Writing Handouts
How
to Avoid Plagiarism | Writing Tips |
Resumes & Cover Letters
Study & Test-taking Tips | Research Paper
Guidelines | Punctuation
Documentation Style Guides | Helpful Style
Guide Links
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How to Avoid Plagiarism
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Avoiding Plagiarism:
Accidental or Not, It's Trouble
Length: 2 pages
Topics: Defines
plagiarism and gives several examples of an original text
plagiarized and acceptably paraphrased.
PDF Handout:
Avoiding Plagiarism
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Writing Tips
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Better Read Than Dead:
Avoid Deadwood in Your Writing
Length: 2 pages
Topics: Lists
common wordy phrases and edited remedies, and includes sentences for
you to revise. (Answers included)
PDF Handout:
Better Read Than Dead |
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Common Confusing Words:
Or Are They Commonly Confused?
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Presents pairs of
commonly confused words in sentences. Can you use these words in the
proper context? (Answers included)
PDF Handout:
Common Confusing Words |
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Lost Your Voice?
Maybe You're Too Passive
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Discusses
active vs. passive sentence constructions and how the reader
perceives them. Contains practice sentences for you to rewrite.
(Answers included)
PDF Handout:
Lost Your Voice? |
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Annotated
Bibliographies:
Short and to the Point
Length: 2 pages
Topics: Tells you
what it is, how to write one, and gives examples to get you started!
PDF Handout:
Annotated
Bibliographies |
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Getting Specific in Annotations and Thesis Statements
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Helps you
to pack more descriptive information into fewer words for your
theses and annotations.
PDF Handout:
Just a Few Words... |
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Writing a Journal
Critique
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Offers
general guidelines for critiquing any journal article and specific
considerations for critiquing an empirical/research article.
PDF Handout:
Writing a Journal
Critique |
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Summary vs. Abstract
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Explains
the difference between a summary and an abstract. Outlines elements
you should include and steps you should follow in writing an
informative or evaluative abstract.
PDF Handout:
Summary vs. Abstract |
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Distinguishing Between
Subject Area, Topic, and Thesis:
Or, How to Narrow Your Focus
Length: 4 pages
Topic: Offers
excellent definitions of each term and advice on how to narrow your
essay's focus.
PDF Handout:
Distinguishing Between Subject Area, Topic, and Thesis |
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Navigate the River of
Your Ideas
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Offers nine
techniques for linking thoughts and ideas for your reader. Using
these techniques will make you a more effective writer.
PDF Handout:
Navigate the River of Your Ideas |
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Which Way to the Point?
Length: 2 pages
Topic:
Lead your reader effortlessly through your paper by employing
transitional words and phrases to signal relationships between ideas.
This page contains a long list of transitional phrases.
PDF Handout:
Which Way to the Point |
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Don't Dash too Hastily
(If You're Speaking Parenthetically, See the Other Side of This
Sheet)
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Covers the
use (and overuse) of dashes and parentheses.
PDF Handout:
Don't Dash Too Hastily |
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Writing a Book Review
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Lays out
the general concerns for writing both fiction and non-fiction book
reviews.
PDF Handout:
Writing a Book Review |
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Science Writing
Length: 1 page
Topic: Contains
guidelines for citing and listing references approved by the American
Chemical Society and Council of Biological Editors.
PDF Handout:
Science Writing
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Writing a Rough Draft
and Incorporating Sources
Length: 1 page
Topic: Suggestions
for efficiently writing a rough draft and appropriately integrating
quotations into your essay.
PDF Handout:
Writing a Rough
Draft |
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Quoting With Pizzazz
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Deals with
introducing and punctuating quotations. A series of practice
questions with answers follows the information.
PDF Handout:
Quoting With Pizzazz |
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Wadda Ya Mean? Six Principles of Clear Writing
Length: 1 page
Topic: Six style
and usage suggestions to make your writing more clear and,
therefore, more effective.
PDF Handout:
Wadda Ya Mean?
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Resumes & Cover Letters
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Riveting Resumes: Some
Do's, Taboos, and Boo-Boos
Length: 1 page
Topic: Proposes
prewriting strategies to assist you in compiling all your important
information to use in your resume.
