Writing Skills and Guidelines

1. Writing Skills & Guidelines
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By: Bishaara Adam

2. 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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3. 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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4. 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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5. 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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6. 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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7. 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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8. 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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9. WRITING GUIDLINES
Types of Writing Guidelines
Proposals
Instructions
Journal Articles
Manuals
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10. 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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11. 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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12. JOURNALARTICLES
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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13. 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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14. 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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