ConTEnTS

Part I: Composition

Chapter 1 The Writing Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Lesson 1.1 Prewriting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Lesson 1.2 Drafting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Lesson 1.3 Revising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Lesson 1.4 Editing and Proofreading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Lesson 1.5 Publishing and Presenting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Narrative
Writing
Writer’s Workshop: Autobiographical Writing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Chapter Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Chapter 2 Effective Sentences

and Word Choice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Lesson 2.1 Correcting Sentence Fragments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Lesson 2.2 Correcting Run-on Sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Lesson 2.3 Adding Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Lesson 2.4 Using Parallel Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Lesson 2.5 Avoiding Wordiness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Lesson 2.6 Choosing the Right Word . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Lesson 2.7 Using Formal and Informal English . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Persuasive
Writing Writing Application: Speech . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Chapter Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Chapter 3 Sentence Variety and Structure . . . . . 60

Lesson 3.1 Kinds of Sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Lesson 3.2 Varying Sentence Length . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Lesson 3.3 Varying Sentence Beginnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Lesson 3.4 Independent and Subordinate Clauses . . . . . . . . . . 69
Lesson 3.5 Varying Sentence Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Lesson 3.6 Combining Sentences: Compound Parts . . . . . . . . 75
Lesson 3.7 Combining Sentences: Key Words and Phrases . . . 77
Narrative
Writing Writer’s Workshop: Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Chapter Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

4 Grammar for Writing: Table of Contents

 Chapter 4 Effective Paragraphs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Lesson 4.1 Supporting the Main Idea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Lesson 4.2 Paragraph Unity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Lesson 4.3 Patterns of Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Lesson 4.4 Transitional Words and Phrases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Lesson 4.5 Types of Paragraphs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Descriptive
Writing Writing Application: Descriptive Paragraph . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Chapter Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Chapter 5 Writing an Essay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .112

Lesson 5.1 Parts of an Essay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Lesson 5.2 Thesis Statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Lesson 5.3 Introductions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Lesson 5.4 Body Paragraphs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Lesson 5.5 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Expository
Writing Writer’s Workshop: Compare-Contrast Essay . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Chapter Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Part II: Grammar, Usage,

and Mechanics

Chapter 6 Parts of a Sentence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

Lesson 6.1 Sentences and Sentence Fragments . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Lesson 6.2 Subjects and Predicates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Lesson 6.3 Hard-to-Find Subjects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Lesson 6.4 Compound Subjects and Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Lesson 6.5 Direct Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Lesson 6.6 Subject Complements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Expository
Writing Writing Application: Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Chapter Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Grammar for Writing: Table of Contents 5

 Chapter 7 Nouns and Pronouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Lesson 7.1 Nouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Lesson 7.2 Plural and Possessive Nouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Lesson 7.3 Pronouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Lesson 7.4 Subject and Object Pronouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Lesson 7.5 Pronoun Agreement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Lesson 7.6 Clear Pronoun Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Persuasive
Writing
Writer’s Workshop: Persuasive Essay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Chapter Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Chapter 8 Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180

Lesson 8.1 Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Lesson 8.2 Regular and Irregular Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Lesson 8.3 More Irregular Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Lesson 8.4 Verb Tense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Lesson 8.5 Active and Passive Voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Lesson 8.6 Verbals and Verbal Phrases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
Real-World
Writing
Writing Application: Instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Chapter Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

Chapter 9 Adjectives, Adverbs, and

Other Parts of Speech . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Lesson 9.1 Adjectives and Adverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Lesson 9.2 Comparing with Adjectives and Adverbs . . . . . . . 203
Lesson 9.3 Adjective or Adverb? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
Lesson 9.4 Double Negatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207
Lesson 9.5 Misplaced Modifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
Lesson 9.6 Prepositions and Prepositional Phrases . . . . . . . . . 211
Lesson 9.7 Conjunctions and Interjections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
Writing
About Writer’s Workshop: Book Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
Literature
Chapter Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222

6 Grammar for Writing: Table of Contents

 Chapter 10 Subject-Verb Agreement . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
Lesson 10.1 Agreement of Subject and Verb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
Lesson 10.2 Phrases Between Subject and Verb . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
Lesson 10.3 Compound Subjects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Lesson 10.4 Inverted Sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
Lesson 10.5 Other Agreement Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
Writing for
Assessment Writing Application: Writing Prompt Response . . . . . . . . . . . 237
Chapter Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241

Chapter 11 Punctuation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244

Lesson 11.1 End Marks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
Lesson 11.2 Abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247
Lesson 11.3 Commas in Compound Sentences and Series . . . . 249
Lesson 11.4 Other Comma Uses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Lesson 11.5 Semicolons and Colons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
Lesson 11.6 Quotation Marks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
Lesson 11.7 Apostrophes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
Lesson 11.8 Other Marks of Punctuation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Research
Writing Writer’s Workshop: Research Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
Chapter Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269

Chapter 12 Capitalization and Spelling . . . . . . . . . . 272

Lesson 12.1 Proper Nouns and Proper Adjectives . . . . . . . . . . . 273
Lesson 12.2 Quotations and Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
Lesson 12.3 Other Capitalization Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277
Lesson 12.4 Spelling Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
Lesson 12.5 Plural Nouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
Real-World
Writing Writing Application: Business Letter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
Chapter Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

Frequently Misspelled Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291

Commonly Confused Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297

Grammar for Writing: Table of Contents 7

8
1
CHAPTER

The Writing Process

Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

 LESSON
Prewriting
1.1
Before you can begin writing, you need to plan. Prewriting, the
first stage of the writing process, involves the steps below.

● finding possible topics to write about

● choosing and narrowing your topic
● deciding on your purpose and audience
● collecting and organizing details

Use one of the techniques below to generate a topic.

