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Attempts Attempt 1 score is2.5Attempt 2 score is
Keep the Highest 3 out of 33 / 3
Attempt3 score is3
2.8
8. Asking Questions
In addition to freewriting, clustering, and brainstorming, asking questions is a prewriting activity that
helps you generate essay topic ideas. Asking questions can also help you narrow your essay topic by
picking out the most interesting aspects of your answers. The reporter's six questions will get you
started on generating and then narrowing ideas; later, you can ask your own questions about a topic to
narrow down your ideas.
The Reporter's Six Questions
Example Topic: "Finding the Right Career"
Directions: In the following table, select which of the reporter's six questions in the right-hand column
is answered by the entries in the left-hand column. Then, answer the question (Hint: Try rephrasing
the responses into questions.)
Responses to the Reporter's Six Questions on "An
Influential Person"
My grandfather
My childhood, my grandfather's way of raising me, and
even my character today are the things I associate with my
grandfather.
My grandfather is an influential person because he helped
me to develop maturity as well as the ability to laugh, even
when life gets difficult.
My grandfather showed me how to see the humor in life
Question
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•Who? Students
•What? The best-suited career for a student
•Where? College campus, companies that accept interns
•When? During the first year or two of college, or earlier
•Why? To discover a career, not just a job to pay the bills
•How? By research on internships, career options, and to integrate the advice from career
counselors at college into decisions
Responses to the Reporter's Six
Questions on "Portrayal of Women
in Rap Videos"
My grandfather
My childhood, my grandfather's way of
raising me, and even my character
today are the things I associate with my
grandfather.
My grandfather is an influential person
Responses to the Reporter's Six Questions on "An
Influential Person"
by cracking jokes all the time, but never in a mean way or
at the expense of others. He also made me a better person
by forcing me to step up to responsibilities such as doing
my homework and helping with household chores.
At the age of six, my grandfather took me in. He raised me
until I graduated from high school.
My grandfather raised me in a small town in California.
Question
specified.How?
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specified.When?
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specified.Where?
Question
The question who? is usually answered with a
specific person or groups of people. The writer's
grandfather is the influential person in this essay.
Often, the question what? is answered with a noun
or nouns that indicate the topic of the paper. The
relationship between the writer and his grandfather
is what this paper discusses.
The answer to the question why? usually touches
Points:
1 / 1
By answering questions before you begin writing, you can discover new ideas as well as narrow the
focus of an essay topic. After you answer the reporter's six questions, make sure you review them. This
will help you focus your writing and organize the first draft of your essay.
Review the answers to the six reporter's questions in the table. What is the narrowed idea that the
writer is moving toward?
Having a sense of humor is the key to living a good life and avoiding responsibilities.
My grandfather and I always had a great time together, even though we lived in a small town in
California.
My grandfather, who raised me since childhood, has shaped me into a responsible adult with a sense
of humor about life's ups and downs.
Points:
1 / 1
Close Explanation
Explanation:
My grandfather raised me in a small
town in California.
Responses to the Reporter's Six
Questions on "Portrayal of Women
in Rap Videos"
because he helped me to develop
maturity as well as the ability to laugh,
even when life gets difficult.
My grandfather showed me how to see
the humor in life by cracking jokes all
the time, but never in a mean way or at
the expense of others. He also made me
a better person by forcing me to step up
to responsibilities such as doing my
homework and helping with household
chores.
At the age of six, my grandfather took
me in. He raised me until I graduated
from high school.
Question
on motive or the importance of a topic. In this
example, the writer discusses why his grandfather
is an influential person.
The question how? is often answered using the
word by. For example, you might answer the
question, "How do you get into a good college?"
by saying, "I got into a good college by getting
good grades. Here, the writer discusses how his
grandfather taught him to be a better person, and
that is by forcing him to be responsible.
When? is answered by a moment in time or a
specific date. For this example, the writer states
that he is focusing on when he lived with his
grandfather, which was between the ages of six
and eighteen, as opposed to his early childhood or
college years.
The question where? is usually answered with a
specific place (for example, a country or a city), or
a more general location (for example, a school or
house). In this case, the town in California is
the where that the writer focuses on in his essay.
The idea the writer is moving toward fleshes out the reasons his grandfather is an influential person:
"My grandfather, who raised me since childhood, has shaped me into a responsible adult with a sense
of humor about life's ups and downs." The sentence "My grandfather and I always had a great time
together, even though we lived in a small town in California" doesn't show how the writer's grandfather
was an influential person in his or her life. Rather, it just states a fact. The other sentence, "Having a
sense of humor is the key to living a good life and avoiding responsibilities," doesn't support the topic,
"An Influential Person." In addition, the grandfather took on, rather than avoided, the responsibility of
raising his grandson.
