[This material has three purposes. First, it provides a review of composition for you, and you can use it as a reference. Second, when the learner is ready, you can start at the beginning and work through it at an appropriate pace. Third, you can give a spot composition lesson to the learner when needed.

Read the following to or with the learner, discuss the points, and have the learner respond to the assignments or questions.]

Composition is the art of building sentences and putting them together, so we need to learn about sentences.

1: A sentence is a group of words that is a complete thought. Is the following thought complete? "A long time ago." Make it a complete thought.

A sentence contains one or more clauses. A clause is a group of words that has a subject and predicate. The predicate tells something about someone, somebody, or something, which is the subject. If the clause expresses a complete thought, it is an independent clause. Here is an example: The sky is blue. We will discuss dependent clauses later, but here is an example: When the sky is blue. A sentence must have at least one independent clause. Here are examples:

The team won the game. ("The team" is the subject of the sentence; "team" is the simple subject. The predicate is "won the game;" the simple predicate or verb is "won.")

Are you leaving? (The verb often comes first in a question. "You" is the subject.)

2: A sentence fragment is punctuated as if it were a sentence, but it isn't a complete thought. Generally avoid sentence fragments. Examples:

The school's new football coach. (There is no predicate. What about the new football coach? Try making it a complete sentence by adding a predicate.)

Was running up the hill for the bus. (There is no subject. Who was running up the hill? Make a complete sentence by adding a subject.)

Over the hill and through the woods. (In this case there is neither a subject nor predicate. Make a complete sentence by adding both.)

When the lights went out. (This is a clause with a subject and predicate, but it isn't a complete thought. As we shall see later, this could be used as a dependent clause in a sentence such as this: "When the lights went out, we went to sleep.")

Will Tim be on time? Probably not. (This fragment is acceptable because the meaning is clear when read with the previous sentence.)

CHALLENGE: Are the following groups of words sentences or sentence fragments? Make a complete sentence out of those that aren't.

Running across the basketball court.

The old white house on the hill.

In the middle of the night.

When all of the people left.

The boy diving into the water.

3: We can make a sentence more interesting and informative by adding descriptive words. Here are examples:

The team won. (This is a complete sentence, but it is not very interesting.)

The underdog team won. ("Underdog" tells something interesting about the team.)

The underdog team won easily. ("Easily" is an adverb that tells about how they won.)

4: We can add still more information to a sentence with prepositional phrases:

The team won in the last inning. (This phrase tells when they won.)

The team of rookies won. (This phrase tells more about the "team.")

5: Add prepositional phrases in the blanks to make the sentences more interesting:

The team ____ won.

The house ____ was sold.

The man went ____ .

6: A sentence may have two subjects or two predicates. Examples:

John and Mary went to the picnic. (two subjects)

Fred played ball and went to the picnic. (two predicates)

7: A sentence may have two subjects and two predicates. Find them:

The old house and some other shacks burned down and were not replaced.

8: Beginning writers often run sentences together. Examples:

Bill went to work I stayed home. (This is called a run-on sentence. It has two independent clauses run together without anything in between to let us know what's going on. The simplest way to fix this is to put a period after "work" and make two simple sentences. We will find a better way later.)

Jean went skating, I went to the movies. (The comma keeps this from being a run-on sentence, but it still won't do. Two independent clauses separated with a comma is called a comma splice. You can fix it by adding "and" after the comma.)

CHALLENGE: Fix these run-ons and comma splices:

Jimmy met me at the park we shot baskets.

It snowed last night, we went skiing.

9: There are four kinds of sentences. Notice the punctuation mark that ends each kind of sentence.

A statement: I am going to the store. (It ends with a period.)

A question: Are you going to the store? (We can easily change a statement into a question by rearranging it. Notice that a question always ends with a question mark. Many questions begin with a "question word" such as why, when, where, how, what, or who as in "When are you going to the store?")

An exclamation: The store is on fire! (It ends with an exclamation mark.)

An order: Go to the store. (It may end with a period, or an exclamation mark if the order is given loudly and firmly. Does the sentence have a subject? The subject, "you," is not said, but it is plainly understood.)

BUILDING COMPOUND SENTENCES

1: If we have too many short, simple sentences, our writing is "choppy." We may combine some of them into compound sentences. End the first thought with a comma followed by one of these "fanboy" conjunctions: and, but, or, nor, so, for, yet.

John played ball, and Mary went to the picnic.

John played ball, but he didn't get a hit.

Mary was not at home, so I left her a note.

Bill quit his job, or he was fired.

