World English

TEST YOUR WRITING SKILLS
HELP WITH WRITING
LEARN ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

[61] YouthInkIt

YouthInk Publications Society is non-profit charitable organization dedicated to promoting literacy in Youth through journalism, communication, publishing and special projects; Teaches young people how to do interviews, write copy, and use HTML to publish on the web; Explores current environmental and social issues. Helps students get their writings published. Requires free registration.

[62] Online journalism training, from JPPROF the website for teaching journalism (by Prof. James Glen Stovall of the University of Tennessee)

Discussion of skills (reporting, writing, editing, photojournalism, graphics design, web journalism, opinion writing and broadcasting), issues (news, practices, law, history, ethics), industry (newspapers, magazines, radio and television, news web sites), and with grammar exercises for students.

[63] Making better presentations

Seven steps to better presentations by Jeff Veen
How to give a great presentation by D. Keith Robinson
How to get a standing ovation by Guy Kawasaki
The problem with presentations by Doc Searls
Great and witty video on giving better presentations (uses Hollywood movie posters and discusses among others The Morgan Freeman Rule)

PresenTired: "The Voicemail"
from Scott Schwertly on Vimeo

Note:

English for the medical professional, from HospitalEnglish.com (free resources for medical professionals like doctors, nurses, physical therapists, radiologists, physician assistants, pharmacists, etc, studying English and medical printables for teachers; with medical vocabulary builders and pronunciation guide, patient counseling activities, disease state directors, healthcare professional articles, medical flashcards, hospital lesson plans, and ESP worksheets)