Author: Anni

Anni Martin creates online courses for educational institutions and businesses, teachers and individuals. She specializes in helping educators utilize technology in the classroom. She writes and teaches from Chicago, Illinois.

Detecting Plagiarism

While I love to teach, one aspect I am not fond of is plagiarism.  In 15 years of teaching, it still amazes me the inventive ways students try to take someone else’s work and pass it off as their own. One of my student’s even tried copying and pasting text from an online paper from another professor who I knew. Like most instructors, I take student plagiarism very seriously and I talk about it at the beginning of class and before each assignment.  Some students plagiarize deliberately like purchasing a paper while other times it is accidental like paraphrasing another’s words.  There are several ways to detect plagiarism in your students’ work including:

Assignment Criteria

Give very explicit instructions on how an assignment is to be turned in and how a paper is formatted. Papers with strange margins, varying citation references, and odd capitalization are signs that a paper is not original work.

Out-of-Date References

Look for dated references and hard-to-find resources in papers your students turn in. Strange references often come from papers purchased or borrowed online.

Work Progress

Since writing is a process, require your students to turn in all drafts of a paper. Single drafts of a paper are a red flag to any instructor.

Web Tools

Ask your students to submit their work electronically and run each paper through a plagiarism checking service to search for copied material. There are many web tools available to faculty members to detect plagiarism, some sites are free and others require a subscription service. Ask your college if there is a subscription service or use a free site to check the paper for copied passages.

Compare and Contrast

I start out the semester by having students do in-class writings and then compare the student’s written class work and compare it to assignments done outside of class. Sharp contrasts between in-class writing and outside work often indicate plagiarism.

Reading Sight Words

From the time my kids were born, we read to them each night.  During the preschool years, I began teaching them to read by teaching them to read sight words.  These are words you see often in sentences such as “and,” “but” and “one.”  In the whole language approach to teaching a child to read, you start out with a set of sight words.  Learning sight words helps your child read since they do not have to decode each word in a sentence, but know the word automatically.  Look for your younger children to bring these types of words home from school or you can also find these words in several resources online like Sightword’s Dolch Word List.  To help your child learn his/her sight words, try one of the following:

  • Search for sight words in the book you are reading together. Read the word together and then ask your child to see if they can find the same word on another page.
  • Make a set of flash cards for your child with the sight words. Play a game with the sight words like “Find It” where your child has to find the word you call out or have your child play a matching game to match the sight words.
  • Use flash cards to make sentences out of the sight words. Have your child read the sentences.
  • Get a sight word app for your tablet or phone such as Innovative Mobile Apps Sight Words List or CFC s.r.o.’s Sight Words Learning Games & Reading Flash Cards.
  • Use printable booklets and have your child read to you. Some good web resources are Hubbard’ Cupboard  or DLTK’s Educational Printables for Kids.
  • You can also make your own printable books by using a word processor and pictures of your family and places you frequently go together.
  • Use tactical tools and have your child spell out their sight word. You can use like modeling clay and a toothpick to have them spell out their sight word in the clay.
  • Play some online games at resources such as Education.com or SightWords

 

 

 

 

That

Students often overuse the word: that

When you are editing, underline all of the that’s in your document.

    • Read, and then read again, all sentences which contain the word “that.”
    • Many times “that” can be omitted, or the word “which” or “who” may be substituted.
    • Sometimes, however, “that” is necessary and must remain in the sentence.

Example:

  • I’m certain that you understand everything I’m trying to say.
  • Better way: I’m certain you understand everything I’m trying to say.

NOTE: Only by reading the sentence out loud and concentrating on it, will you be able to delete all unnecessary usage of the word that.

HINT: Use the “find” feature in your word processor for locating all of the times you used “that” in your manuscript.

Developing Connections and Cooperation Among Students

Teachers should encourage their students to work in groups when possible. You can assign students to study groups or case studies or have them form their own groups.  What is the rational for having student collaborate?