CHALLENGE: Rewrite these pairs of simple sentences with one compound sentence.

I went to the store. I bought some socks.

Joe saw Mary. He asked her to go to the picnic.

I went fishing. I didn't catch any fish.

Tom didn't get the raise he wanted. He quit his job.

2: In joining two short, related thoughts we may leave out the conjunction by substituting a semi-colon.

I knocked on the door; no one answered.

He took the responsibility; some would have blamed others.

3: We may combine two related thoughts with a conjunctive adverb.

The weather was cold; therefore, I wore my warm coat. (instead of "so")

He asked for money; however, he didn't expect to get it. (instead of but)

CHALLENGE: Remember that we can't keep stringing thoughts together like beads with "ands" and other "fanboys." Make two sentences out of each of these sentences and punctuate them correctly:

I went to the picnic yesterday and I saw Mary and we went to the fireworks.

I went home and I had dinner and I spent the evening watching TV.

Ted and I went to a movie but it wasn't good so we left and we went bowling.

It got cloudy and it rained and then we went home.

I told Kevin about the movie and he went to see it but he didn't like it.

BUILDING COMPLEX SENTENCES

1: A complex sentence has one or more dependent clauses and one or more independent clauses. We can add information to a sentence with a dependent clause beginning with with a word that tells us that it is a dependent clause. The clause has a subject and predicate but can't stand alone. It only makes sense as a part of a sentence. Here are some adjective dependent clauses:

The team that had the worst record in the league won. ("That" takes the place of "team" and is the subject of the dependent clause. The clause tells more about the team just as a descriptive word would.)

The baseball player who had the most hits was a rookie.

CHALLENGE: Write a sentence using an adjective clause in the subject.

2: Clauses giving additional information not essential to the meaning of the sentence are set off with commas, and such clauses often start with "which." Example:

I lived on Oak Street, which has no oak trees, for five years.

CHALLENGE: Write a sentence with a clause starting with "which" giving nonessential additional information.

3: Here are common subordinating conjunctions that start dependent clauses: if, when, because, where, since, and although.

The team won when we least expected it.

The boy didn't know where his parents went.

If you want to play ball Friday, let me know. (Notice that a comma must follow an introductory clause starting with a subordinating conjunction.)

CHALLENGE: Write a sentence beginning with a clause starting with "if" and one with "when."

4: A dependent clause may also be used as the subject or the object of the verb in the predicate.

What Billy did is no longer important. (subject)

I don't like what you said about me. (object)

CHALLENGE: Write a sentence in which a clause is the subject and another in which it is the object.

5: We may combine two short simple sentences into one complex sentence.

Billy swung at the ball. Teddy ran for second base. (two simple sentences)

When Billy swung at the ball, Teddy ran for second base. (one complex sentence)

CHALLENGE: Combine these pairs of sentences into complex sentences.

Sam can't hit the ball very well. He likes to play.

All of the tickets have been sold. We can't go to the game.

6: We may change a compound sentence to a complex sentence for variety.

Fred doesn't like to dance, but he went to the party anyway. (compound sentence)

Although Fred doesn't like to dance, he went to the party anyway. (complex sentence)

CHALLENGE: Change the following compound sentences to complex sentences:

It started raining, so we didn't go fishing.

Tess went to bed, but she couldn't go to sleep.

BUILDING PARAGRAPHS

1: A paragraph is a group of sentences on one narrow topic. A model paragraph consists of the following parts:

• A topic sentence giving the main idea, which is usually the first sentence.
  
• Some supporting sentences which support the main idea by giving facts, arguments, examples, or anecdotes. They must stick to the main idea. They may compare or contrast ideas, things, or people, show cause and effect, or simply tell about events in chronological order.
  
• A short concluding sentence is desirable in some cases.

2: A paragraph should read smoothly and be easy to follow. "Signal words" are often used to help us out.

• Here are signal words to help keep the time order straight: first, second, finally, then, meanwhile, later.
  
• These words signal additional facts or thoughts: and, also, too, in addition.
  
• These words warn the reader of a change in direction of thought: but, although, however, yet, nevertheless, on the other hand.
  
• These signal a conclusion: therefore, hence, consequently, as a result, thus.

