Exam 1: Writing Effective Paragraphs

Instructions: Select the sentence that uses concise, fresh, and exact language. Which sentence uses concise, fresh, and exact language?

Instructions: The following sentences form a paragraph. Select the correct words and punctuation for each blank. The Library of Congress ____ access to more than 31 million online files containing digitized photographs, manuscripts, maps, sound recordings, and other materials.

Instructions: In each group, select the letter of the sentence that is limited enough to be the thesis statement of a good essay. Choose the thesis statement.

Instructions: Proofread the following sentences, which form an essay, for errors in the past participle. If the sentence contains a past participle error, select Past participle error. If the sentence is correct, select Correct. Artifacts and even human remains are often perfectly preserve beneath a bog s rich layers.

Instructions: Read the paragraph below and answer the question(s) that follow. (1) One of the most terrible encounters between sharks and humans in modern times occurred during World War II. (2) On July 30, 1945, the Navy ship USS Indianapolis was in the Philippine Sea when it was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine. (3) About 300 crewmembers were killed in the explosion. (4) Twelve minutes later, the Indianapolis sunk, tossing the 900 remaining sailors into the ocean. (5) Due to a misunderstanding, their ship was not reported missing. (6) Floating in the sea without lifeboats, the survivors began to be hounded by hundreds of sharks. (7) For four days, they had no protection against the predators. (8) Finally, on August 2, the men were spotted by the pilot of a patrol plane, who radioed for help. (9) Two days later, rescuers were able to find only 319 men alive. Select the number of the topic sentence that tells the point of the story.

Instructions: Read the following sentence(s) carefully. Then select the correct adjective or adverb in parentheses. Are you ( certain , certainly ) you know the way to Pedro s apartment?

Instructions: The paragraphs of the following essay have been scrambled so that they are out of order. Read them and then answer the question(s) that follow. Overcoming Student Depression _____ (1) Today, I m grateful to my college for wanting to help people like me, and I urge anyone who is feeling depressed to find out more about his or her college s resources. (2) Students shouldn t go on floundering until they drown, not when there are people ready to toss out a life preserver and pull them in to safety. _____ (3) I got this help by visiting my college s student health service. (4) Like many colleges, the one I attended had beefed up its resources for students who are having trouble coping with their new challenges. (5) I was able to take advantage of free on-campus counseling with a qualified therapist named Becky. (6) I told her how I felt, and she helped me figure out how to deal more effectively with the stress I was under. (7) I learned, for example, about how to use time management and exercise to better cope with everything I had to do. (8) Before long, I felt the cloud I had been under begin to lift. (9) I was still busy, but I didn t feel as overwhelmed, and my grades improved from Cs and Ds to As and Bs. _____ (10) Second, I found out that my feelings were fairly common. (11) I searched for information online and found out that, according to an American College Health Association study, 10 percent of college students had been diagnosed with depression. (12) In addition, the National Mental Health Association reports that one-third of all college freshmen say they feel overwhelmed a great deal of the time. (13) It was a relief to discover that I wasn t alone. (14) Knowing that encouraged me to take the next step and get the help I needed. _____ (15) The first thing I did was admit to myself that I was depressed. (16) One day while sitting in one of the student lounges on campus, I picked up a pamphlet published by my college s student health service. (17) It included a list of questions, such as Do you often feel sad, anxious, or empty? Do you often feel fatigued or low in energy? Do you have difficulty concentrating or making decisions? (18) I was surprised when I found myself answering yes to almost every one of these questions. (19) Since then, I ve found out that most colleges are trying to educate students about the signs and symptoms of depression and other mental illnesses. (20) Through information posted on college web sites; printed materials like pamphlets and posters; and even forums followed by free screenings for eating disorders, alcoholism, and anxiety, colleges are helping students like me recognize when they are battling a very serious problem. _____ (21) When I first started college, I was excited and happy. (22) It wasn t long, though, before I began to feel overwhelmed. (23) I could barely keep up with all of the assignments, tests, and papers of five different challenging classes. (24) At the same time, I was in an unfamiliar new environment, homesick for my family and friends back home. (25) After a while, I wasn t handling the pressures well at all; in fact, it was all I could do to get myself out of bed every morning. (26) Fortunately, though, I was able to take positive steps to identify and solve my problem. Select the number of the sentence that is the thesis statement of this essay. a. Sentence 21 b. Sentence 25 c. Sentence 26

Instructions: Select the letter of the correct answer for each blank. ____ begin with the word that and give the meaning of an authors words without using quotation marks.

Instructions: Read the paragraph below and answer the question(s) that follow. (1) Two different groups of black musicians grew up in New Orleans. (2) The first of these, the slaves, brought with them the music of Africa and the influences of Caribbean music. (3) Denied education and opportunity by slavery, they improvised, making instruments from gourds, bamboo, and bone. (4) They created songs charged with emotion: work songs, chants, and spirituals. (5) In contrast to the slaves, the free men of color were raised as Creoles. (6) Formally educated and sometimes sent to European schools, they were well versed in classical music, and they played classical instruments. (7) During the Reconstruction period, these two groups of musicians were flung together. (8) The brilliant child of this unlikely union was jazz. Which of the following sentences contains a transitional expression that indicates contrast or comparison?

Instructions: Select the answer that correctly adds the suffix to each word below. judge + ment

Instructions: What kind of paragraph or essay is required by each of the following questions? Select the letter of the correct answer. Explain why muscles become sore after strenuous exercise.