PDF Handout:
Riveting Resumes |
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Reshape Your Resume:
It Doesn't Always Have to be Chronological
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Think about
your experience and then design a resume that best highlights your
strengths. Functional resumes highlight skills and abilities rather
than work history.
PDF Handout:
Reshape Your Resume |
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Apply Yourself:
Cover Letters That Show You Off
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Gives
advice on both the content and format of a cover letter.
PDF Handout: Apply Yourself |
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Study & Test-taking Tips
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Questions to Ask
Instructors About Assignments
Length: 1 page
Topic: Succinctly
lists all the questions you should have answered for an assignment.
PDF Handout:
Questions About Assignments |
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How to Mark a Textbook
Length: 1 page
Topic: Taken from
Walter Pauks' How to Study in College, this handout outlines
the benefits of and suggests a method for marking textbooks.
PDF Handout:
How to Mark a
Textbook |
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Taking Notes
Length: 3 pages
Topic: Everything
you need to know about content and organization in order to take
good notes.
PDF Handout:
Taking Notes |
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Aids to Remembering
Length: 1 page
Topic: Retaining
and recalling information is a skill, not a gift. Improve yours by
following these steps.
PDF Handout:
Aids to
Remembering |
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Summary of SQ3R:
Survey,
Question, Read, Recite, Review
Length: 1 page
Topic: SQ3R is a
very effective study tool for practically any sort of information.
PDF Handout:
Summary of SQ3R |
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How to Take an Essay
Exam
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Learn to
decode exam directions and the best preparation methods.
PDF Handout:
How to Take
an Essay Exam |
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How to Study for an
Objective Test
Length: 1 pages
Topic: Paraphrased
from Walter Pauk's How to Study in College, this handout
covers the most effective methods for studying for an objective
test.
PDF Handout:
Study for an
Objective Test |
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How to Study for Exams
Length: 1 page
Topic: The type of
exam your professor gives should affect how you study. Methods for
handling test anxiety are also covered.
PDF Handout:
How to Study for
Exams |
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Hints for Taking a Test
Length: 1 page
Topic: Gives an
overview of navigating exams from the length of time you should
spend on a question to the order in which you should answer
questions.
PDF Handout:
Hints for
Taking a Test |
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Taking a Test: A
Workable Strategy
Length: 3 page
Topic: By
approaching exams with a strategy you can raise your scores.
PDF Handout:
A Workable
Strategy |
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Research Paper Guidelines
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Six Basic Questions
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Offers a series of
questions useful in planning and organizing your research
paper.
PDF Handout:
Six Basic
Questions |
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Empirical vs. Library
Studies
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Explains the
organization and types of data analyzed in both types of
studies, as well as information you should include in each
section.
PDF Handout:
Empirical vs.
Library Studies |
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Preparing for Research
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Details steps for
analyzing a research question and discusses research
mistakes that graduate students commonly make.
PDF Handout:
Preparing for Research |
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Don't Overlook These
Length: 2 pages
Topic:
Discusses basic matters you should include in your report
and common mistakes made in formulating a research
question/problem.
PDF Handout:
Don't Overlook These |
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What's a Literature
Review?
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Covers how to relate your
research to the existing knowledge in your field.
PDF Handout:
What's a Literature Review? |
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Organize Related
Literature
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Offers tips for organizing
your literature review.
PDF Handout:
Organize Related Literature |
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Advantages of a Pilot
Study
Length: 2 pages
Topic: It's a good way to work out
the procedural bugs.
PDF Handout:
Advantages of a Pilot Study |
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Common Errors in
Research
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Details common mistakes made
in questionnaire, interview, experimental, content analysis,
observational, and correlation studies.
PDF Handout:
Common Errors in Research |
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Errors in Handling Data
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Gathering, processing, and
analyzing data can be tricky--make sure to avoid these
errors.
PDF Handout:
Errors in Handling Data |
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Preparing the Report
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Tips on the organization,
emphasis, language, and style in your report.
PDF Handout:
Preparing the Report |
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Punctuation
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Appropriate Apostrophes
(Without Apoplexy)
Length: 1 page
Topic: Lists rules
for using apostrophes correctly and common apostrophe mistakes to
avoid.