3: An informative paragraph often begins with a topic sentence defining the subject or giving a piece of information. This is followed by sentences giving supporting facts, figures, and examples. We find such paragraphs in textbooks. Here is an example:

After inhabiting the earth for over two hundred million years, dinosaurs mysteriously died off about 65 million years ago. (The topic sentence defines the problem and states some facts.) The most accepted theory holds that a huge meteor hit the earth and raised enormous dust clouds that changed the climate so much that the dinosaurs couldn't survive. (an explanatory theory) However, (signal word for a change in direction of thought) there is some evidence showing that the dinosaurs were declining in numbers before the meteor hit and that some lived after it hit. (facts) Therefore, (signals a conclusion) we still don't know for sure what happened to the dinosaurs.

CHALLENGE: Look at a textbook on some subject and study several paragraphs. Find topic sentences, supporting sentences, and concluding sentences.

4: A paragraph to persuade usually begins by expressing an opinion. This is followed by supporting arguments including facts and judgments. A fact is a piece of information that can be proven. Judgments are opinions or conclusions based on our beliefs and values. Such paragraphs can be found on the editorial page of the newspaper. Here is an example:

It was a mistake for our senator to vote against campaign finance reform. (opinion)The last senatorial campaign cost a total of $30 million. (fact) This amount of money can't be raised without catering to special interests. (opinion) Therefore, Congress should pass meaningful campaign finance reform legislation this year. (conclusion)

CHALLENGE: Find a similar kind of paragraph in a newspaper editorial.

5: A narrative, non-fiction paragraph tells something about what happened, when, where, and who, and perhaps why and how. Newspaper stories contain such paragraphs. The topic sentence says what happened. A supporting sentence or two may add facts. The paragraphs are usually quite short. Here is an example:

An 11-year-old girl won the city spelling contest. (A topic sentence tells what happened.) The contest was held in the Civic Auditorium (where) last night. (when) The popular fifth-grader's name is Kathy Jones. (who)

CHALLENGE: Find a similar paragraph in some newspaper story and see if it tells what, when, where, who, why, and how.

6: Made-up stories contain narrative fictional paragraphs. Some paragraphs describe the setting or a character. Other paragraphs consist of conversation between the characters, which is called dialogue. Here is an example:

Jason slouched down on the couch and thought about whether or not he wanted to go to the party. (topic sentence) Would they play those stupid games that he hates? Would any of his good friends be there?

The phone rang. "Hello," Jason said with a sigh. It was Jason's best friend, Nathan.

"You sound as if you have lost your last friend," Nathan said. "Things can't be that bad," he added.

"Oh, Nathan," Jason said, "I'm just thinking about the party. Are you going?"

"No," Nathan replied, "I would rather do something else."

"That settles it! I'm not going either," Jason said with relief.

Notice that a new paragraph lets you know that there is a change in who is speaking. Quotation marks (" ") surround a character's exact words. Commas set off the quotes from the explanatory material. Also notice where the commas and other punctuation marks are located in relation to the quotation marks.

7: A quotation may be direct, using quotation marks, or indirect:

The mayor said, "The budget must be slashed." (These were the exact words of the mayor if he was quoted correctly.)

The mayor said that the budget must be slashed. (Notice we don't know for sure that these were the mayor's exact words since they are not in quotes. His words could have been paraphrased or reworded.)

CHALLENGE: [Find a novel or short story.] Look at this story and find the following:

• a descriptive paragraph that sets the scene
  
• a paragraph that tells about one of the characters
  
• some paragraphs of dialogue

8: To show where a new paragraph begins, we usually make a space between paragraphs and indent or start the first sentence about one-half inch from the left margin.

SUMMARY OF PUNCTUATION AND CAPITALIZATION

1: The writer uses punctuation and capitalization to give the reader signals. The beginning of a sentence is signaled by a capital letter. The end is signaled by a period, question mark, or exclamation point. These are "stop signs" that must be obeyed when we read orally. See how the beginning and ending of these sentences on this page are signaled.

Periods are also used after initials--J. T. Jones--and after abbreviations--M.D. Three periods are often used to show that one of more words have been left out of a quotation. "The storm . . . battered the coastal area."

2: Commas signal a slight pause in many situations. Here are a few examples of how commas are used:

• to separate items in a series of three or more: "apples, oranges, and bananas"

• to use with a coordinating conjunction connecting two independent clauses: "I went home, and she went to the store."

• to set off an introductory adverbial clause or a long introductory prepositional phrase: "After I receive the money, I will pay you."

• to set off introductory participles and infinitive phrases: "Seeing the rain clouds, Bill rushed for shelter." "To succeed, one must work hard."

• to set off unessential words, phrases or clauses: "He is, I believe, a great senator." "I went to Sam's house yesterday to plan the picnic, which was the first time I had seen his house." Parentheses ( ) are also used to set off additional information in a sentence: "Ted bought a new car (a Chevrolet)."

