The document outlines the typical steps involved in the writing process: pre-writing (planning and organizing), drafting, revising and editing, and final draft. It describes each step in detail. Pre-writing involves brainstorming ideas, choosing a topic, and creating an outline. Drafting is writing the initial version without worrying about perfection. Revising and editing is improving content, organization, spelling, grammar and punctuation. The final draft is turning in the completed, formatted essay. The writing process is presented as an important series of steps to produce a well-written essay.

1. The Writing Process References © 2001 by Ruth Luman Steps in Writing an Essay Pre-Writing Planning and Organizing Drafting Revising and Editing Final Draft!

2. Writing an essay takes time. That’s why writing is often referred to as a process . In other words, there are several steps to go through before you have a complete essay ready to turn in for a grade. In this lesson we will talk about those steps. They are: Introduction What is the writing process ? Pre-Writing Organizing Drafting Revising and Editing Handing in a Final Copy

3. Pre-writing literally means, “before writing.” Before you actually begin writing your essay, you will need to do the following things: Pre-Writing Step One brainstorm or generate ideas for your topic choose a topic to write on focus in on central ideas

4. Making an outline can help you organize what you want to write. This is a rough plan for your essay and can help make the process of writing much easier. Organizing Step Two Essay Outline Introduction Thesis: _____________________ Body 1. Topic Sentence: _____________ - supporting idea - supporting idea 2. Topic Sentence: ____________ - supporting idea - supporting idea 3. Topic Sentence: ____________ - supporting idea - supporting idea Conclusion

5. After getting ideas and making an outline of your essay, it is time to start writing the essay. When you begin writing your rough draft, try to remember the following guidelines. Drafting Step Three Don’t worry about writing the ‘perfect’ paper the first time. Your goal in writing a rough draft is to develop and support the ideas listed in your outline. Don’t focus on spelling and grammar as you write your rough draft. You can check this later in the writing process.

6. After you write your first draft, go back over it and look for ways to improve your essay in content and organization. This step is called revision. After you revise for content and organization, begin editing your draft for spelling, grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure errors. Revising and Editing Step Four Content and Organization Spelling, Grammar, Punctuation, etc. Revision Editing

7. The last step is turning in your essay to be graded. Look at the guidelines below for turning in the final draft of your essay. The Final Copy Step Five  word-processed  all new paragraphs indented five spaces  8 ½ by 11 inch white paper  double spaced, size 12 font  one inch margins on all sides

8. Evaluation Now, you are ready to review what you’ve learned. Click on the button below to return to Unit A. Do the interactive exercise. Then click on the essay rubric link to see how your essay will be evaluated.

9. References PowerPoint Presentation by Ruth Luman: Modesto Junior College. Reid, J. (1993). Teaching ESL Writing. New Jersey: Prentice Hall Regents. 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.