• Attending to Style (Links to an external site.) (Dartmouth)

• Conciseness (Links to an external site.). Check the left-hand menu on this page for other style articles, including sentence variety, emphasis, and appropriate language. (Purdue)

• How to Make Sentences Clear and Concise (Links to an external site.): a brief guide to Richard Lanham's Paramedic Method for rescuing sentences. (Univ. Richmond)

• The Elements of Style  (Links to an external site.)(William Strunk, 1918 ed.)
   

Thesis and Argument

• Developing a Thesis (Links to an external site.) (Harvard)

• Developing Strong Thesis Statements (Links to an external site.) (Purdue)

• Developing a Central Claim (Links to an external site.) (Duke)

• Argument (Links to an external site.) (UNC-Chapel Hill)

• Writing in College: A Short Guide to College Writing  (Links to an external site.)by Joseph M. Williams and Lawrence McEnerney (Univ. of Chicago): This valuable and concise guide for students making the transition from high school to college writing discusses crafting an argument, making a point, and understanding professors' expectations.
• What is an Academic Paper (Links to an external site.)? (Dartmouth) Another valuable introduction to college-level writing, this guide includes sections on and Using Appropriate Tone and Style.

Structure, Paragraphs, and Transitions

Essay Structure

• Writing: Considering Structure and Organization (Links to an external site.) (Dartmouth)
   

Paragraph Unity and Coherence

• Coherence (Links to an external site.) (Tina Blue, writing instructor at Univ. Kansas)
   

Transitions

• Transitions and Transitional Devices (Links to an external site.) (Purdue)

• Transitional Words and Phrases (Links to an external site.) (UW-Madison)

• Transitions (Links to an external site.) (UNC-Chapel Hill)
   

Introductions and Conclusions

• Beginning the Academic Essay (Harvard)
• Introductions (UNC-Chapel Hill)
• Ending the Essay: Part 1 (Harvard)
• Ending the Essay: Part 1 (Harvard)
• Conclusions (UNC-Chapel Hill)

Productivity

Microsoft Office365

Download and install Microsoft Office 365 on your personal computer
 

Grammarly

Download Grammarly to your computer and let automatically detect any grammar, spelling, punctuation, word choice, and style mistakes in your writing. It’s easy to use:

• Copy and paste any English text into Grammarly’s Editor, or install Grammarly’s free browser extension for Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge. Grammarly will help you write correctly on nearly every site on the web.
• Grammarly’s algorithms flag potential issues in the text and suggest context-specific corrections for grammar, spelling, wordiness, style, punctuation, and even plagiarism. Grammarly explains the reasoning behind each correction, so you can make an informed decision about whether, and how, to correct an issue.
• Download Grammarly for Microsoft® Office on Windows.

Trello

Trello will help you get organized! Whether your organizing your class notes, creating flashcards, or working on a group project, the Trello visual card system will help you get organized, assign tasks, and collaborate with your team in real time.

 

Optional Online Learning Resources

Khan Academy

Coursera