About the ged writing exam 7 pps

On this basic level of main idea → support, every-
thing in the passage or paragraph should support or
develop that main idea. When sentences or paragraphs
lose focus or stray from that controlling idea, the passage
or paragraph loses its effectiveness.
Writers can use several different strategies for organ-
izing their support. One of these strategies often serves as
the overall organizing principle for the text, while indi-
vidual sections may use other techniques as well. For
example, imagine an essay comparing and contrasting
two film versions of Frankenstein. The support will be
organized by comparison and contrast. But the writer
may also use other organizational techniques within that
comparison and contrast structure. For example, he or
she may use order of importance when explaining what
makes one version better than the other.
The four most common organizational patterns are:
1. chronological order
2. order of importance
3. comparison and contrast
4. cause and effect
To answer many of the questions about organization
on the GED, you will need to be able to determine the
writer’s purpose and to recognize organizational patterns
on both the essay and paragraph levels. By identifying the
organizational pattern, you can determine where to
insert sentences or paragraphs and whether any sen-
tences or paragraphs are misplaced, such as a sentence
that is out of chronological order.
Chronological Order
When writers use time as their main organization prin-

ciple, it is called chronological order. They describe events
in the order in which they did happen, will happen, or
should happen. Much of what you read is organized in
this way, including historical texts, instructions and pro-
cedures, and essays about personal experiences.
Passages organized by chronology typically use a lot of
transitional words and phrases to help us follow the pas-
sage of time. The transitions help us see when things
happened and in what order. They help us follow along
when the passage shifts from one period of time to
another. Transitional words and phrases keep events
linked together in the proper order. (Transitions are cov-
ered in more detail on page 72.)
The following is a list of some of the most common
chronological transitions:
first, second, third, etc. before
after next now
then when as soon as
immediately suddenly soon
during while meanwhile
later in the meantime at last
eventually finally afterward
The third paragraph of the Batman text from page 30
uses this organizational pattern. The transitions are
underlined:
Kane’s Batman was a big success right from the
start. The masked hero s
oon moved from comic
books to its own newspaper strip, and in 1943
,Bat-

man episodes were aired on the radio. In 1966,live-
action Batman shows hit the TV screen. The series
was wildly popular, and the syndicated show st
ill
airs today on channels like the Cartoon Network.
Order of Importance
With this organizational pattern, ideas are arranged by
rank instead of time. What’s most important comes first
or last, depending upon the writer’s purpose.
Organizing ideas from most important to least
important puts the most essential information first.
Many writers do this when they are offering advice or
when they want to be sure readers get the most impor-
tant information right away. Newspaper articles, for
example, generally use this structure. They begin with
the most important information (the who, what, when,
where, and why of the event) so readers don’t have to
read the whole article to get those key facts. Details and
background information come later in the article.
When writers move from least to most important,
they save their most important idea or piece of infor-
mation for last. Writers often use this approach when
they are presenting an argument. That’s because this
kind of structure is usually more convincing than the
most-to-least organizational pattern. The more contro-
versial the argument, the more important this structure.
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Many writers “save the best for last”because that’s where
“the best” often has the most impact.

Transitions are very important for this organizational
pattern, too. Here’s a list of the most common transitions
writers use with the order of importance structure. Most
of these work for both the most-to-least important and
least-to-most important formats:
first and foremost most importantly
more importantly moreover
above all first, second, third
last but not least
Comparison and Contrast
When you show how two or more things are similar, you
are making a comparison. When you show how two or
more things are different, you are contrasting them. As an
organizational technique, this pattern allows you to place
two (or more) items side by side and see how they meas-
ure up against each other. How are they similar or dif-
ferent? And why does it matter? For example, a writer
comparing and contrasting the 1931 and 1994 film ver-
sions of Frankenstein might aim to show that the 1994
version is far truer to the book because it portrays Victor
Frankenstein as just as much of a monster as the creature
he creates.
Like other organizational patterns, a key to a good
comparison and contrast is strong transitions. Here are
some words and phrases that show similarity:
similarly in the same way likewise
like in a like manner just as
and also both
The following words and phrases, on the other hand,
show difference:

but on the other hand yet
however on the contrary in contrast
conversely while unlike
Cause and Effect
The fourth most common organizational pattern is
cause and effect. A cause is a person or thing that makes
something happen (creates an effect). An effect is an
event or change created by an action (or cause). A pas-
sage about cause explains why something took place.You
might ask, for example, “What caused the Cold War?” A
passage about effect, on the other hand, explains what
happened after something took place. What happened as
a result of the Cold War?
Just as certain key words indicate whether you are
comparing or contrasting, other key words indicate
whether things are causes or effects. Here is a partial list
of words and phrases that indicate cause and effect:
WORDS INDICATING CAUSE
because (of) created (by)
since caused (by)
WORDS INDICATING EFFECT
therefore so
hence consequently
as a result
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Effective Paragraphs
Sentences are the building blocks of paragraphs, and
paragraphs are the building blocks of essays. Effective
organization in an essay depends upon unity within
those paragraphs.