• to set off explanatory words called an appositive: "Mr. Brown, the company president, spoke to us."

• to separate adjectives of equal rank: "She is an attractive, well-mannered girl."

• to set off parts of dates and addresses: "He arrived on Thursday, January 16, 1992, in San Francisco, California."

• and to use after the salutation in a personal letter, "Dear Sam," and after a complimentary close, "Sincerely, "

3: Semicolons signal a longer pause than a comma. Here are uses:

• to separate two short, closely related independent clauses: "John went to work; his wife stayed home."

• to precede a conjunctive adverb: "He went to London; however, he didn't see much of the city."

• and to separate items in a series when there are commas for other purposes: "Please buy oatmeal, large size; tomatoes, a 14 oz can; and a quart of milk, 1%."

4: The colon signals the longest pause within a sentence. Here are uses:

• to signal a phrase, clause, or sentence which details a statement: "Joe has only one goal: to become wealthy. He only has one thing in mind: 'How can I get rich?'" The first word in a sentence within a sentence is capitalized.

• to signal a list: "I want the following lunch items: sandwich, fruit, and milk."

5: Notice how quotation marks, commas, and capitals are used in dialogue.

Mary said, "What time do you want to go?" She looked as if she was not eager to visit the dentist.
"Let's leave about ten o'clock," Jim replied, "if you agree. Remember, the secretary said, 'Bring your insurance forms.'" (Notice the quote within a quote.)
"I will be ready at six o'clock," Mary said.

6: When we wish to give special emphasis to a word, we underline it. Printers use italics instead of underlining. When we read aloud, we emphasize italicized words.

7: The following classes of words are capitalized:

• All proper nouns, which are names of individual people, places, organizations, product brands, etc., such as John Brown, San Francisco, America, Chevrolet, January, and Monday. Also capitalize references to a specific deity such as the Christian God and the Bible but not an unspecified god.

• All of the words in a name: Jefferson Park, Columbia River, Rocky Mountains, Democratic Party, and Valentine's Day.

• Important historical events and periods: World War II, Dark Ages, and Ice Age.

• Principal words in a title: "Gone with the Wind," "Learn Grammar in Two Easy Lessons." Interior prepositions, conjunctions, and articles are not capitalized.

• The cardinal directions--north, south, east, and west--are capitalized only when they are referred to as regions of the country. "Jim was born and reared in the South." "We visited the East." The directions are not capitalized in this sentence: "Go south two blocks and turn east."

• Names of relatives when not preceded by a pronoun: "Yesterday, Mother baked a cake. My mother is a good cook."

SUMMARY OF STRUCTURAL ERRORS

1: Sentence fragment or incomplete sentence. A sentence must have a subject and predicate and express a complete thought.

Can't take the day off. (missing subject)

John quit his job. Although he was well paid. (detached dependent clause)

2: Run-on sentence. Two sentences are run together without a conjunction. If a comma is placed between the two independent clauses without a conjunction, the error is called a comma splice.

I don't know where he went maybe he went home. (run-on)

Jack wants the job, he is well-qualified for it." (comma splice)

3: Lack of parallel structure. Similar ideas should be expressed in similar ways.

I like singing and to paint." (Change "singing" to "to sing" or change "to paint" to "painting."

The fish can be fried in butter, margarine, or with oil. (Take out "with.")

4: Misplaced modifier. Place the modifier close to the word modified.

He has almost been gone for a month. (He has been gone for almost a month.)

5: Indefinite antecedent. A pronoun is misplaced. It is not clear which noun is the antecedent of the pronoun.

Joan's grandmother found out that she is going to have a baby. (Joan's grandmother found out that Joan is going to have a baby.)

When the wind blows, it makes that clanking noise. (It makes that clanking noise when the wind blows.)

6: Dangling participle. This results in some funny sentences.

Walking across the grass, a snake was spotted. (Walking across the grass, we spotted a snake.)

You can see the planet Pluto using a telescope. With a telescope you can see the planet Pluto.

ERRORS IN STYLE AND LOGIC

1: Double negative: He hasn't got no job. (He has no job.)

2: Confusing construction: I didn't like the boss is the reason I quit. (I quit because I didn't like the boss.).

3: Irrelevant details: The clerk, a former soldier, took my order. (We don't need to know the clerk's former work unless it is relevant.)

4: Use the passive voice infrequently: The award was given by the president of the club. (The active voice is simpler and more direct: The president of the club gave the award.)

