Find the etymology (history and origin) of a word: Etymology Dictionary. NameS Start with: Behind The Name for first names, and Behind the Surname for family names. Other resources to try: Ancestry can give you some information about family names. Do not click on pay areas. Try to find your name in the Oxford Dictionary…
Category: Writing
Letters and Emails
On this page is help for writing formal letters, resumes etc.
Introductions and Conclusions
The Basics An introduction gives the reader enough information so they can follow what you are going to say. A GRADE INTRODUCTIONS and Conclusions This website has a very good outline of the steps involved in better introductions and conclusions, with an example: https://writingcenter.ashford.edu/introductions-conclusions
Online Language Checkers
Hemingway App http://www.hemingwayapp.com/ I recommend Hemingway Editor for finding run on sentences or improving readability and clarity: REWORDIFY https://rewordify.com/ Rewordify is good for reading difficult texts. Use it to show up hard words. You can also use it to improve your readability and clarity. GRAMMARLY https://grammarly.com/ The free version of Grammarly will check Spelling, Grammar…
Common Spelling Errors
Homophones HOMOPHONES: homo (same) + phones (sound) = words with same sound, different meaning. For an explanation of the 20 most common homophone mistakes made, go here: https://www.scholastic.com/parents/books-and-reading/raise-a-reader-blog/top-20-most-commonly-confused-homophones.html Don’t be that guy The simple homophone errors you shouldn’t be making: The Trickier Ones Even Ms Roberts gets these ones wrong from time to time.
Paragraphs
Paragraph Structure for Persuasive Writing Get the handout: What is a paragraph? Teachers use many different acronyms or metaphors to get you guys to see that writing is ordered in a particular way. Paragraphs are like hamburgers or Lego; they are built, block by block, filling by filling. Most important things to know: Paragraphs are…
Poetry Writing (Middle School)
Want a challenge? Check out the page for Senior School students for more advanced poetry styles. RECOMMENDATION: Use Rhyme Desk as a space to write your poetry. It makes it easy to look up rhyming words and synonyms as you go. Easy / Quick Styles Diamante Diamante poems are about two opposing things, arranged in…
Commas
I think commas are the HARDEST punctuation to get right! Important: commas cannot be used to join two sentences. This is a common error called a ‘Comma Splice’. Go to the ‘Sentence Problems‘ page for more info. If you find a really good website that explains when and how to use commas, please let me…
Sentence Problems
TOP TIP: The website Hemingway Editor will help you pick up a lot of sentence problems in your writing. Sentences Problems in General Kahn Academy has a good video on Sentence Problems. For Senior Students, this very smartly dressed American professor runs through common sentence problems – there is a transcript to follow along. Comma…
Ms Roberts' Lesson Stuff 