The writing
process consists
1. Freewrite Start with a word or broad topic, or look at a
of five stages.
photograph to generate ideas. For five minutes, write down
every thought you have about it. Be specific. Prewriting
2. Brainstorm Use one or two words to come up with more
specific ideas. Instead of writing full sentences, make a list Drafting
or jot down ideas in a Web.
Revising
learning to
spend less time on the Internet
Editing and
Proofreading
playing a new
sport
Big
Challenge standing Publishing and
up to a bully Presenting
accepting
my best friend’s new friend

TOPIC
Next, review your ideas, and narrow the topic you like best. CHECKLIST
Make sure your topic matches the length of the assignment. ✔ How strongly do
I feel about this
too broad the Internet
[This is too much to cover in a short paper.]
topic?
✔ Is it narrow
too narrow checking e-mail last night
enough?
[This is not broad enough to write about in
three pages.] ✔ Can I gather
information
good topic spending less time on the Internet
about it?

Chapter 1 • The Writing Process 9

The Writing Process

Choose your purpose for writing, and analyze your

audience.

Purpose Audience
● Is my purpose to entertain, ● Who will read my paper?
inform, persuade, or describe? ● How much does my audience
● What is the main thing I want my already know?
readers to learn? ● What are their interests? How can
● Why do I want to share this topic I help them connect to the topic?
with others?

Next, use a graphic organizer, such as the Sequence

Organizer below, to help you collect and organize details.

• on Internet parents • followed • learned I

every day and everyone’s had lots
friends advice of other
• ignored upset with interests
• started
chores and me other • had fun
Starter Words friends activities offline
embarrassing
family
favorite
ExErcisE 1 Generating Topics
funny moments Use the brainstorming technique to come up with a topic for a
happiness three-page paper. Pick a word or phrase from the list to the left,
hobbies or choose one of your own. Write the word in the center of a
technology Web. List related ideas.
wish

Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

Inverted ExErcisE 2 Choosing a Topic
Pyramid Review your Web from Exercise 1. Indicate the two topics you
hobbies like best.
collecting
photos 1. Review those topics to see if you need to narrow them or
expand on them. You can use the organizer shown to the
making
left to narrow broad topics. Write the topic at the top. In the
scrapbooks
next line, write one smaller part of it. Keep making each part
smaller until you find a good writing topic.
2. Use the Topic Checklist on the previous page to help you
choose the best topic.
10 Chapter 1 • The Writing Process
 The Writing Process

ExErcisE 3 Choosing Your Purpose

Now, determine a purpose for the topic you chose. Write three
different purposes for your topic. Choose the topic and purpose
you know well and that you would most enjoy writing about.
Put a check mark next to it.

entertain share the time I won a scrapbook contest

explain explain how to make a scrapbook ✔

persuade convince readers that scrapbooks are fun
to make

ExErcisE 4 Analyzing Your Audience

Next, decide who your readers are and what background
information they have. Make a chart like the one below.

My audience is teens who may have never made a scrapbook.

What they Know What they need to Know

• what a scrapbook is • where to find great
• some of the materials pictures
they’ll need • all the steps involved
• what a scrapbook is for • different types of scrapbooks

ExErcisE 5 Collecting Details For more on

Finally, gather and organize details about your topic. organizing ideas,
see Lesson 4.3.
1. Review the topic, purpose, and audience you chose in the
previous exercises.
2. Refresh your memory about your topic by doing research or
talking to a peer or adult who knows about it.
3. Jot down a list of details, or complete a Sequence Organizer,
such as the one shown on the previous page.
4. Include any specific details that you will want to add to
your paper.
Chapter 1 • The Writing Process 11
 LESSON
Drafting
1.2
During the drafting stage, you turn your prewriting plan into
complete sentences and paragraphs. Here are some guidelines
about the drafting stage.

Do Don’t
● Open up your mind, and let your ● Don’t stop to wonder about
ideas flow. whether you should include an
● Cross out ideas you don’t like, idea.
and add new ones. ● Don’t expect your draft to be
● Even if you’re not sure how to perfect.
spell some words, use them ● Don’t write so messily that you
anyway. can’t read your own writing.
● Jot notes in the margins about ● Don’t feel you must stick to every
details you want to research more detail of your prewriting plan.
or things you want to check later. Once you begin drafting, your
● Be open to making changes to plan may develop or change.
the plan you created during
prewriting.
● Write legibly.

Organize your ideas into a strong introduction that grabs

readers’ attention, a body that supports the main point, and a
conclusion that readers will remember.
For more about
writing the During drafting, you may encounter writer’s block, or a
introduction,
mental block that keeps you from writing. Here are some tips for
body, and
overcoming it.
conclusion of
an essay, see
1. Take a break. Let your mind rest and reenergize.

Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

the lessons in
Chapter 5. 2. Discuss your paper with a teacher, parent, or friend.
Talk about your topic, and ask for suggestions
or ideas.
3. Refer to your prewriting notes.
4. Start freewriting. Write about anything related to your topic.
Read part of one writer’s draft on the next page.

12 Chapter 1 • The Writing Process

 The Writing Process

Writing Model
Knock! Knock! Knock! “Alicia, this is the third
time Cindy has called you. Get off that computer!” Introduction
catches readers’
I could hear Dad’s shouting through my earphones. attention.

I swiftly clicked one button, and the computer was

off—well, not completely off. What if someone sent
me an e-mail? I always left my computer on, no Arrow shows that
a detail should be
matter what. What if the song I was downloading moved to clarify
the organization.
wasn’t finished yet? That’s why my parents are
upset. Don’t get me wrong. That was a while ago. Cross-outs show
ideas the writer no
It took me a while to see that I wasn’t doing my longer wants to
include.
work. My friends were getting tired of me ignoring
their invitations. They wanted to go out. All I
wanted was to be left alone on my computer.

ExErcisE 1 Planning a Draft

Review and add to any notes, organizers, or lists you made
during prewriting. Think more about your main points and how
to organize them. Be sure you have at least three key ideas and
two or more details that support each one.

ExErcisE 2 Writing a Draft

Now, on a separate sheet of paper, write a complete draft from
beginning to end. Make sure to build on your prewriting ideas
from the previous lesson and from Exercise 1.

Chapter 1 • The Writing Process 13

 LESSON
Revising
1.3
Now that you have a first draft, the next step is to improve it.
During the revising stage of the writing process, you evaluate
your draft and decide what works and what doesn’t.