In an essay, all paragraphs should work together to
support one main idea. The same is true of a paragraph.
A paragraph is, by definition, a series of sentences about
one main idea. If there’s more than one main idea, you
should have more than one paragraph.
A paragraph is one or more sentences about
one main idea. Indicate a new paragraph by
skipping a line or by indenting the first line.
A topic sentence is a sentence that states the
main idea of a paragraph.
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71
In an essay, the controlling idea is usually expressed in
a thesis statement. On the paragraph level, this control-
ling idea is often expressed in a topic sentence. The topic
sentence is commonly found at the beginning of the
paragraph, but it can also be at the end. Less frequently,
the topic sentence is found somewhere in the middle of
the paragraph or is simply implied. In the first paragraph
below, the topic sentence is at the beginning; in the sec-
ond example, the topic sentence is at the end.
Many people are afraid of snakes, but most snakes
aren’t as dangerous as people think they are.
There are more than 2,500 different species of
snakes around the world. Only a small percent-
age of those species is poisonous, and only a few
species have venom strong enough to kill a
human being. Furthermore, snakes bite only
1,000–2,000 people in the United States each
year, and only ten of those bites (that’s less than

1%) result in death. Statistically, many other
animals are far more dangerous than snakes. In
fact, in this country, more people die from dog
bites each year than from snakes.
There are more than 2,500 different species of
snakes around the world. Only a small percent-
age of those species is poisonous, and only a few
species have venom strong enough to kill a
human being. Furthermore, snakes bite only
1,000–2,000 people in the United States each
year, and only ten of those bites (that’s less than
1%) result in death. Statistically, many other
animals are far more dangerous than snakes. In
fact, in this country, more people die from dog
bites each year than from snakes. So although
many people are afraid of snakes, most snakes
aren’t as dangerous as people think they are.
In addition to a logical order and controlling idea,
strong paragraphs also need focus. Is there a piece of the
passage that seems to digress? Would removing a sen-
tence or paragraph improve the focus of the text? Would
adding another sentence make it clear how a certain sen-
tence relates to the main idea of the passage?
For example, notice how the following paragraph
loses focus:
(1)Electronic mail (e-mail) is very convenient,
but it should not be used for every business
occasion and must be carefully managed. (2)E-
mail messages should be concise and limited to
one topic. (3)The Subject line should clearly

state what the e-mail is about, and the first sen-
tence or two of the e-mail should clearly convey
the main point of the message. (4)It is impor-
tant to be concise in business. (5)It is also
important to be very polite. (6)Say what you
need to say as succinctly as possible. (7)When
complex issues need to be addressed, phone
calls are still best.
Sentences 4, 5, and 6, while true, do not fit the focus
of this paragraph about e-mail. The paragraph would be
much stronger if these sentences were omitted.
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Transitions
Transitions are the words and phrases used to move from
one idea to the next. They help words flow smoothly and
show readers how ideas relate to one another. Transi-
tional words and phrases connect ideas within sentences
and between sentences, within paragraphs and between
paragraphs. They are essential to good writing. Notice,
for example, the difference between the two paragraphs
below. In the first version, the transitions have been
omitted. In the second version, they are underlined.
Why do we punish those who commit crimes?
There are two main theories of punishment: ret-
ribution and deterrence. Retribution argues that
people who commit crimes deserve to be pun-
ished and that the punishment should fit the
crime. It is an “eye for an eye” philosophy.
Deterrence theory posits that punishing offend-
ers will help prevent future crimes.

Why do we punish those who commit crimes?
There are two main theories of punishment: ret-
ribution and deterrence. T
he first, retribution,
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72
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73
argues that people who commit crimes deserve
to be punished and that the punishment should
fit the crime. I
n other words, it is an “eye for an
eye” philosophy. Deterrence theory, o
n the other
hand, posits that punishing offenders will help
prevent future crimes.
With the appropriate transitions, the second para-
graph reads much more smoothly and makes its ideas
more clear.
Certain transitions work best for specific functions.
For example, for example is a great transition to use when
introducing a specific example. Here’s a brief list of some
of the most common transitional words and phrases:
IF YOU WANT TO: USE THESE TRANSITIONAL WORDS AND PHRASES:
introduce an example for example for instance that is
in other words in particular specifically
in fact first (second) of all
show addition and in addition also
again moreover furthermore
show emphasis indeed in fact certainly

acknowledge another point of view although though granted
despite even though
show rank more importantly above all first and foremost
show cause and effect because therefore thus
consequently since as a result
show comparison likewise similarly like
show contrast unlike however on the other hand
whereas instead rather
show the passage of time then next later during
after before soon
meanwhile while
O
n Part II of the GED Language Arts, Writing Test, you will be asked to write a short essay about a
general topic, such as whether there is too much violence on television or what makes a good par-
ent.You will have 45 minutes to demonstrate how effectively you can express your ideas in writing.
A strong GED essay will have these five key elements:
1. Response to prompt (Does your essay present a well-developed main idea and a focus that responds to
the assigned prompt?)
2. Organization (Have you presented your ideas and support in a logical order?)
3. Development and details (Have you explained your ideas?)
4. Conventions of EAE (Have you followed the conventions of Edited American English?)
5. Word choice (Is the word choice accurate, diverse, and appropriate?)
As a general guide, you will need to write about four or five paragraphs to have a sufficiently developed essay.
That includes an introductory paragraph that states your main idea, two or three paragraphs developing and sup-
porting that main idea, and a brief concluding paragraph. Your essay should be approximately 250 to 300 words.
CHAPTER
Writing an
Effective Essay
PART II of the GED Language Arts, Writing Test has only one ques-

tion—an essay prompt. But this test is just as important as Part I, and
you must pass the essay test to pass the writing exam. This chapter
will teach you how to write an effective essay for the GED. You will
learn six steps to take during an essay exam, including how to brain-
storm and organize ideas and how to write with style.
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