Group Problem Solving is Better than Individual Problem Solving

  • This allows for more solutions (Two heads are better than one.)
  • Allows students to take leadership roles.
  • Allows students to collaborate and learn to work in groups.
  • Allows for a greater diversification of skill, and in the process, creativity.
  • Students come to a more complete understanding by explaining their ideas to their peers.
  • Students with better skills can serve as models.

Tools to use

Course content management communication tools such as email and group chat and discussion lists.

Online tools such as Dropbox, Google Docs and Hangouts, Slack, Trello, Skype, Popplet, Groupmaker, ePals, Classcraft and Genius.

The Writing Process Chart

Pre-write
Get your ideas down
Brainstorm!

Draft
Get your ideas into some working form – organize topics and sub-topics into sentences & paragraphs.
This is a rough draft.

Share
Share the first draft with a partner or teacher. Get feedback. What needs to changed?

Revise
Rework ideas – add, cut.

Redraft
Rewrite your first draft with your revisions.

Edit
Check spelling, sentence structure, organization, punctuation, capitalization.

Write final copy.
Publish or Present!

Brainstorming Strategies

Start with a Warm-up Quick-Write:

“What kinds of writing do you do every day?”

Have class make a list of all the things they write during each day (e.g. email, Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, grocery lists, to-do lists, memos, notes, etc.)

Make a list on board of everyday writing.  Note which are informal and formal modes of writing.

Explain the Writing Process (include chart)

This was developed out of the massive British Writing Project in the 70’s and 80’s on how people learn to write and improve their writing.  This research found that most good writers go through this writing process adapting it to their own individual styles.  Thus, as teachers, we need to help students use the process, but help them find their own individual way within it IF they want to be competent writers.  Addenda:  American educators took the British research and did more research.  From this most states have developed their own writing projects, based at universities, to do more research and to educate teachers.

Step I in the Writing Process: Getting Ideas Down – Generating Ideas

Some people make a list of their ideas.  Some think of ideas while jogging, walking, exercising, driving, doing chores, etc.  Others talk out their ideas with someone else or talk aloud to themselves.  THEN – they go to paper and pencil.  Others need to “scribble” those ideas down on paper in some way and use that as an organizer.

Give list of topics and tell class to choose a topics that they want to write about.

  1. Clustering – demonstrate on board with a topic. Ask class to do the same on paper.
  2. Do the same with the other strategies, using a different topic for each one. Demonstrate on the board for each one.
  3. When finished ask students to decide which strategy worked best for them – that they felt most comfortable with. They should use this strategy for the first step when writing assignments.

Writing Partner Directions

1.   Pair off into groups of two to four. Each participant shares their writing by reading it aloud. The other members of the group listen for the following:

  • What is the writer’s thesis/claim in the paper? Is this position clearly communicated to the reader?
  • What evidence does the writer use to support his/her position?
  • How is the writing organized? Does the writer follow a logical sequence to guide the reader through his/her reasoning?
  • Think about the overall effectiveness of the piece. Does the writer accomplish his/her goals?

2.  Take turns talking about what you like/found enjoyable/made you think about the content of your partner’s writing.

  • Ask questions about items in the paper.
  • Make positive suggestions to the writer of the piece such as “Write a little bit more about…..” or “Perhaps you might want to clarify this part….”

3.  Once everyone has read and made positive critiques of each piece of writing, go back and revise the work.

4.  Once you are done with revisions, schedule an editing conference with your partner – Carefully look at each sentence and check the following:
a. Does the sentence make sense?
b. Are the words in the sentence in the correct order?
c. Are articles (a, an, the) used correctly?
d. Is the subject/verb agreement correct?
e. Is the correct verb tense used?
f. Are the prepositions (e.g. to, at, in, on) used correctly?
f. Is the punctuation correct?
g. Is the capitalization correct?
h. Are all the words spelled correctly?

If you have a question about grammar and usage, ask your instructor

5.   Make corrections and do the final draft. Read it out loud again to make sure your work is cohesive and flows well. Process your final, best copy and turn it in.

Sentence Sense Basics

What is a sentence?

  • Is a group of carefully chosen words that represent a complete thought.
  • Contains a complete subject and a complete predicate

Complete subject is the person, place, thing or idea that the sentence is about and all the words that go with it.