Revising always entails looking at five of the six traits of

good writing. Use the checklist below as you revise.

REVISING CHECKLIST

Ideas and Content

✔ How clearly did I express my ideas?
✔ Where should I add or delete details?
The sixth trait of
good writing is
conventions, Organization
or correctness in ✔ How clear is the order of details?
grammar, spelling,
usage, punctuation, ✔ Where should I add transitions to improve the connections
and mechanics. between sentences and paragraphs?
You will look for
and correct these
kinds of errors in
Sentence Fluency
✔ How smooth does the writing sound when I read it aloud?
the editing and
proofreading ✔ Which sentences seem choppy?
stage of the writing ✔ How well have I varied sentence structures, sentence lengths,
process. See
and sentence beginnings?
Lesson 1.4.

Word Choice

Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

✔ Which nouns, adjectives, adverbs, or verbs should be replaced
with more precise words?
✔ Which words have I used too often?

Voice
✔ How original and fresh is my writing?
✔ In which places does my writing sound forced or unnatural?

14 Chapter 1 • The Writing Process

 The Writing Process

Follow the tips below for revising your paper.

● Read your paper carefully several times. Focus on a

different trait in the checklist each time you read.
● Make all the necessary changes, even if they’re major.
Do what it takes to improve the quality of your paper.
● Add, delete, or rearrange details as necessary.
Do a peer review. Exchange drafts with a partner, and use
the checklist on the previous page to check each other’s work.
Follow these guidelines as you review your partner’s draft:

● Always start with positive feedback.

● Ask questions about things you don’t understand.
● Offer specific suggestions. Both suggestions and positive
feedback should always be specific enough so the writer
understands your point.
The chart below highlights examples of specific feedback you Note how one author
might give to a partner during the revision stage. describes her response
to the comments of
reviewers and editors.
Vague Specific
“They note what
This needs work. Maybe you could add some transitions. needs to be fixed, but
Good stuff. The details in this paragraph are really interesting, it’s up to me to do the
and they strongly support the main idea. repairs.”
—Peg Kehret
This doesn’t make Can you help me understand your main idea?
sense.
Great essay! Your introduction made me curious to read on,
and your ideas were clear.

The passage on the next page shows a revision of the draft

from Lesson 1.2. How effective are the revisions? If you were a
peer reviewer, what other revisions would you suggest?

Chapter 1 • The Writing Process 15

The Writing Process

Writing Model
Knock! Knock! Knock! “Alicia, this is the
third time Cindy has called you. Get off that
computer!” I could hear Dad’s shouting through
Vary sentence
One swift click of a
beginnings. my earphones. I swiftly clicked one button, and
the computer was off—well, not completely off.
What if someone sent me an e-mail? What if the
song I was downloading wasn’t finished yet?
Use precise I always left my computer on, no matter what.
words, and add have been disappointed
details. That’s why my parents are upset. I wasn’t doing
homework or practicing the violin
my work. My friends were getting tired of me
Combine short
sentences. ignoring their invitations. They wanted to go out.
All I wanted was to be left alone on my computer.

ExErcisE 1 Doing a Peer Review

Exchange papers with a partner. Use the Revising Checklist and
peer review tips to check each other’s drafts. Include at least two
positive comments, a question, and two suggestions. Talk with
your partner about any suggestions you don’t understand.

ExErcisE 2 Revising Your Paper Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

Next, evaluate your paper on your own.

1. Review your partner’s suggestions from the peer review. Put a

check mark next to changes you agree with.
2. Use the Revising Checklist to carefully review your draft.
3. Put together your ideas and your partner’s feedback. Then
revise your draft on a separate sheet of paper.

16 Chapter 1 • The Writing Process

 LESSON
Editing and Proofreading
1.4
Now that the content of your paper is solid, identify and fix any
errors in the sixth writing trait, conventions: grammar, usage,
spelling, mechanics, and punctuation.

Follow these tips for editing and proofreading:

1. Use a checklist like the one below. Keep track of the

common mistakes you make, and add them to the list.
2. Carefully read your draft several times. Each time, focus on
a single item on the checklist. If you try to check too many
things at one time, you are likely to miss some errors.
Ask for help.
3. Focus on one line at a time.
Exchange papers
4. Read your paper aloud sentence by sentence. This practice with a partner, and
can help you catch any missing words or confusing sentences. check each other’s
work. It’s always
helpful to have a
second pair
of eyes.

Editing and Proofreading Checklist

❏ Are all words spelled correctly?
❏ Have I fixed all fragments and run-on sentences?
❏ Are any commas missing or unnecessary?
❏ Does every sentence end with the correct
punctuation mark?
❏ Do all subjects and verbs agree?
❏ Have I capitalized the names of people and places?
❏ Did I mix up any easily confused words, such as
accept/except?
❏ Did I indent the first line of each paragraph?

Use proofreading symbols to mark any errors. In the margin

on page 18, you’ll find a list of commonly used symbols. Write
your corrections neatly so you can easily read them later.

Chapter 1 • The Writing Process 17

The Writing Process

Even if you wrote your draft on a computer, take time to edit

and proofread it. Here are some tips for editing and proofreading
while using a computer.

● When you make a correction, reread it to make sure you

typed it correctly.
● Use an online dictionary to check the spellings or definitions
of any words you’re not sure about.
● Use spell-check, but don’t substitute it for your own review.
Spell-check won’t catch all errors, such as whether you used
their instead of there.
Here is how one writer edited and proofread this paragraph.

Writing Model
Proofreading Symbols
Delete. My evening away from the computer finally came.
g
Add.
Cindy was smiling and gigling as she led me out the
. Add a period.
, Add a comma. front door and into her older sister’s car. “You’re going to
” Add quotation marks. have fun, I promise. you won’t think about your stupid
Make lowercase.
Switch order. computer or online buddies at all,” Cindy told me as we
Capitalize.
strapped on our seat belts. Immediately her older Sister
¶ Start a new paragraph.
began telling funny stories about her new job. Cindy and
I shared stories about things that happened at school. We

Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

talked and lauhged all the way to the bowling alley. Soon
all thoughts of my computer drifted away.

