Writing Skills & Guidelines

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By: Bishaara Adam

STAGES OF TEACHING WRITING

Controlled Writing

To teach the mechanics of writing accuracy and readiness for further writing activities. It is controlled completely by teacher. Example: handwriting, copying, dictation and spelling.

Guided Writing

To provide graded guidance in vocabulary and structures to help the students to avoid mistakes. Example: a model with directions for rewriting, topics provided by teacher.

Free Writing

To offer freedom to write original content using own language. Example: descriptive or narrative writing.

Controlled

Guided

Free

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MECHANISMS OF WRITING

The mechanics of writing specifies the established conventions for words that

you use in your documentation.

Capitalization

Contractions

Abbreviations and Acronyms

Punctuation

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CAPITALIZATION

Capitalization is the writing of a word with its first letter in uppercase and the remaining

letters in lowercase. Capitalize the following items:

The first letter of the first word in a new sentence.

The first letter of the first word in numbered or bulleted lists.

The first letter of the first word in a title or heading

The pronoun ‘I’.

Proper nouns

Days of the week, months, holidays and special days.

The letters of many abbreviations and acronyms

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CONTRACTIONS

A contraction is two words made shorter by placing an apostrophe where letters have been omitted.

Contractions make your writing seem friendly

They are commonly used in informal writings.

When writing a dialogue, contractions help reflect how a character actually speaks.

It helps to save space when preparing advertisements, slogans, and other written works that must be short.

Do not use contractions in formal writing.

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ABBREVIATIONS & ACRONYMS

An abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase that is used in place of the entire

word or phrase. Examples: influenza – flu, tablespoon - tbsp.

An acronym is an easily pronounceable word formed from the initial letters or major parts

of a compound term. Examples: WHO – World Health Organization

Write out the full word or phrase and enclose its abbreviation or acronym

in the first time the word or phrase is used.

Use periods in abbreviations that look like words. Examples: U.S. for

United States, no. for number.

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PUNCTUATION

Punctuation shows how the sentence should be read and makes the meaning clear and

easy to understand.

Full stop (.)

Comma (,)

Semicolon (;)

Colon (:)

Apostrophe (')

Hyphen (-)

Brackets ( [ ] or ( ) )

Inverted commas (‘ ’)

Exclamation mark (!)

Question mark (?)

Slash ( / )

The Basic Signs of Punctuation

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COMPOSITION

The definition of composition is the act of putting something together, or the combination of elements to form a whole.

Descriptive Writing: It describes something and shows the reader what a thing or a person is like. The words chosen in the description often appeal to the five senses.

Narrative Writing: It tells a story. There's a sequence of action or there's a clear beginning, middle, and end to the paragraphs.

Expository Writing: It explains something or provides instruction. It could also describe a process and move the reader step by step through a method.

Persuasive Writing: It tries to get the reader to accept a particular point of view or understand the writer's position.

Produce compositions based on authentic material and literary text and literary text terms.

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WRITING GUIDLINES

Types of Writing Guidelines

Proposals

Instructions

Journal Articles

Manuals

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PROPOSALS

A proposal is a plan for solving a problem.

The audience for a proposal usually includes both managers and engineers. The audiences view

proposals in different ways. Managers review proposals to see if the plan for solving the problem is

cost effective. Engineers and scientists, review proposals to see if the plan is technically feasible.

Types of Proposals

Solicited: In a solicited proposal, a company or agency advertises that it desires the solution to a

problem. In most cases, this company or agency sends out a request for proposals, that presents a

problem which needs addressing.

Unsolicited: In an unsolicited proposal, there is no request. Instead, an engineer on his or her own

initiative recognizes a client's problem, writes a proposal that first makes the client aware of the

problem, and then presents a plan for solving that problem. It often occur within a company.

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INSTRUCTIONS

An instruction is a statement that describes how to do something. It can also be defined as the

action or process of teaching: the act of instructing someone.

Important Points When Writing Instructions

Be concise and clear

Know your audience

Add graphical elements

Design your page

Create a flow

Test your instructions

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JOURNAL ARTICLES

Journal articles are usually short papers on specific topics.

They are published in issues or parts of journals (also called periodicals) which appear regularly.

Use articles to find:

up-to-date research in your subject

reviews of developments in your subject - these review articles include extensive lists of references

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MANUALS

A manual is also commonly known as a user guide or user's guide.

It is a technical communication document intended to give assistance to people using a particular system

It is most commonly associated with electronic goods, computer hardware and software.

Most user manuals contain both a written guide and the associated images.

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WRITING GUIDLINES

Steps for Writing Guidelines

Audience:

Keeping your audience in mind while you write can help you make good decisions

about what material to include and how to organize your ideas.

Ensure that your documents meet the needs and expectations of your readers.

Style:

Use simple language choices in your writing.

Use formal language and style.

Keep your own personal feelings out of the write up.

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