English 10R-Thursday, 10/13/16

Today in the computer lab: (Today is our last day in the lab. Final Essay, Outline and Rubric-in this order-due in class Monday, 10/17/16).

Read through notes below about conclusions,  and continue to write, revise and edit your essay.

Strategies for writing an effective conclusion

One or more of the following strategies may help you write an effective conclusion.

• Return to the theme or themes or claim in the introduction. This strategy brings the reader full circle. For example, if you begin by describing a scenario, you can end with the same scenario as proof that your essay is helpful in creating a new understanding. You may also refer to the introductory paragraph by using key words or parallel concepts and images that you also used in the introduction. (For example, if you used an important quote from an outside source, remind the reader why/how that quote is significant and related to your entire essay.)
• Synthesize, don’t summarize: Include a brief summary of the paper’s main points, but don’t simply repeat things that were in your paper. Instead, show your reader how the points you made and the support and examples you used fit together. Pull it all together.
• Include a provocative insight or quotation from the research or reading you did for your paper.
• Propose a course of action, a solution to an issue, or questions for further study. This can redirect your reader’s thought process and help her to apply your info and ideas to her own life or to see the broader implications.

Strategies to avoid

• Beginning with an unnecessary, overused phrase such as “in conclusion,” “in summary,” or “in closing.” Although these phrases can work in speeches, they come across as wooden and trite (overdone) in writing.
• Stating the thesis/claim for the very first time in the conclusion.
• Introducing a new idea or subtopic in your conclusion.
• Including evidence (quotations, statistics, etc.) that should be in the body of the paper.