Students at this level are able to meet all practical writing needs. They are usually able to write in all major time frames. They use basic vocabulary and syntax that typically corresponds to spoken language. They produce texts about personal topics, everyday events and situations in concrete terms, such as work and/or school experiences.

A paragraph is a group of sentences that discuss one main idea. The main idea is usually introduced in the first sentence. The other sentences in the paragraph give examples, reasons, facts, etc. to explain and support the main idea. Each sentence in a paragraph should connect logically to the sentences before and after it.

A paragraph will usually look a specific way. This chapter explains what it should look like.

There are three types of sentences in a paragraph: topic sentences, supporting sentences, and concluding sentences. An effective topic sentence is a complete sentence that clearly states the main idea. Supporting sentences give the reader more information about the topic sentence. The last sentence in a paragraph is the concluding sentence.

Timed writing is when you are asked to write about a topic, but you only have a limitied time. Timed writing can be used by your teachers to check your understanding or by big exams like the TOEFL to see your language proficiency. At the university level, you could expect to find a timed writing on a test or quiz in any major.

Think about the writing process as a very flexible process. Whenever you write something, you will usually do many of the same steps, but not always in the same way. The advice here is meant as general advice that you can adapt to your situation. The way you use the writing process depends on a lot of things: the task, the time and resources available, your experience with the topic, etc.

Prewriting is everything you do before you actually start writing complete sentences. Make sure that you understand the requirements of the task. If you can choose your topic, brainstorming can help you think of ideas to write about. An outline is a plan that will make your essay easy to write and understand.

Development is all about including enough details for your reader. When you write, you should ask yourself if there is enough information for your reader to understand your purpose and points.

Revising focuses on making changes to improve the clarity of your ideas and organization. After you revise it, you may need to return to either of the previous stages (prewriting or writing) to make improvements to your writing.

Time is always a limited resource. To help you use your time well, practice reading and brainstorming for different prompts.

Integrated writing is an very common type of academic writing. You will use your reading and/or listening skills to help you write.

Narrative writing is about telling a story. For a language student, narrative writing can be difficult because it requires control over tense. In this chapter, you will practice writing a narration.

Here is an example of narrative writing. This is an example of a final draft, but it does not always mean that the writing is perfect. Some errors may be included for your teacher to talk about with the class.

The purpose of a narrative writing is to tell a story or to share an experience. A narrative needs an introduction, supporting ideas (also called major details), and a conclusion. Each event you choose should support the main idea of your writing. This page is about the prewriting process for drafted narrative writing.

Here is another example of narrative writing created by a student at the ELC in a past semester. This is an example of a final draft, but it does not always mean that the writing is perfect. Some errors may be included for your teacher to talk about with the class.

Here is an example of descriptive writing created by a student at the ELC in a past semester. This is an example of a final draft, but it does not always mean that the writing is perfect. Some errors may be included for your teacher to talk about with the class.

Here is another example of descriptive writing created by a student at the ELC in a past semester. This is an example of a final draft, but it does not always mean that the writing is perfect. Some errors may be included for your teacher to talk about with the class.

Here is an example of a personal experience essay created by a student at the ELC in a past semester. This is an example of a final draft, but it does not always mean that the writing is perfect. Some errors may be included for your teacher to talk about with the class.