ExErcisE 1 Proofreading a Draft

Practice using the proofreading tips you learned in this lesson to
review the draft on the next page. Use the proofreading symbols
to mark any mistakes you find.

18 Chapter 1 • The Writing Process

 The Writing Process

1
“Wow, I had totally forgotten how much I love
battting cages,” I shouted to no one in particular. 2Cindy
and her sister were buying tickets so we could play
minitature golf next. 3it dawned on me that playing real
sports was more fun than playing them on the computer.
4
I felt as if someone had locked me up and kept me away
from all real, fun things. 5Then I realized that the person
who locked me up was me! 6I I felt silly. 7it’s fun to play
computer games online against teens from other country.
8
However, it doesn’t compare to expereincing the crack of
the bat as I slam a softball or sharing such moments with
friends I can see and hear

ExErcisE 2 Checking Your Draft

Reread the tips on the first page of this lesson. Use them to edit
and proofread the draft you wrote in the previous lesson.

1. Use the Editing and Proofreading Checklist to review your

paper.
2. Use the proofreading symbols to mark your changes neatly.
3. Finally, create a clean copy of your paper.

ExErcisE 3 Making Your Own Checklist

Now exchange papers with a classmate. Work together to
proofread your papers one final time. Create a checklist of errors
that you frequently make.

Chapter 1 • The Writing Process 19

 LESSON
Publishing and Presenting
1.5
The last stage of the writing process is publishing and
presenting.

1. Make a final error-free copy of your paper.

2. Share your paper with others, either through an oral
presentation, a written paper, or a multimedia presentation.
Before you turn in your final paper, proofread it one last
time. Then check that you followed the format your teacher
required.

Be creative about the way you share your work with others.
Try one of the ways below to present your work.

Oral Presentation ● small-group presentation with a Question-and-

Answer session
Be sure to give your
paper a title. It’s ● speech to the class
your first chance to Written Paper ● blog or e-mail
grab your readers’ ● school or community newspaper
attention and give ● magazine for young writers
them an idea of
● online Web site for writers
what your writing is
about. Multimedia ● class presentation with pictures, graphics,
Presentation and music
● slide presentation
● skit based on paper
● video recording

Make sure the type of presentation you choose matches the

Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

type of paper you wrote. Here are just a few examples of the
types of presentations you can give.

how-to essay Give a demonstration for the class.

persuasive essay Make a speech to your audience.

poem Perform it at a poetry reading.

research report Make a slide presentation with graphs and visuals

to display data.

short story Read it to the class.

20 Chapter 1 • The Writing Process

 The Writing Process

Keep a writing portfolio throughout the school year. A

writing portfolio is a collection of your best writing. It allows
you to track your growth as a writer.

To choose whether to add a piece to your portfolio, ask yourself

questions, such as the following:

● How does this piece reveal something new about my

writing skills?
● How will this piece add something new to my portfolio?
● How does this paper compare to other papers I’ve written?

ExErcisE 1 Choosing a Presentation

Make a presentation of the paper you wrote in the previous
lessons. Choose one of the presentation techniques listed on the
previous page. With a partner, elaborate on the idea you chose.
Brainstorm further ways to make your presentation come alive,
using suggestions like the ones below.

● Visuals, such as photos and clip art, can liven up your

paper or oral presentation. Post visuals on poster board
or on the bulletin board, or insert them into your paper.
● Graphics, such as pie charts or bar graphs, can clarify Be sure to speak
complex information, such as statistics and other data. loudly and clearly
so everyone can
● Audio, such as songs, narrations, or speeches, can add hear you. Stress key
authority or interest to your presentation. words and phrases
● Costumes/Scenery are important to skits. Even if you to emphasize their
are doing an oral presentation, set the mood by wearing importance.
a costume. To create scenery, decorate a poster or bring
in real objects.

ExErcisE 2 Making a Presentation

Now gather the necessary materials, and prepare your
presentation. Practice your presentation several times in front of
a mirror. Then present your work to the class or to small groups.

Chapter 1 • The Writing Process 21

 WRITER’S WORKSHOP www.grammarforwriting.com

Autobiographical Writing
You share stories about your life often—in a letter, an essay, or
an e-mail to a friend. When you write true stories, or narratives,
about your life, you are writing autobiographically.

Autobiographical writing may tell the story of the author’s

entire life or focus on a significant period. Either way, this kind
of writing shows how events and people shaped the author’s life,
such as this Timeline shows.

moved had trouble joined music met my best learned to like

making friends club friend my new home

When you write autobiographically, include the following

features.

Key Features
● natural and logical event ● precise words and sensory
sequence language
● first-person point of view ● resolution that concludes and
● dialogue and descriptive details reflects on the events
● transition words to convey
sequence

Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

ASSIGNMENT
TASK: Write a two- to three-page
autobiographical essay. Tell about a challenge or
experience with a person that caused a change in
your life.
AUDIENCE: your teacher and classmates
PURPOSE: to tell the story of a meaningful
experience and to entertain your readers

22 Chapter 1 • Writer’s Workshop: Autobiographical Writing

Prewriting

u Pick a Topic u First, brainstorm ideas for a topic. Use a chart

to jot down thoughts about people who have changed your life
and challenges you have faced.

Topics How I Felt What Happened How I Changed

Person scared of the time she joined debate
Ms. Wang, speaking in helped me team, won first
teacher public practice championship
Event used to a bully picked on learned how to
sticking tease my him at school be a big brother
up for my little brother
brother a lot

Choose a topic that you feel strongly about and remember well.
Take your audience into consideration. Which topic will readers
find most interesting?

u Gather Details u List details about your topic. Be sure to

include all of the information your readers will need to know.

incomplete Someone picked on Lee.

complete Bill, a bully at school, started picking on

my little brother Lee.

ZIGGY © (1997) ZIGGY AND FRIENDS, INC. Reprinted with permission of UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE. All rights reserved.

