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Brainstorming
- 1. Brainstorming Getting Ideas BeforeYou Write
- 2. Introduction Getting Started “Writer’s block”is a common problem to many students. This is when ideas for writing do not come very easily. It is easy to get very frustrated when beginning to write. Brainstorming activities can help you get ideas for your essay and help you become less frustrated.
- 3. Clustering Brainstorming Listing Freewriting Three Activities
- 4. Brainstorming Clustering 1. Start withthe main topic of your essay. Write that word in the center of your paper. 2. Write down any sub-topics that are connected to that main topic. Draw arrows to the sub-topics from the main topic. San Francisco Chinatown Fisherman’s Wharf Golden Gate Bridge Alcatraz Museums Transportation
- 5. Brainstorming Clustering 1. Start withthe main topic of your essay. Write that word in the center of your paper. 2. Write down any sub-topics that are connected to that main topic. Draw arrows to the sub-topics from the main topic. San Francisco Chinatown Fisherman’s Wharf Golden Gate Bridge Alcatraz Museums Transportation I. II. III. IV. V. VI. Roman Numerals reflect your BODY paragraphs.
- 6. Brainstorming Clustering 3. If youhave new ideas, connect those words to the appropriate sub-topic. San Francisco Chinatown Fisherman’ s Wharf Alcatraz Museums Transportatio n Golden Gate Bridge American Legion Modern Art Museum Asian Art Museum Clam Chowder Ships boats Cable Car Bus BART Restaurants Stores Theaters Old Military Prison Civilian Prison 1934-1963 Famous Prisoners Completed 1937 Scenic View Freewriting I. II. III. IV. V. VI. A. B. C. A. B. C.
- 7. Brainstorming Clustering Begin to createan Outline: Topic—San Francisco II. Transportation II. Museums I. Introduction A. Cable Car B. BART C. Bus A. American Legion B. Modern Art Museum C. Asian Art Museum
- 8. Clustering Example #1 Favorite Room Quiet Bedroom Big Closet Comfortable Furniture Windows Sunny Viewof Sky View of Trees Soft Bed Rocking Chair Yellow Good- Sized
- 9. Clustering Example #2 My Mother Liked SportsVery Religious A Leader Intelligent Hard Worker Housewife Waitress Cleaned Houses Read many books Had many different interests Went to church Taught Sunday School Gave to charity After-School Club Coordinator President of PTA Volleyball Soccer
- 10. Brainstorming 1. Start withthe main topic of your essay. Write that word or words at the top of your paper. 2. Freewriting is like talking to yourself on paper. Write as much as you can in connected sentences (not lists) about your topic. Write as quickly as you can without stopping to think about grammar or organization. My Favorite Book
- 11. Brainstorming My Favorite Book Myfavorite book… I don’t know where to start. I read so many books that are interesting that it’s hard to choose just one. I guess I could start by talking about the kinds of books I really like. I like biographies and autobiographies the best. I really enjoy reading about another person’s life. One of my favorite books is called Roots by Alex Haley. How the author was able to trace his family history all the way back to Africa was amazing! Another book I really enjoyed was Carl Sandburg’s biography of Abraham Lincoln. What an incredible president! There are also some very interesting books about leaders like Napoleon, Churchill, and Stalin. Well, I guess that gives me a few ideas about where I can start on my topic.
- 12. Freewriting Example #1 A ProblemI Have I have of course many problems in my life like everybody has, but right now I am feeling new problems like the cultural shock. I got out of my country and came to study in the U.S.A. One of the biggest problems is to make friends, to make or have the good old friends I have back home. It’s so hard here- you don’t know how to act, whether you should ask them their telephone number or wait for them to do it, whether you should call them very often or not. Are they bothered by my language problem? Can they not carry on a conversation with me because they always talk about local or national subjects about which I am not informed? This is really hard and sometimes makes me feel like a stranger in a group where everybody is laughing and talking and they supposedly were my friends. (Spack, R., 1996)
- 13. Freewriting Example #2 Things IBrought to the U.S. I have been living in the U.S.A. for about four years. When I cam here, I brought with me a few books, my favorite T-shirts, and a little hand- made pillow from my mother. Among some of the books I brought with me is one called The Little Prince. It is a very interesting book. Every time I read it, I find new and different ideas that I can practice in my life. Some of my favorite T-Shirts are souvenirs from places which I had visited in Colombia where I come from and they remind me of the good times I had. The little handmade pillow from my mother is a small cotton square, with five lines around it and my Christian name on it. Sometimes when I have difficulties in my courses, I look at it asking for help like my mother used to give me when I was living at home. And what I left behind was a happy family life, my good friends, and a pretty city in the north of Colombia near the Atlantic Ocean, where it is always sunny and windy. (Raimes, 1987)
- 14. References PowerPoint Presentationby Ruth Luman: Modesto Junior College. Raimes, A. (1987). Exploring Through Writing: A Process Approach to ESL Composition. New York: St. Martin’s Press. Spack, R. (1996). Guidelines: A Cross-Cultural Reading/Writing Text. New York: St. Martin’s Press. This project incorporates portions of copyrighted works. These items are included under the fair use exemption of the U.S. Copyright Law and have been prepared according to the educational fair use guidelines. They are restricted from further use.