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After Reading
KEY TRAITS
Writing Workshop
Cause-and-Effect Essay
. . .continued
1. IDEAS
2. ORGANIZATION
• Clearly identifies a true cause-and-effect relationship
• Presents a thesis statement that explains the connection between the cause(s) and effect(s)
• Includes facts, examples, and other details to illustrate each cause and effect
• Has an interesting introduction and a satisfying conclusion
• Presents cause(s) and effect(s) in a sensible order
• Uses transitions to signal clear connections between cause(s) and effect(s)
Cause-and-Effect Essay
After ReadingWriting Workshop
Cause-and-Effect Essay
. . .continued
3. VOICE
4. WORD CHOICE
• Has a tone appropriate for the audience and purpose
• Uses precise language to explain each cause and effect
KEY TRAITS
Cause-and-Effect Essay
After ReadingWriting Workshop
Cause-and-Effect Essay
. . .continued
5. SENTENCE FLUENCY
6. CONVENTIONS
• Varies sentence lengths to add interest and energy
• Employs correct grammar and usage
KEY TRAITS
Cause-and-Effect Essay
After ReadingWriting Workshop
Apply the Writing Process: Prewriting
. . .continued
What Should I Do?
1. Brainstorm to find a topic.
What Does It Look Like?
Create a cluster diagram, and fill in the circles with any ideas that come to mind. Think about events in your own life, what’s happening in the world, natural phenomena, and anything else that intrigues you. Then circle the topic that interests you most.
Cause-and-Effect Essay
After ReadingWriting Workshop
. . .continued
What Should I Do?
2. Chart causes and effects.
What Does It Look Like?
Outline the cause-and-effect relationships of your topic. Remember that a cause can have several effects and that several causes can combine to produce one effect.
Cause-and-Effect Essay
TIP: Make sure you have picked a true cause-and-effect relationship. The fact that one event follows another doesn’t necessarily mean that the first event causes the second.
Apply the Writing Process: Prewriting
After ReadingWriting Workshop
. . .continued
What Should I Do?
3. Consider your audience and purpose.
What Does It Look Like?
Write a sentence or two stating whom you’ll be addressing and what you want to accomplish in your essay.
Cause-and-Effect Essay
Apply the Writing Process: Prewriting
After ReadingWriting Workshop
What Should I Do?
4. List details that support your main points.
What Does It Look Like?
Gather facts, statistics, quotations, and anecdotes that help you explain the causes and effects. Be concrete and specific.
Cause-and-Effect Essay
Apply the Writing Process: Prewriting
. . .continued
After ReadingWriting Workshop
What Should I Do?
1. Choose an organizational pattern.
What Does It Look Like?
You might organize your essay by describing an effect and then analyzing its causes. Another way to organize your essay is to begin with a cause or causes and trace the effect or effects. The writer of the student model analyzed a series ofrelated causes and effects.
Cause-and-Effect Essay
Apply the Writing Process: Drafting
. . .continued
After ReadingWriting Workshop
What Should I Do?
2. Include specific details about each cause and effect.
What Does It Look Like?
Refer back to the details you collected in step 4 on page 557. Incorporate these into your draft to help the reader experience the events you’re describing rather than just read that “this happened, then that happened.”
Cause-and-Effect Essay
Apply the Writing Process: Drafting
. . .continued
After ReadingWriting Workshop
What Should I Do?
3. Make it memorable.
What Does It Look Like?
Create a strong conclusion that does more than just summarize the points you’ve made. Try showing why the information is important or how it might affect your life or your reader’s life.
Cause-and-Effect Essay
Apply the Writing Process: Drafting
TIP: Before revising, review the key traits on page 554 and the rubric and peer-reader questions on page 560. . . .continued
After ReadingWriting Workshop
What Should I Do?
1. Grab the reader’s attention in your introduction.
What Does It Look Like?
• Read the first paragraph aloud. Underline phrases or sentences that might bore or confuse a reader.• Add examples, facts, or other details to create excitement and interest.
Cause-and-Effect Essay
Apply the Writing Process: Revising & Editing
. . .continued
After ReadingWriting Workshop
What Should I Do?
2. Clearly connect your ideas.
What Does It Look Like?
Cause-and-Effect Essay
Apply the Writing Process: Revising & Editing
• Draw a circle around sentences that make you ask: • How is this related to what I just said? Insert transitions that clarify how the ideas are connected.
See page 560: Clarify with Transitions
. . .continued
After ReadingWriting Workshop
What Should I Do?
3. Consider your audience.
What Does It Look Like?
• Ask a peer reader to [bracket] words or statements in your essay that he or she has questions about.• Add background information to explain these ideas.
Cause-and-Effect Essay
Apply the Writing Process: Revising & Editing
See page 560: Ask a Peer Reader
. . .continued
After ReadingWriting Workshop
What Should I Do?
4. Vary the lengths of your sentences.
What Does It Look Like?
Cause-and-Effect Essay
Apply the Writing Process: Revising & Editing
• Draw a box around sentences that seem choppy because they are all the same length. • Combine or split up some of these sentences to make your writing more lively and rhythmic.