Complete predicate is the verb, the action that goes with the subject.

  • Begins with a capital letter.
  • Ends with one of three punctuation marks – . ? or !
  • Makes complete sense.

Four kinds of sentences

  • Declarative  e.g.     “You have a bug on your head.”
  • Interrogative e.g.    “What did you say?”
  • Exclamatory e.g.    “You have a bug on your head!”
  • Imperative  e.g.      “Please speak louder.”

 Clauses AND Simple, Compound, and complex sentences

Clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb.  If it makes complete sense and can stand alone it is a sentence by itself and is called a main or independent clause or simple sentence.

                              We wrote a letter.

A subordinate or dependent clause cannot stand alone; it needs another clause to make a whole sentence.

                              and it was a good one.

 Simple Sentence is made up of one main clause.

Compound Sentence is two or more main clauses.

                  We wrote a letter and we sent it to the President.

 Complex Sentence combines an independent or main clause with a dependent clause.

We wrote a letter and it was a good one.

Problems!

  • Word Order – usually the complete subject comes before the complete predicate; sometimes, for variety, the predicate can come first.
  • Adjectives come before nouns; adverbs can come before or after a verb.  Use articles (a, an, the) correctly.
  • Fragments – parts of a sentence are missing.
  • Run-On Sentences – main clauses in a compound sentence must be connected by a comma PLUS a conjunctiSentence Sense Basics

    on or by a semicolon.

To improve your sentences read aloud while revising or editing. 

Getting Ideas Down……(Writing Process)

Circle four topics you might like to write about.

  1. Describe your earliest memory.
  1. Describe an event where you were really, really sad or upset.
  1. Describe an early friend or playmate.
  1. Recall and describe a favorite toy or very precious object.
  1. Describe an event that changed your life in some way.
  1. Describe a person that you love or admire or respect or care about strongly.
  1. Describe one of the happiest times in your life.
  1. Describe your favorite place.
  1. Write about a pet that you had as a child or have now.
  1. Write about a cherished member of your family.
  1. Describe your favorite food.
  1. Describe your ideal house.
  1. Describe your favorite computer program.
  1. Describe your ideal computer program.

Getting Ideas Down – Strategy #1 – Clustering/Webbing/Mapping

Getting Ideas Down – Strategy #2 – Listing

Getting Ideas Down – Strategy #3 – Reporter’s Questions (Who? What? Where? When? Why? How?)

Getting Ideas Down – Strategy #4 – Non-Stop Writing

Pre-Writing Strategies

Writing is a process of discovery for students.  The pre-writing phase engages students in the writing process and helps them find what is important or true for them about any subject at a particular time. There is no perfect system for teaching the writing process since each student is unique in their approach to learning about their subject.  Giving students several ways to do a pre-draft process helps student develop skills needed to become capable writers. Experienced writers have their own methods, but inexperienced writers need motivation to write and assistance in uncovering concepts, experiences, and ideas about which to write.

During the pre-writing phase, students need direction–a topic or something to discuss in writing. Topics can come from teachers but students also need to develop the skill of using their own insights and experiences (and those of others) as writing material. There are many ways to find possible topics through pre-writing experiences such as:

  • talking with and interviewing people who know something about a topic
  • brainstorming
  • focused free writing (i.e., nonstop writing on an intended subject to crystallize ideas and feelings)
  • mapping and webbing (i.e., drawing thought webs or graphic representations of the topic)
  • writing “leads” (i.e., creating three or more opening sentences as a way of determining the shape and scope of the topic)
  • listing
  • using reporters’ questions (i.e., Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?)
  • making similes and metaphors (i.e., asking “What is it like?”)
  • finding similarities and differences by comparing and contrasting concepts, pictures, and objects
  • reading and examining written models to gather information about the topic or to notice genre, style, or tone
  • viewing pictures, paintings, television, films, or slides
  • using visualization and guided imagery
  • listening to audio
  • debating, role playing, and improvising
  • exploring ideas in a journal.