Exercise 3. Write a composition or an essay on one of the topics

Write a composition or an essay on one of the topics:

1. My Dream House.

2. Home Sweet Home.

3. One's Character Shows in His or Her Home.

4. Why There Is Always a Mess in My Room.

5. I Like to Stay at My Grandma's Place.

Note:

Composition and essay are both translated into Russian as "сочинение" but there is a distinction between them. A com­position is fairly short (1—3 pages) and simple. Compositions may be written by students as long as they are capable of wri­ting only on simple narrative or descriptive subjects.

An essay is usually longer (may be up to 20 pages). It ex­presses ideas, as opposed to simply telling a story or describing something, though it may also be narrative or descriptive. An essay should have some literary merit. Essays are usually writ­ten by those who have sufficiently mastered the language to be able to express their ideas in it.

If you choose a topic for an essay, plan carefully before you write. First of all try to explain what the statement means to you. A simple explanation in your own words will help to cla­rify the issue in your mind. The best approach to plan an essay is to make a list of points, in note form, which you want to in­clude.

There should be an introduction. Plan an opening para­graph that will express your approach. It may be a clear state­ment of your understanding the point; some illustration of the point or even an expression of disagreement. Whichever you choose, the opening paragraph should lead logically into the body of the essay.

Plan the ideas for the succeeding paragraphs. Do not forget that each paragraph develops the idea one step farther. Pay special attention to the logical linking of clauses and sentences.

All points are put in logical order or in order of importance, with quotations if necessary.

Plan a conclusion which brings together the ideas of the es­say and represents some kind of resolution of the conflicting arguments.

Lesson 3 DAILY ROUTINE