When I give this list to all of my Language Arts, English, creative writing and journalism students, I impress upon them the fact that strong, effective writing, be it analytic, creative or journalistic, will avoid these twelve words and phrases. I hand it out the first day of school and expect the students to refer to it the whole year when they revise their writings. So they don't forget, I also tape a copy to each desk, and post it around the room. They provide a good starting point for peer critique sessions when students feel unsure about what to mark, because they are so easy to find.
Word Choice Writing Usage
Great! Very useful!
December 11, 2011
Thank you. I have a poster of this worksheet and make sure that students use this when they peer critique. It truly helps them improve their writing.
Connie
January 2, 2012
This is great for both journalism and creative writing
July 31, 2009
Thanks. I use it in both of those classes as well as in English 12. By just emininating a few of these weak constructions, students show much more depth and clarity and in their writing. Did you see the accompanying worksheet that I added this winter?
April 12, 2010
Help
Because one of my goals is to prove that studying literature, writing, vocabulary and grammar can be fun, I have created a number of innovative lessons for these strands of learning. Last year I collected many of them and compiled them in a book called Setting the Pace, for English teachers and college education students. Currently, the book is in revision; the title has been changed to NOVEL IDEAS, and it focuses on teaching literature as well as writing about literature. Veteran teachers and those aspiring to the field can utilize the hands on units and ideas for teaching while honing their skills on how to pace a lesson and to connect it to their state's standards of learning. I am a recently retired (2011) English teacher in the Fairfax County Virginia public school system, where I taught English 12, Journalism 1,2,3 & 4 and Creative Writing 1, 2, & 3. As a result of the Teacher Performance Evaluation instituted by the county, I was awarded the prestigious Career Two Exemplary level status three times. Besides the public high school venue, my teaching background includes an alternative secondary school for behaviorally disadvantaged adolescents, an adolescent psychiatric hospital, and a boys' reform school. Proud of my choice to be an educator, I have always hated the cliche, "Those that can, do; those that can't teach." Through my writing and my role modeling in the classroom, I show that not only do I teach, but I also practice what I preach.
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