PDF Handout:
Appropriate Apostrophes |
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To Comma or Not to
Comma?
That (or is it Which?) Is the Question
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Contains
guidelines and examples for comma use pertaining to essential and
non-essential clauses.
PDF Handout:
To Comma or Not to Comma |
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Comma Chameleon:
Atta Boy, George, You Can Get a Handle on 'Em
Length: 2 pages
Topic: The meaning
of a sentence may change drastically depending on where you place
commas. Outlines basic comma usage, as well as how meaning relates
to comma placement.
PDF Handout:
Comma Chameleon |
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The Misnamed Semicolon:
It's More Like Half Comma, Half Period
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Teach
yourself this method for joining two closely related independent
clauses. This handout contains guidelines and practice sentences
(answers included).
PDF Handout:
The Misnamed Semicolon |
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The Spastic Colon: Quite
Alimentary, Actually
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Learn when
to use a colon and why. It's not just for lists!
PDF Handout:
The Spastic Colon |
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Documentation Style Guides
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MLA Style
Length: 3 pages
Topic: Presents
the basics of MLA style.
PDF Handout:
MLA Style |
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APA Style
Length: 6 pages
Topic: Gives the
basics of APA style.
PDF Handout:
APA Style |
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Cyber-documentation: MLA
Style
Length: 2 pages
Topic: Clarifies
the rules for tricky internet citations.
PDF Handout:
Cyber MLA Style |
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Cyber-documentation: APA
Style
Length: 4 pages
Topic: Contains
rules and examples for APA internet citations.
PDF Handout:
Cyber APA
Style |
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Turabian Style
Length: 6 pages
Topic: Presents
the basics of the Chicago Manual of Style for students writing term
papers.
PDF Handout:
Turabian Style |
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Helpful Documentation Style Guide Links
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Turabian Citation Style / / Chicago Manual of Style
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Presented by Long Island
University, “Turabian Citation
Style: A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations,
6th edition” is an excellent
quick reference for the most common citation needs. It is color-coded
to teach specific placement of all necessary information on the works
cited page. |
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A website focused primarily on electronic
citation based on the updates for the Chicago Manual of Style. It
briefly covers the most common sources on the internet for
quick reference and gives easy-to-follow examples. |
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A thorough website that
gives complete examples of the different formats within the Turabian
style: Footnote and Endnote entries, Bibliographic List entries,
Parenthetical List entries, and Reference List entries. It is not the
quickest reference out there, but it will most likely have more options
than those other drive-thru web-pages. |
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American Psychological Association (APA) Citation Style
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A detailed website that gives APA
examples for in-text
citations and works cited pages. It
covers a long list of different types of documents and electronic
sources. This website can be used easily
and efficiently. |
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This website is also a quick-reference tool,
gives excellent examples of citations within the text, and finishes up
with a sample works cited page that offers good form to follow. |
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This website includes a thorough list of
book, journal, and internet citations. It also includes a list of how
to cite within the text. It addresses film and television, but fails to
give reference examples of other visual
art forms (sculpture, painting, etc). |
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Using CBE to cite and document online sources
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Part of a website called “Online!” which
is a reference guide to using online resources. This particular page
gives clear examples of how to use CBE or Council of Biology Editors
(now the Council of Science Editors) in 1994 to site materials in
scientific papers for publication. |
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This web page has a link to a PDF file
which has sample pages showing the CBE citation style. |
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This is a website published by the
Council of Biology Editors offering links to explain how to use the (CBE)
Scientific Style of citation. Those links explain the details of the
formats for both in-text and reference citations explaining the two
different systems of documentation: the Citation-Sequence System and the
Name-Year System. It discusses the advantages and disadvantages of both
systems. |
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Quick links to using MLA citation style.
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Very basic website that
uses a color coded system to show how to reference the most
commonly used sources. Good quick reference for beginners and seasoned
writers alike. |
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This website has a link
to a PDF file which
contains a sample paper using MLA citation style. |
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Part of a website called
“Online!” which is a reference guide to using online resources. This offers guidelines for citing Internet sources are based
on the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (2003) by Joseph Gibaldi. |
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