1. Preparing for the District Essay
By Mrs. Houghland
POWERWRITING

2. WHAT IS “POWER WRITING”?
According to J.E. Sparks, “Writer’s must have the
ability to convey their ideas to a specific audience in
a clear and concise way. Whether they are
persuading, informing, educating, or entertaining
writers need three Powers to enable them to handle
most of their school, college, and adult writing
assignments.”

3. WHAT ARE “POWERS”?
By using three numbers, you will find your writing to
be more powerful. Power Writing does this when it
assigns a value to each sentence:
1st
Power – main idea(s), the topic sentence.
2nd
Power – major details that explain main
idea.
3rd
Power – minor details that elaborate upon
or clarify major details.

4. I’M CONFUSED, WHY IS THIS NECESSARY?
Writing for Power will enhance Unity, Clarity,
and Coherence (the 6+1 Traits of Writing).
Power will keep you on target. You will not
ramble because each sentence must explain
some preceding power until only 1st
Power
makes complete sense alone.

5. LET ME SHOW YOU AN EXAMPLE:
Ponyboy had a difficult life.(1) First, he did not have any
parents to take care of him even though he was just a teenager.(2)
To explain, Ponyboy’s parents had been killed in a car accident, so
his brother Darrel gave up his dream of going to college to take care
of Ponyboy.(3) Second, Ponyboy is a Greaser, so people look down
upon him and call him a “hood.”(2) For example, Ponyboy says,
“Greasers are almost like hoods; we steal things and drive old
souped-up cars and hold up gas stations and have a gang fight once
in a while.(3) I don’t mean I do things like that.” (3) (The Outsiders,
p. 3) Even though Ponyboy doesn’t do those things, he is still looked
down upon for being a Greaser. (3)

6. STAGE 1: WORD POWER!
Words, phrases, sentences, and paragraphs all
have power as they relate to other words, phrases,
sentences, and paragraphs. A 1st
Power word
serves as the most general, the “umbrella” word
under which the 2nd
Power words belong.
Study the examples and note that one of the
words has a number (1) for 1st
Power and the other
has a (2) for 2nd
Power.

7. STAGE 1 EXAMPLES
Example A Example B
1bears 1 food
2grizzly 2 taco
3polar 2 burrito
Think you understand? OK, it’s your turn!

8. STAGE 2: POWER PHRASES!
A dictionary defines a phrase as a sequence
of two or more words conveying a single
thought or forming a distinct part of a sentence
but not containing a subject and predicate. In
the following examples note how words from
the preceding stage 1 have now become
power phrases.

9. STAGE 2 EXAMPLES
Example A Example B
1large, furry bears 1 mexican foods
2brown grizzly bear 2 overfilled tacos
3polar bear, in the Arctic2 beefy burritos
How is this different? Think you understand? OK, it’s
your turn!

10. STAGE 3: POWER SENTENCES!
Most English grammar books define a sentence as
a group of words that contain a subject, a predicate
(the action), and expresses a complete thought.
Just as words and phrases had power, so do
sentences in their relationships with each other. On
the next slide, note how phrases in the preceding
Stage 2 have now become sentences.

11. STAGE 3 EXAMPLES
(1) There are two large, furry bears I visited at the zoo.
(2) One is a brown grizzly bear from the Pacific Northwest.
(2) The other is a white polar bear from the Arctic.
(1) If one goes to a Mexican restaurant they should order these two items.
(2) One is the over-stuffed taco.
(2) The other is a beefy burrito.
How is this different? Think you understand? OK, it’s your turn!

12. STAGE 4: POWERGRAPHS 1 2 2
By the end of Stage 4, you will have created your own three-sentence
powergraphs with a 1st
Power sentence supported by two 2nd
Power
sentences. This should look familiar to you because it is also known
as a RAPP!
The 1st
Power sentence must serve as the umbrella, the general
statement for which the other two sentences provide specifics. For
right now, always include the word two in the 1st
Power sentence so
you keep on target and force yourself to write only two details, thus
avoiding rambling.

13. STOP!
Before we begin, there is one more detail I forgot to mention – 2nd
Power Signals!
To make writing more clear for a reader, a writer often begins 2nd
Power sentences with certain signals, or transitions, or bridges that
make the flow of thought easier to follow.
2nd
Power Transitions…
one first moreover
another second furthermore
also third above all
finally besides in addition to
to begin with

14. STAGE 4 EXAMPLES
By the stream stood two large furry bears. One was
the brown grizzly bear from the Pacific Northwest. Another
is a white polar bear from the Arctic.
There are two items that I would order if I were in a
Mexican restaurant. One is an over-stuffed taco. The other
is a beefy burrito.
How is this different? Think you understand?

15. MORE STAGE 4 EXAMPLES
There are two cities one should visit in China.
One is Beijing, the capital. Another is Shanghai,
the largest.
If I became chef for a day, I would make two
changes in the school cafeteria. First, I would
offer a burrito from Q’Doba. Second, I would
prepare hamburger casserole.
How is this different? Think you understand?

