Contents introduction chapter I methods of teaching writing in high school

2.3. A set of exercises aimed at developing the skills and abilities of writing an essay
In order to teach students to use writing for communicative purposes, it is necessary to form skills that ensure the expression of thoughts in writing. The main feature of the exercises that form speech skills is the switching of students' arbitrary attention from the formal to the semantic side of the utterance, which is facilitated by a certain level of automation of actions with language material.
We have developed a set of tasks that includes four groups of exercises:
1. Exercises for the development of writing skills.
2. Exercises aimed at improving the skills of writing sentences;
3. Exercises aimed at improving the skills of writing paragraphs (descriptive and descriptive paragraphs);
4. Exercises aimed at improving the skills and abilities of writing an essay "for and against" (Reasoned essay or essay "For" and "Against").
And so, in the exercises for the development of writing skills, we divided into two parts: Controlled writing and Creative Writing.
Part One:
Controlled Writing:
George Washington, the first president of the United States, did not live in the White House. In fact, he was the only president who did not live in the White House. He was president from 1789 to 1797, before the White House was completed. Washington lived in a house called Mount Vernon. Use the information below to write a story about Mount Vernon.
2. Exercises aimed at improving the skills of writing sentences:
The minimum unit of speech that contains a complete thought is a sentence. Therefore, first we offer a series of exercises aimed at improving the skills of writing simple, and especially complex sentences. These exercises can be divided into three subgroups.
A) Exercises to improve the skills of writing compound and compound sentences, parts of which are connected by conjunctions.
With the help of the following exercises, students work out various ways to connect parts of complex sentences.
- Exercises aimed at teaching high school students to connect parts of a compound sentence.
* Complete the following sentences by selecting one of the two words given in parentheses.
1. (Both) my wife and I went somewhere early yesterday.
2. (Or, or) we'll have to wait for them, or we'll have to leave a message.
3. He did not follow my advice (or, or) his father's advice
* Connect the following pairs of sentences using a union enclosed in square brackets. When you do, write your own similar sentences.
1. He was in Italy last year. Now he's back home. (but)
2. He told me to leave. He told me never to call again. (not only... but)
3. I often invited him here. He never came. (for now)

B). Exercises aimed at teaching students to make sentences containing an indirect question.

* Complete the following sentences by selecting one of the two phrases given in parentheses.
1. I can't remember (where I left, where I left) my coat.
2. You didn't tell me (how much it cost, how much it cost).
* Connect the following pairs of sentences using the words "when", "what", "where", "why", "how" where they are needed. When you finish this exercise, write your own similar sentences.
1. Why did you refuse to meet with me? You have to find out.
2. Has he left the company? I'd like to know.
3. What did he tell you? I'm interested.
Under the Sea
The diver could just see a dark mass near the rocks. He swam nearer and after turning on his torch, he was able to make out the remains of the old ship. It was covered with mud and shells. Fish swam through a great hole in his side. The diver went through the hole and came to what had once been the engine-room. In the torchlight it looked empty and ghostly. Sea-weeds seemed to grow out of the ship’s engines so that they took strange shapes. As he looked round him, the diver found it hard to believe that men had once worked there.
Answer these questions:

1. 
   What do we learn from the first sentence and how is it related to what follows?
   
2. 
   What words and phrases are used to connect the sentences to each other?
   
3. 
   Would you say that this description is a personal impression or purely imaginary? Why?
   
4. 
   What is the writer setting out to describe?
   
5. 
   How is each sentence related to the main idea?
   
6. 
   What details in the description seem to you especially interesting? Why?
   

* Write one-paragraph description using each of the sentences below. The length should be about 100 words; do not include the sentence or sentences given in the total number of words.
You should spend about 25 minutes on each paragraph. The best way to divide your time is as follows: thinking: 5 minutes; writing: about 15 minutes; re-reading: about 5 minutes.