5: Split infinitive. An infinitive consists of "to" and a present tense verb form. Generally avoid placing words between "to" and the verb: To carelessly and recklessly drive a car is unacceptable." (To drive a car carelessly and recklessly is unacceptable.)

6: Excessively long sentences. The longer the sentence, the more difficult it is to read. The remedy may be to remove unnecessary words or to make two sentences.

7: Inappropriate tone. The tone of the writing should fit its purpose. Informality is appropriate in a letter to a friend but not in a letter applying for a job.

8: The use of jargon and cliches. Each trade or profession has its own peculiar jargon that should be avoided when writing to "outsiders." Cliches, which are over-used expressions, demonstrate a lack of imagination.

9: Writing that is vague, general, or abstract. Be definite, specific, and concrete.

10: Choppy sentences. Having several short sentences together gives a choppy effect. Combine some of the sentences into compound or complex sentences.

WRITING AN ESSAY

An essay is an organized group of paragraphs about one subject. A good example of a type of essay that many of us would write is a letter to the editor of a newspaper. Let's go through the steps you might take in writing such a letter.

1. Choose your subject. In the case of a letter to the editor the subject will be on your mind when you decide to write. It will be some issue that you really care about. Let's assume the issue is the homeless problem.

2. Decide on what the purpose of your essay will be. Is it to persuade, explain, or describe the situation. You may decide that your purpose is to persuade people to do something to solve the problem.

3. Begin writing by stating the main idea of your essay in a sentence. You might try writing two or three sentences and see which one best expresses your main idea.

4. Do some brainstorming. Make a list of the points you might cover. Each point may be a word or phrase. Don't worry about how good they are or what order they are in. Next, number the points you want to use and in the order you want.

   public health problem
   compassion for fellow man
   diagnose the people's problems
   provide shelters
   matter of having the will
   causes of homelessness
   job opportunities

5. Start writing your rough draft. Don't strain too much; just get your thoughts on paper. Each point may become the main idea of a paragraph.

6. When you finish, you may want to set your essay aside and come back to it later for a fresh look.

7. Edit it carefully to check for errors in spelling, grammar, and sentence structure. You might also have some new thoughts about the subject.

8. Finally, you may write the essay in final form in ink or typing. Not many people have the ability to sit down and do a good job of writing something in final form the first time.

Here is what your letter to the editor might say.

Editor--The homeless situation in the United States is appalling. One can hardly walk a block in the downtown area of most cities without passing someone begging for money or sleeping in a doorway. There was once a time when this was expected only in a third-world country. Now we take it for granted in our cities. We need to deal with this problem if we claim to be a great nation.

The first thing we need to do is provide adequate shelters and institutions for the homeless. Even if we are too callous to help our fellow humans, we can not afford the public health risks of people living on street. However, I believe most people do care; they only need leadership that cares.

The second thing we need to do is to find out what the homeless people's problems are. If they are substance abusers, they need to be treated. If they are simply down on their luck and out of a job, we need to support them in their effort to get a job. If they have mental or emotional problems, they need to be treated and perhaps put in an institution. If they are just lazy, we need to give them some "tough love."

Finally, we need to see that there are job opportunities for people who are willing and able to work. If they are not available in the private sector, we need to create jobs in the public sector. We certainly have plenty of work that needs to be done in the public sector.

Do I hear someone saying we can't afford it? Spare me the plea of poverty! Ours is the richest nation in the world. We have the resources needed; it is simply a matter of what is important to us. We should remember that many of us are only one paycheck away from homelessness. One of these days the person with the plastic cup may be one of us.

We can not have people living on the street. We need to provide temporary shelter, ascertain their problems, and help them become productive citizens, which we can well afford.

The first paragraph is the introduction. Just as the main idea of a paragraph is expressed in the topic sentence, the main idea of an essay is expressed in the first paragraph. State your position or subject that you will defend, explain, or present in a straightforward way.

The body consisting of perhaps two to four paragraphs is the main part of the essay. If you are taking a position on some issue, you might devote a paragraph to each point supporting your position.

To make your essay easier for the reader to follow, use signal words such as "first," "second," "finally," "therefore," and the like.

Stick to the points you selected to make. Have a topic sentence expressing the main idea for in each paragraph, and have sentences that support the paragraph's main idea.

Don't be too wordy. Your essay will not be judged by the number of words you write. If it is too long, many people will avoid it.

The final paragraph is the conclusion. Its purpose is to sum up your essay and make a good closing statement. Avoid bringing up any new points that you haven't discussed.