16. A FEW MORE STAGE 4 EXAMPLES
I stumbled over my two favorite flowers while walking
through the woods yesterday. The first one was the rose
which has thorns on the stem. The other is the yellow seed-
producing sunflower.
After school I like to do two things. To begin with, I like
to take a walk with my dog. Another, I like to talk on the
phone with my friends.
How is this different? Think you understand? OK, it’s your
turn!

17. STAGE 5: POWERGRAPHS 1 2 3 2 3
Now that you have control over the three-sentence powergraphs (1 2
2), you should find it easy to expand your thoughts by the use of 3rd
Power sentences.
Third-power sentences, known as minor details, elaborate, expand,
and develop 2nd
Power sentences. This stage will help you add
details to your writing so that it becomes more interesting and vivid for
your audience.

18. STOP!
Before we begin, there is one more detail I
forgot to mention – 3rd
Power Signals, or
transitions!
To make writing more clear for your audience,
3rd Power sentences sometimes open with or
contain a 3rd
Power Signal to help bridge from
the 2nd
Power sentences.

19. 3rd
Power Transitions…
specifically for example in other words
restated to explain for instance
to describe translated to particularize
to exemplify to narrate to support
to compare to contrast to expand
to define to qualify to concede
to refute to evaluate to identify

20. STAGE 5 EXAMPLES
Rain causes two problems. For one, it causes
floods. Floods can be very dangerous. For another, it
causes mudslides. Mudslides can destroy wildlife.
In a Mexican restaurant I would order two foods.
One is an over-stuffed taco. In the taco you can get cold
lettuce, fresh tomatoes, and cheddar cheese. Another is a
beefy burrito. On the burrito you can get melted cheese
and beans.

21. Yesterday, I encountered my two favorite large, furry
bears at the zoo in St. Louis. The first is the brown grizzly bear
from the Pacific Northwest. The bear’s name is Betsy. To
expand, she weighs over and stands feet high. Another, is the
white polar bear from the Arctic. This bear is named Elvis. To
describe, he is fierce with long white finger nails and long,
piercing teeth. To expand, he weighs over and stands feet
high.
The St. Louis Zoo, an animal lovers paradise, just
received two big cats. The first is the biggest cat in the world,
the tiger. The tiger has orange and black stripes. The second is
the make-believe king of the jungle, the lion. The lion really
lives in the African savannah and not in the jungle.

22. ONE MORE THING ABOUT STAGE 5!
Eliminate the word there from the start of a sentence.
At one time, in Latin grammar, there probably served a
purpose. In the contemporary English sentence is has no function at
all. Every great writer throughout history has used the word there at
the beginning of a sentence, and every contemporary writer uses it
frequently; however, the use of it becomes an easy way to construct a
sentence without much thought. Because there functions as a
completely empty word, avoid from now on in your writing. Watch
your sentences take on more sparkle and more precision as you
revise them to eliminate the word.

23. LET’S PRACTICE ELIMINATING THERE!
1. There are two cities one should visit in China.
The tourist to China will want to see the country’s two largest cities.
2. There are two royal families still enduring in Europe.
Two prominent royal families still endure in Europe.
3. There are two people I consider my personal heroes.
Two people, I consider to be personal heroes, influence my life.

24. STAGE 6: POWERGRAPHS 1 2 3 2 3
Get rid of the verb to be:
is was be
am were been
are being

25. STAGE 6 EXAMPLE:
With to be…
There are two reasons for going to Pasadena on January 1. One is the
Rose Parade. This is a festival of color. A second reason is the Rose Bowl. That is
a famous football clash.
Without to be…
On January 1 people go to Pasadena for two reasons. For one, thousands
gather to view the festival of color in the Rose Parade. Vivid floats meander down
Colorado Boulevard. For a second reason, people attend the famous football clash
at the Rose Bowl. This game pits two teams against each other, one from the
Pacific Athletic Conference and the other from the Big 10.

26. YOUR TURN!
The topic of your powergraph 1 2 3
2 3 is HEROES.
Begin with Stage 1 and work all
the way through to Stage 6. I must
see the process for credit.

27. RUBRIC
Possible points Your Points
Stage 1: Power Words (1 2 2) 4 sets 12 points _______
Stage 2: Power Phrases (1 2 2) 4 sets 12 points _______
Stage 3: Power Sentences (1 2 2) 4 sets 12 points _______
Stage 4: Powergraphs (1 2 2) 2 sets 12 points _______
Stage 5: Powergraphs (1 2 3 2 3) 2 sets 16 points _______
Stage 6: Powergraphs (1 2 3 2 3) “Be” 2 sets 20 points _______
Stage 7: Powergraphs (1 2 3 2 3) “There” 2 sets 20 points _______
Stage 8: Powergraphs (1 2 3 2 3) Sent. Pattern 2 sets 20 points _______
Total points: 124 Your total: _______