Instructions: Read the following paragraph. For each set of sentences below the paragraph, select the letter of the sentence that provides the best revision for consistency; parallel structure; sentence variety; and fresh, concise language. On December 4, 1872, the crew of the Dei Gratia discovered a ship named the Mary Celeste drifting in the Atlantic. Some of them rowed out to investigate. According to their account, the ship was seaworthy, but a lifeboat was missing, and not one single, solitary person was on board. It seemed that the Mary Celeste s crew simply vanished into thin air without a trace, leaving their oilskin boots and pipes behind. The Mary Celeste s captain recorded his last entry in the ship s log book on November 25 when the ship lands on an island in the Azores. An Admiral Court inquiry found no evidence of foul play or piracy, and praise for the crew of the Dei Gratia for safely bringing both vessels to harbor. The public didn t give a hoot about the incident until young Arthur Conan Doyle s fictional version of the event made them chomp at the bit to learn more in 1884. Conan Doyle described untouched breakfasts and still-warm cups of tea on the captain s table. The public began to confuse fiction with the facts. Obsessed with the mystery, many people developed theories about what happened; some suggested, for example, that the ship experienced a seaquake, and others wondering if the Dei Gratia s men slaughtered everyone. Which sentence provides the best revision for consistency; parallel structure; sentence variety; and fresh, concise language?

Instructions: In each pair of sentences below, carefully determine the exact relationship between the sentences. Then select the transitional expression that clearly expresses this relationship. The hurricane s high winds uprooted trees and knocked over utility poles. ____, flooding damaged the city s businesses and homes.

Instructions: Choose the sentence in which all the commas are used correctly. Select the letter of the correct answer. Which sentences uses all commas correctly?

Instructions: Read the paragraph below and answer the question(s) that follow. (1) The swim-with-dolphin programs popular in tropical resorts have been described as a delightful way to get to know these gentle, intelligent animals. (2) However, people should consider the harmful consequences of swimming with a dolphin and avoid these programs. (3) For one thing, getting into a pool with a dolphin may result in injuries. (4) Quite a few participants have suffered from cuts, bruises, cracked ribs, and broken arms because dolphins are wild animals, and they don t always behave in predictable ways. (5) What s more, swimming with dolphins can be harmful not only to humans but also the dolphins. (6) Trainers may say that these playful, permanently smiling creatures are friendly and love interacting with humans. (7) According to marine mammal scientist Dr. Ben Coleman, though, the dolphins in these programs are being held captive, which causes them stress. (8) Their happy expressions mask their true mental and emotional state. (9) Finally and most important, capturing a wild animal and forcing it to perform tricks for humans amusement is just downright unethical. (10) These animals deserve to live their lives in freedom in the open seas, as nature intended. Which sentence offers a reference to an authority to support a reason?

Instructions: Each question below is a plan for a narrative paragraph. The events in the plan(s) are not in the correct chronological order. Select the letter of the answer that numbers the events in the proper time sequence. Through talent and fortunate timing, Vera Wang has become one of the world s top designers of women s clothing. ____ Today, upscale retailers such as Neiman Marcus sell her elegant but modern wedding and evening dresses, and Kohl s department stores carry her less expensive line of daily wear. ____ In 1971, after college, Wang became a fashion editor at Vogue , a job she held for fifteen years. ____ Soon afterward, Hollywood stars like Halle Berry, Uma Thurman, and Meg Ryan began wearing Vera Wang gowns, and Wang s reputation soared. ____ In 1990, Wang made her dream a reality, opening a high-style bridal and evening gown business. ____ The world took note when Wang designed elegant costumes for skater Nancy Kerrigan during the much-watched 1994 Winter Olympics.

Instructions: Select the letter of the correct answer for each of the following question(s). Which of the following is not a characteristic of a good summary?

Instructions: Each of the following sentences tells what you are trying to persuade someone to do. Beneath each sentence are four reasons that attempt to convince the reader that he or she should take this particular course of action. Select the letter of the reason that seems irrelevant, illogical, or untrue. If you wanted to convince someone that the school day should be lengthened, you could say that

Instructions: Each question below is a plan for a narrative paragraph. The events in the plan(s) are not in the correct chronological order. For each plan, select the answer that numbers the events in the proper time sequence. The tragic end of Shakespeare s famous characters Romeo and Juliet is the result of a series of accidents, bad timing, and bad luck. ____ Therefore, Romeo believes her dead, so when he visits her tomb, he swallows poison and dies just moments before Juliet awakes. ____ Exiled for his crime, Romeo is forced to leave town. ____ To begin, unaware that they are members of two feuding families, Romeo and Juliet meet, fall immediately in love, and marry in secret. ____ Unfortunately, Romeo never receives the message that explains Juliet s trick. ____ Wanting to run away and live with her exiled husband, Juliet decides to fake her own death, by taking a potion that puts her into a deathlike coma. ____ Right after he marries Juliet, Romeo kills Juliet s cousin in a fight. ____ Upon awakening and seeing Romeo s lifeless body beside her, Juliet kills herself with his dagger.

Instructions: Below is a source followed by passage(s) from student papers. If the student has summarized, directly quoted, or indirectly quoted the source correctly, select Correct. If you believe the source is incorrectly summarized or plagiarized, select Incorrect. Americans are rushing to get tucked, suctioned, tightened, and tweaked like never before. More than 8.7 million people underwent cosmetic surgery in 2003, up 33 percent from the year before, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. No longer a privilege of society wives and aging starlets, cosmetic surgery has gone mainstream, available to almost anyone with a credit card and some vacation time. Shute, Nancy. Makeover Nation. U.S. News World Report 31 May 2004: 52. Print. Student version: Over the past several years, the number of people getting cosmetic surgery has dramatically increased. As Nancy Shute puts it, Americans are rushing to get tucked, suctioned, tightened, and tweaked like never before (52).