english 122
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Week 5 Research Notebook
Revision Strategy Activity
Each week you will have an opportunity to practice different aspects of the research and writing process in a writing notebook. It consists of a template you will fill out and submit in Canvas. In addition to introducing and practicing targeted components of the research and writing process, these notebooks will help you develop and practice the skills you will demonstrate on your other assignments.
This week, the writing notebook focuses on creating and implementing a revision strategy.
Review the following resources first:
·
Proofreading & Editing Strategies
·
Applying Feedback
There’s a very specific feeling that comes with finishing some writing for class. It’s a mix of satisfaction and relief but maybe a little anxiety, too. You might wonder if you did well enough. And once you’re done writing you don’t really want to touch the essay again. You might think, “It’s done, it’s over, why would I go back?”
For a few reasons. First, to make sure your work is complete and accurate. Second, to make sure your work is clear and logical. And third, to lessen that feeling of anxiety about whether you did well. When you go back and revise you are making sure your work is the best it can be. Not just for a better grade, though that’s part of it. But also to take pride in your work, to know that you studied the content and worked with it and you can demonstrate your understanding of it.
When you revise, you need to consider several things. Just as there are many different reading strategies and many ways to work through the stages of the writing process, there are a number of revision strategies. You’ll work through a few here, but if you find different or additional strategies that work for you then use them!
You have already completed your Week 3 Outline. Now you’ll take the “bones” of this outline and draft an essay from it – or maybe you already have a draft. Either way, think about what you plan to draft or refer to what you’ve already drafted as you complete this notebook.
STEP ONE: Review the Instructions
First, take another look at the instructions for the Week 5 Assignment.
Let’s turn this into a checklist:
☐ Introduction, with thesis
☐ Body paragraph, relating first source
☐ Body paragraph, relating second source
☐ Body paragraph, relating third source
☐ Conclusion
We should be able to find each of these items somewhere in our essay. If you can’t find one of these elements in your writing then that’s a sign to add some writing to your essay to address that item.
STEP TWO: Review Instructor Feedback
Another area that will help with revision is to review instructor feedback. The feedback doesn’t just share how you did, it also tells you how to make your work better. Ideally, your feedback will share what you did well (so you can keep doing it), what needs to improve, and how to make those improvements. But even if it isn’t explicitly stated for you, you can break down your feedback like this:
☐ Was anything marked as missing?
☐ Was anything marked as incorrect?
☐ Was anything marked as incomplete?
☐ What anything marked as off-topic?
☐ Were any mechanical error (such as spelling, punctuation, formatting, etc.)
☐ Were any resources recommended?
Look through the boxes you’ve checked off and answer the following:
List several things your instructor noted you’ve done well on your assignments so far:
Spelling & grammar
Analyzing the sources
Summarizing & applying sources
List several things they marked as missing or incorrect or could be better:
Clarification
Minor details & mechanics
Explaining further in depth
List any resources they shared, if any, to help:
· UAGC Writing center
Ok, so now you’ve checked that you’ve included everything, and you’ve listed the feedback your instructor shared. Now you want to go through your essay and make sure it makes sense. Remember everything in your essay needs to relate back to your main point, your thesis statement. So, let’s consider that.
STEP THREE: Review Your Thesis Statement
List your thesis statement developed for your Week 3 Outline:
Click or tap here to enter text.
Does it still make sense for your essay? Often our writing can take a bit of a different direction as we work on an essay—writing is thinking, after all. Make sure your thesis statement is still the main point of your essay. If it’s changed then that’s ok, you just have to change your thesis statement along with it, even if just a little:
If you needed to make any changes, list your revised thesis statement here:
Click or tap here to enter text.
STEP FOUR: Review the Structure of Your Essay
Another thing to check is that all of your points relate to one another in some way, the structure of your essay. It doesn’t have to be directly related. Think about how your knees and elbows aren’t connected to one another, But your arms are connected to your shoulders and your legs are connected to your pelvis and your spine runs between the two. Your points should be like that. If you think of your thesis statement as the spine of your essay, then your points should branch off as your skeleton does.
Do all of your points connect to your thesis statement somehow? (highlight your response)
Yes No
After you have made the changes that need to be made, put your essay away. Put it away for at least an hour but if you have a couple days to spare then do that. Why? Because you get used to seeing those words in front of your eyes and end up seeing what’s supposed to be there rather than then what’s actually there. In other words, you could miss something because you’ve been looking at it too long. So put your essay away—save it, but put it away.
Ok, are you back? Refreshed? All right, let’s take a look now. Don’t worry about errors just yet, we’re still looking at bigger items. Read through your essay.
Do you feel anything still needs to be changed in your essay? (highlight your response)
Yes No
If not, then work on the areas you want to change. If you aren’t sure what to change but something just feels off, then go through the steps above one more time.
STEP FIVE: Editing and Proofreading
If everything looks good, then it’s time to proofread and edit. I highly recommend using a tool to help. Spelling and grammar check helps. Another resource that’s more comprehensive is
Grammarly
. Remember you have free access to
Grammarly as a UAGC student. Another idea is to have someone proofread your work. That second set of eyes can really help.
STEP SIX: Consider Having Your Essay Reviewed
Last, when you think you’re done, consider submitting your essay to the UAGC Writing Center’s paper review service. A tutor will look through your essay and make sure that it’s clear, will point out any errors, etc. An important thing to note with tutors, though: they are only looking at the writing and they probably don’t know what your assignment is. So, it’s possible they might not know you are missing something and/or they might recommend a correction that contradicts your instructor. In those cases, always go with what your instructor says.
Revision Checklist
☐ Review assignment instructions
☐ Consider instructor feedback
☐ Review thesis statement
☐ Review essay structure
☐ Edit and proofread
☐ Submit to paper review
ENG122 Week 5 Research Notebook
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