Chapter 1 • Writer’s Workshop: Autobiographical Writing 23

 WRITER’S WORKSHOP continued

Prewriting

u What’s the Trouble? u Some narratives revolve around

a problem, or conflict. Conflicts can be internal or external.

internal You struggle with yourself to make a decision or to change

something you believe or feel or a way you act.

external You struggle with someone or something else, such as a

friend, rules at school, or an outside force, such as a storm.

Think about what conflict is involved in the change you are

describing. Whom or what are you struggling against?

People Involved
my little brother,
Autobiographical Bill, me
writing revolves
around you. Always Conflict
use first-person younger brother getting
point of view to picked on by bully (external)
tell your story. Use
pronouns, such as I,
me, our, we, and us. Outcome
I learned how to be a good
big brother.

u Put Details in Order u Chronological order is a type of

Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

organization often used in autobiographical writing. When you
When you write tell a story chronologically, you describe events in the order that
your draft, add they occurred in time.
transitions to show
the order in which List your details in order in a graphic organizer. Use a Timeline
events happened.
like the one on the first page of this workshop. Or create a
after finally last Sequence Organizer like the one below.
before first next

Lee starts I tease Bill picks I stick up

going to my Lee. on Lee in for Lee.
school. school.

24 Chapter 1 • Writer’s Workshop: Autobiographical Writing

Drafting

u Bring Your Story to Life u Dialogue makes your story

and your characters seem more real. Dialogue is different from
description because it lets your characters speak for themselves. Add a comma after
the speech tag if it
description My brother was very angry, and he shouted. comes before the
dialogue. See Lesson
dialogue “You shouldn’t play tricks on other people,” my brother 11.6.
shouted angrily. I said, “I’m sorry.”
Follow these tips for using dialogue: Add a comma at the
end of the dialogue
1. Always make sure the reader knows who is speaking. Use if the speech tag
speech tags before or after dialogue. follows.
“I forgive you,” Lee
Bill explained, “It was a joke. Get over it.”
responded.
“A joke is supposed to be funny. Yours wasn’t,” Lee yelled.

2. Avoid overusing the word said. Be specific. Did the character

whisper, yell, mutter, or speak? Find synonyms in a thesaurus.

u Make It Matter u Explain your feelings about what

happened. Consider what impression you want to leave on your
readers. Also, do more than list facts. Stop and reflect on how
those facts affected you, how you feel about them, and why
they’re important.

Writing Model
1
Lee’s hands shook, and tears started to run down his Specific details
face. 2“You shouldn’t pick on me,” he shouted. 3That’s
when I raced over from the other side of the cafeteria.
4
Sweat dripped from my forehead. 5I grabbed Lee by the
hand and looked Bill Jackson in the eye.
6
“You leave my little brother alone!” I yelled. 7As Bill Dialogue
backed away, I could feel Lee’s hand tightly gripping
mine. 8I really was a big brother. Writer’s feelings

Chapter 1 • Writer’s Workshop: Autobiographical Writing 25

 WRITER’S WORKSHOP continued

Revising
Now that you have written your draft, slowly reread your
As you revise,
keep in mind the
writing, and look for ways to improve your work. Begin by
traits of good considering the overall structure and organization of your story.
writing. See Ask yourself if the story would make sense to your readers. Use
Lesson 1.3. the Revising Questions below to help guide your revision.

Revising Questions
❏ How clearly have I described the event or person
that caused a change in my life?
❏ Where can I improve the chronological order?
❏ How well have I used first-person point of view?
❏ Where can I add dialogue?
❏ How clearly have I expressed my feelings?

u Work with a Peer u Often another person’s opinion of

your draft can give you valuable insights on how to improve it.
In a peer review, a classmate or friend reads your work and
offers suggestions.

Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

When you offer Follow the guidelines below during a peer review.
feedback as a
peer reviewer, be 1. Do give positive feedback. Don’t focus entirely on what is
prepared to give not working.
examples to support
2. Do ask precise questions about the writing. Don’t rewrite entire
your opinions.
sentences or paragraphs of the paper.
3. Do offer specific suggestions. Don’t be overly critical.

26 Chapter 1 • Writer’s Workshop: Autobiographical Writing

Revising

u Include Interesting Details u Your readers weren’t See Lesson

present when the events you are describing occurred, so you 2.3 for help with
have to help them imagine they were. You can do this by adding details to
including vivid details that show, not tell, readers what your sentences.
happened.

telling Lee was embarrassed.

showing Lee turned red in the face and started to stutter.

As you read the passage below, notice how the author uses vivid
details.

Literary Model
1
I remember one summer a friend of my mother’s in
Kansas City sent her son to pass a few weeks with me at
my grandmother’s home in Lawrence. 2But the little boy
only stayed a few days, then wrote his mother that he
wanted to leave, because we had nothing but salt pork and
wild dandelions to eat. 3The boy was right. 4But being only
eight or nine years old, I cried when he showed me the
letter he was writing his mother. 5And I never wanted my
mother to invite any more little boys to stay with me at my
grandmother’s house.
6
You see, my grandmother was very proud, and she
would never beg or borrow anything from anybody.
—Excerpt from The Big Sea by Langston Hughes

u Reading as a Writer u
1. What specific details does the author use to show that the
family is poor?
2. How do the vivid details shape your impression of the
narrator?

Chapter 1 • Writer’s Workshop: Autobiographical Writing 27

 WRITER’S WORKSHOP continued

Editing and Proofreading

Use this checklist to edit and proofread your draft.

Capitalize proper
nouns, which are
specific names of
people, places, and
ideas. See Editing and Proofreading Checklist
Lesson 12.1.
❏ Have I checked that all words are spelled correctly?
Was Bill new at
Elmer School? ❏ Have I used quotation marks around dialogue?
❏ Have I correctly used commas with dialogue?
❏ Have I capitalized all proper nouns and the first
word of every sentence?

Proofreading Symbols
1
lee and I sat in the backyard talking about how
. Add a period.
scared Bill Jackson looked when I confronted him. 2Lee
, Add a comma.
Make lowercase. looked up to me as a Brother, and I was going to be a
Capitalize.
great big Brother, no matter what .3“Come on, let’s go
inside”
, I suggested. when Lee took my hand, I realized
4

how much I’d changed.

Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

● What do you like Publishing and Presenting
best about your Choose one of these ways to share your essay.
autobiographical
essay? ● Add photographs or other illustrations of the people and
● What ideas, places described in your essay. Present your illustrated work
scenes, or people to the class.
did you have
the hardest time ● Create a script from one part of your essay. Practice reading
describing? your script aloud with other members of your class. Then
perform it for the group.

28 Chapter 1 • Writer’s Workshop: Autobiographical Writing

 4. Athletes may have trouble communicating with artists
A
because his learning style is visual rather than physical.
B C D
No error
E

R e v i e w
 5. My friend and me sometimes have misunderstandings
A B
due to our different learning styles. No error
C D E

  6. All of Sue’s books are audiobook’s because Sue is an


A B C D
auditory learner. No error
E

 7. Some kids learning styles can change over time.

A B C D
No error
E

 8. Al says we are both visual learners because him and I

C h a p t e r
A B C D
prefer movies to books. No error
E

  9. I think I am a verbal learner because reading, writing,


A B
and talking are what help me learn best. No error
C D E

 10. No matter what your learning style is, you and him can
A B C D
find a way to succeed. No error
E

Chapter 7 • Nouns and Pronouns 177

 B. Identifying Nouns
Read each sentence below. Label each underlined noun with all of the
following terms that apply.

PR = proper CO = collective PL = plural PS = possessive

1. Parents often determine what is safe and appropriate for their

R e v i e w

children to watch on television by relying on some group’s

guidelines.
2. This system’s problem is that “safe” and “appropriate” are extremely
subjective terms.
3. For example, Mary Jackson’s opinion may differ from another’s on a
documentary about World War II.
4. Mrs. Jackson might find it too violent for her sons to watch,
while Mr. Rosenberg thinks it’s an important history lesson for his
daughter’s friends.
5. Families must watch television together to truly assess a station’s
programming for kids.

C. Choosing and Identifying Pronouns

Read each sentence below. Underline the correct word in parentheses.
C h a p t e r

Then label its function: S for subject, PN for predicate nominative, O for
object, or PS for possessive.

��� 1. My sister and (me, I) decided to make dinner for our mom last
night.

��� 2. I told (her, she) that we should make something simple, like
spaghetti.

��� 3. My sister baked a soufflé for Lennie and (we, us). Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

��� 4. The best cooks are Jill and (I, me).

��� 5. I smiled when the (ovens, oven’s) timer buzzed.

178 Chapter 7 • Nouns and Pronouns

D. Correcting Pronoun Reference
Each sentence below contains a pronoun whose antecedent is unclear.
Underline the unclear pronoun. Then, rewrite the sentence to make the
pronoun reference clear.

1. Hannah told Rachel that she could adopt a cat.

R e v i e w
2. Rachel discussed cat care with Hannah before she went to the
shelter.
3. Hannah gave Rachel a few tips as she looked at the cats in front of
them.
4. Rachel liked the black cat best because she was friendly.
5. In the shelter, it advises visitors to stay quiet.

E. Revising a Persuasive Paragraph

Rewrite the draft below on a separate sheet of paper. Correct any noun
or pronoun errors. Also fix any errors in grammar, usage, punctuation,
mechanics, and spelling. Add a counterargument and response at
a logical point in the paragraph.

C h a p t e r
1
Principal tate is considering cutting our schools
budget for arts education in order to provide student’s
with more test-prep materials. 2These would be a big
mistake. 3Everyone should have the best education
they can. 4In order to live fully in the world, students’
need to be exposed to culture in the form of music,
art, theater, and dance. 5If Principal Tate cuts the art
budget, no one will leave School prepared to appreciate
and understand the world around them.

Chapter 7 • Nouns and Pronouns 179

180
8
CHAPTER

Verbs

Copyright ©2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

 LESSON
Verbs
8.1
Every sentence has at least one verb. Verbs are words that
express an action or a state of being.
Some Linking
The easiest action verbs to identify show an action you can
Verbs
see: kick, throw, skate, climb, pounce. Other action verbs show an
action that takes place in your mind: think, like, enjoy, wonder. am look
appear seem
Action verbs (v) often take a direct object (do). (See Lesson 6.5 are smell
for more about direct objects.)
become sound
v do
The skater won the gold medal. feel taste
grow was
Linking verbs (lv) do not express action. They join the
is were
subject with a subject complement (sc), a word that identifies
or describes the subject. (See Lesson 6.6 for more about subject
complements.)
lv sc
The quarterback was tired. The same verb can
be a linking verb in
Notice both kinds of verbs in the passage below.
one sentence and
an action verb in
Literary Model another.
lv sc
That smelled sweet.
Miss Saunders is a motion machine this morning. She v do
We smelled smoke.
sets down her briefcase, throws her black bag into the closet
up front, slaps her hands together like giant paddles, and
tells everybody to get quiet.
—Excerpt from The Skin I’m In by Sharon G. Flake

Many sentences contain a verb phrase. A verb phrase has a

main verb (mv) and at least one helping verb (hv).
hv mv

The runner may have fallen behind during the last lap. Some Helping
hv mv mv
Verbs
Will the coach change his mind and call us?
be did is
been do were
being does will
can have

Chapter 8 • Verbs 181

Verbs www.grammarforwriting.com

EXERCISE 1 Recognizing Verbs

Read the following sports article. Underline all of the verbs,
including any helping verbs in a verb phrase.

1
Austrian Markus Stockl is a great athlete. 2He set a
new world speed record in the downhill mountain bike
class. 3Stockl crushed his own record by 14.3 mph. 4He
flew down a snow slope in Chile and hit a speed of
130.7 mph. 5Videos of his record-breaking run have
flooded the Internet, and sports chat rooms have been
filled with talk about him. 6His skills are amazing.

EXERCISE 2 Identifying Verbs

Label each verb in the following sentences as an action verb or a
linking verb.

EXAMPLE The air smelled fresh as the climbers were arriving.

smelled (linking verb), were arriving (action verb)

1. The rock climber seemed strong as she moved to the cliff.
2. Her partner had sprained his ankle.
3. The climbers’ voices sounded weak, but they were smiling.
4. Did they worry when the rain started?
5. The two climbers looked pale and gasped for air. Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

EXERCISE 3 Writing a Dialogue

With a partner, choose a sports event, and create a dialogue
between two television announcers. Use at least five linking
verbs and five action verbs to describe the players and action.
EXAMPLE Announcer 1: The team is on the field.

Announcer 2: The Wildcats win the coin toss.

182 Chapter 8 • Verbs

 LESSON
Regular and Irregular Verbs
8.2
Every verb has four basic forms, or principal parts.

Present I play basketball.

Present Participle I am playing on the school team.
Past I played with energy.
Past Participle I have played in every game.
You will need to
Note that helping verbs are used with present participle and past change the spelling
participle forms. (See Lesson 8.1 for more about helping verbs.) of some verbs when
you add -ing or -ed
There are two kinds of verbs: regular and irregular. A regular endings.
verb is a verb whose past and past participle are formed by like liking
adding -ed or -d to the present. The present participle of regular worry worried
verbs is formed by adding -ing to the present. drop dropped
For more about
Present Present Participle Past Past Participle spelling rules, see
(Use with am, is, (Use with has,
Lesson 12.4.
are, was, were.) had, have.)

walk (is) walking walked (had) walked

jump (is) jumping jumped (had) jumped

Unlike regular verbs, irregular verbs do not form their past

and past participle forms by following this rule. The past and past
participle forms of irregular verbs are formed in a variety of ways.

In some cases the past and past participle forms are the same.

Present Past Past Participle

say said (had) said

win won (had) won

However, sometimes the forms of irregular verbs are different.

Present Past Past Participle

go went (had) gone

take took (had) taken

Chapter 8 • Verbs 183

Verbs www.grammarforwriting.com

EXERCISE 1 Identifying Verb Forms

Write present participle, past, or past participle for the verb
Never use a helping
underlined in each sentence.
verb with the past
tense.
EXAMPLE Ken got the story idea from his uncle. past
iNcoRRectThe storm
had began on 1. One of Ken’s uncles is hiking in Alaska.
Tuesday.
2. He and a friend brought camping gear and sturdy shoes.
coRRectThe storm
began on Tuesday. 3. Both of them swam in the lake.
Never use a 4. By Friday they had caught many fish in a river.
participle form
without a helping 5. That night, they built a fire and cooked the fish.
verb.
iNcoRRect We seen EXERCISE 2 Choosing Correct Verbs
lightning.
Draw a line under the correct verb form in the parentheses.
coRRect We have
seen lightning.
1. They (fallen, had fallen) asleep under a starry sky.
2. Suddenly, Ken’s uncle (heared, heard) a rustling nearby.
3. A bear (was eating, had ate) their leftovers.
4. Panic (came, had came) over Ken’s uncle.
5. He should (have knew, have known) better.
6. The campers (breaking, had broken) the first rule for survival.
7. Why hadn’t you (taken, took) the food away?
8. In the quiet night, they had (became, become) careless.

Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

9. Suddenly, a tree limb (fell, falled) to the ground with a crash.

om
10. The startled bear (known, knew) it was time to lumber off.
artoonStock.c
http://www.C

Write What You Think

On a separate sheet of paper, write your reaction to one of the
quotations below. Use and underline three participle forms.
“If you can dream it, you can do it.” —Walt Disney
“A person who has never made a mistake has never tried anything
new.” —Albert Einstein

184 Chapter 8 • Verbs

 LESSON
More Irregular Verbs
8.3
There is no single rule to help you learn how to form the
principal parts of irregular verbs. You can look up the forms
of these verbs in a dictionary, but it’s good to learn the common
spellings because you will use them often when you write.
See Lesson
8.2 for more
Below are some common irregular verbs.
about irregular
verbs and their
Present Present Past Past principal parts.
Participle Participle
(Use with am, is, (Use with has, had,
are, was, were.) have.)

become (is) becoming became (had) become

break (is) breaking broke (had) broken
choose (is) choosing chose (had) chosen
come (is) coming came (had) come Remember that a
present participle is
drive (is) driving drove (had) driven formed by adding
-ing to the present
give (is) giving gave (had) given
form of the verb.
grow (is) growing grew (had) grown Anne Frank’s bravery
know (is) knowing knew (had) known and hope continue
to impress people.
leave (is) leaving left (had) left [present]
make (is) making made (had) made Anne Frank’s bravery
is continuing to
ride (is) riding rode (had) ridden make an impression.
run (is) running ran (had) run [present participle]
See Lesson 12.4
see (is) seeing saw (had) seen
to review spelling
show (is) showing showed (had) shown changes you may
need to make to form
speak (is) speaking spoke (had) spoken
a present participle.
stand (is) standing stood (had) stood
swim (is) swimming swam (had) swum
teach (is) teaching taught (had) taught
think (is) thinking thought (had) thought
wear (is) wearing worn (had) worn
write (is) writing wrote (had) written

Chapter 8 • Verbs 185

Verbs www.grammarforwriting.com

EXERCISE 1 Using Irregular Verbs

On a separate sheet of paper, rewrite each sentence. Use the
Note the irregular
correct past, present participle, or past participle form of the verb
forms of to be.
in parentheses. Do not add or delete any other words.
Present
I am we are EXAMPLE The picture (show) a wheelbarrow from China.
you are you are
The picture showed a wheelbarrow from China.
he is they are
Past 1. Long ago, the Chinese (make) a plow of cast iron.
I was we were 2. A fourth-century helicopter toy (lead) to today’s helicopters.
you were you were 3. Chinese warriors (ride) horses into battle.
he was they were
4. Schools in China have (teach) about Confucius.
The present
participle is being. 5. Students in ancient China (write) essays to pass exams.
The past participle 6. The Chinese population has (grow).
is been.
7. The world’s population is (grow) rapidly.
8. China’s population has (rise) to more than 1.3 billion people.
9. Many people have (think) that overpopulation causes
problems.
10. We were (speak) about this yesterday in history.
11. Carey (bring) in an article about world population.
12. I have (think) a lot about this issue.
13. Have you (choose) a topic for your history report?
14. Mrs. Clark (give) us a list of ideas.
15. The librarian is (come) to our class to discuss research. Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

EXERCISE 2 Writing with Irregular Verbs

Talk with a partner about your families—siblings, grandparents,
cousins, and so on. Write five sentences using at least three
forms of different irregular verbs.

EXAMPLE I grew up as the youngest of four children.

186 Chapter 8 • Verbs

 LESSON
Verb Tense
8.4
The tense of a verb shows when an action takes place.

Verbs have three simple tenses.

1. The present shows action happening now or repeatedly.

She runs each afternoon.

2. The past shows action that happened in the past.

I ran yesterday for the first time.

3. The future shows action that will happen in the future.

I will run tomorrow. I shall complete the race in an hour.

Verbs have three perfect tenses.

1. The present perfect shows action already completed.

I have run enough for today.

2. The past perfect shows action that happened before

another past action or time.
I had run before it began to snow.

3. The future perfect shows action that will be completed

before another future action or time.
By next Tuesday, I will have run six miles.

Do not switch from one verb tense to another unless you Notice that you need
need to show a change in time. Keep tenses consistent. helping verbs to form
some of the six verb
FaUltY Habib takes piano lessons and practiced a lot. tenses shown above.
See Lessons 8.1 and
coRRect Habib took piano lessons and practiced a lot.
8.2 for more about
coRRect Habib takes piano lessons and practices a lot. helping verbs and
verb forms.

EXERCISE 1 Keeping Tenses Consistent

Underline the verb in each sentence that is consistent in tense
with the other verb in the same sentence.

EXAMPLE Tricks are hurtful, and they (seem, seemed) cruel.

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Verbs www.grammarforwriting.com

1. Bullies tease others because they (liked, like) the power.

2. One bully followed me home and (pushes, pushed) me.
3. Then his friend (laughs, laughed) and took my book.
4. My friends (asked, ask) me how I was feeling.
5. My parents faced bullies when they (are, were) young, too.

EXERCISE 2 Correcting Verbs

Rewrite the e-mail. Correct six verbs that are in the wrong tense.

EXAMPLE When I see the e-mail, I was happy.

When I saw the e-mail, I was happy.

To: [email protected]
From: [email protected]
Subject: Important news

Dear Martin,
Guess what happened? 2A letter for me comes
1

yesterday. 3I will pick up the mail, and there it was.

4
When I open the envelope and looked at the note inside,
I get so excited. 5The letter was from my school, and it Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.

will say that I receive this year’s Leadership Prize at a

special ceremony next week. 6That will be so much fun!

Your friend,
Juan

188 Chapter 8 • Verbs

 LESSON
Active and Passive Voice
8.5
In a sentence with a verb in the active voice, the subject
performs an action. In a sentence with a verb in the passive
voice, the subject receives the action of the verb.
To review
In the passive voice, the verb phrase always includes a form helping and
of the helping verb be, such as am, is, are, been, was, or were, and main verbs, see
the past participle of the main verb. Lesson 8.1.

active Scientists see new species of fish every week.

[The subject, scientists, performs the action.]

passive New species of fish are seen by scientists.

[The subject, species, receives the action.]

Use the passive voice when the doer of the action is

unknown or unimportant. Also use passive voice to emphasize
the action or the receiver of the action. As you revise,
eliminate wordiness
Several photos were taken. by rewriting
[The writer does not know who took the photos.] sentences that are
The coins were carefully unearthed by divers. in the passive voice.
[The writer emphasizes the unearthing of the coins, Sentences in the
not who unearthed them.] active voice use
fewer words. See
In general, use the active voice to save words and make your Lesson 2.5.
writing livelier. Notice how the passage below contains strong The species was
verbs to show the excitement of a soccer game. classified by
researchers.
(6 words)
Literary Model Researchers
1
Victor called for the ball, and Shandra got it to him classified the
species. (4 words)
with a mighty heave. 2He fought his way out of a pack at
midfield and sprinted straight for the Palmetto goal. 3Two
defenders sandwiched him and threw him off balance, but
his momentum carried him on. 4The fullback hit him with
a forearm to the shoulder that sent him sprawling forward,
sliding through the mud.
—Excerpt from Tangerine by Edward Bloor

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EXERCISE 1 Revising Headlines

Rewrite the headlines so that the verbs are in the active voice
and in the present tense.

EXAMPLE New Ship Is Launched by Cruise Line

Cruise Line Launches New Ship

1. Views of the Andes Are Photographed by Students
2. Spectacular River Trips Are Enjoyed by Rafters
Present tense verbs
3. Discount Airfares Are Offered by All Airlines
show actions that
are happening now 4. Thousands of Tickets Were Lost by Computer System
or repeatedly. See
5. The Race Has Been Won by the Atlanta Team
Lesson 8.4.
I take a walk
every day. EXERCISE 2 Using the Active Voice
Read the following travel article. On a separate sheet of paper,
revise it to change eight verbs in passive voice to active voice.

EXAMPLE Goals should be set by young people.

Young people should set goals.

A flight around the

1
across by them. 4Their globe. 7A small two-
world was made by Dan goal had been achieved. engine plane was bought
Dominguez and Chris by them two years later.
Wall. 2The value of hard 5
Pilots’ licenses were 8
Their flight around the
work was shown by the earned in 1996 by Wall world was supported
Copyright © 2014 by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.
two young men. 3The and Dominguez. 6After by sponsors. 9Their
22-year-olds started their a five-week flight from amazing adventure
journey in 2000, and five Texas to Alaska that year, was appreciated by
continents were flown they vowed to circle the thousands of people.

EXERCISE 3 Writing in the Active Voice

Work with a partner to create five sentences in the passive voice
about the achievements of students you know. Then exchange
your sentences with the ones written by another partner team.
Replace the passive verbs with active ones.
190 Chapter 8 • Verbs