English Writing

• Improve English Writing Skills
• Commonly used Spelling Rules
• How to Write Fast?

Writing is a method of representing language in a visual or tactile (sensed through touch) format through the use of a set of letters, words, signs or symbols. Writing is mostly performed using tools like paint, pencils, pens, typewriters and computers. Writing represents units of language in a systematic way, with the purpose of recording messages which can be retrieved by everyone who know that particular language. Writing by hand is not just another way of communication but it improves idea composition and expression, and aids fine motor-skill development. Writing is the 4^th of the 4 language skills. There are various types of Writing Systems used in different parts of the world. However, in this feature we would be focussing on English Writing. Writing in English utilises a sets of symbols to represent the sounds of speech, and may also have symbols for such things as punctuation and numerals. English Writing system is not just functional but it also serves a symbolic purpose as it represents cultures and peoples. In this Article we have dealt with English Writing with reference to British English. Though the usage of English Writing is almost the same worldwide. However, there are very few differences in British and American English Writing. American English is more inclined to simplifications and adding colloquial expressions (conversational) to the vocabulary. These differences are generally in usage of vocabulary with synonyms such as: sidewalk vs. pavement, elevator vs. lift, etc.  Another example of that would be the regularisation of irregular verbs, such as dreamt vs. dreamed. There are very minor Punctuation rule differences amongst them. For Example - In US English, the ‘Full Stop’ usually goes inside the quotation marks in all cases.  However, there is a lot of difference in spellings which we will discuss further down the Article.

How to improve English Writing Skills?

English Writing is based on certain rules which are essential for Error Free Writing. Error Free Writing translates into Writing free of grammatical errors. In order to improve English Writing Skills in English Writing one needs to be aware of English Writing Rules.

I.  Alphabetical Order – There are 26 Alphabets in English. They always begin with ‘A’ and end with ‘Z’.  This order is useful when we are creating a serial wise list of dictionaries, indexes of books, telephone directories etc. This makes it easy for the reader to find a particular item in the list.

Example - List of Mammals:

• Anteater.
• Bear.
• Cat.
• Dog.

If more than one word begins with the letter A, we put them in order based on the second letter, and then the third letter, and so on:

• Anteater.
• Aardvark.
• Bat.
• Bear.

II.  Using Large and Small Letters - English Alphabets can be written as Small Letters (a,b,c) and Large Letters (A,B,C).  Large letters or Capital Letters are mainly used for the first letter of sentences, names, days and months as well for some abbreviations. In addition, they are always used to write the first person pronoun as a capital ‘I’.  Most of the text material is written in Small Letters with very few exceptions. Words written in capital letters have no shape and are therefore not easy on the eyes as compared to Small Letters.  Also, it is considered impolite, to write large amounts of text in capital letters.

Examples

• Where can I go? - A capital letter has been used for the personal pronoun 'I'.
• The girl was beautiful - A capital letter is used to begin a sentence.
• Jai asked “Do you believe in God?” -  A capital letter is used to begin a speech.
• W.W.F. (World Wide Fund for nature) - A capital letter is used to begin Abbreviations and acronyms.
• Monday, January, India, Guru Nanak – A capital letter is used to begin a day of the week, month, country, and Name.

Similarly names of important things start with a Capital Letter.

III.  Check your Spellings – Spellings represent spoken words and we often make mistakes while writing them. Apart from this, spelling rules in English have exceptions.

Commonly used Spelling rules:

• Change a Final Y to I - Change a final ‘y’ to ‘i’ before a suffix, unless the suffix begins with ‘i’.
  Examples: Defy + ance = defiance, party + es = parties, try + es = tries, occupy + ing = occupying.
  Common exceptions: Journeying, memorize.

• Drop the Final E - Drop the final ‘e’ before a suffix beginning with a vowel (a, e, i, o, u) but not before a suffix beginning with a consonant.
  Examples:  Ride + ing = riding, guide + ance = guidance, entire + ly = entirely
  Common exceptions: truly, noticeable.

• Double a Final Consonant - Double a final single consonant before a suffix beginning with a vowel when both of these conditions exist:
  (a) a single vowel precedes the consonant;
  (b) the consonant ends an accented syllable or a one-syllable word.
  Examples:  stop + ing = stopping, admit + ed = admitted, occur + ence = occurrence.

• ‘I’ before ‘E’ - Use ‘i’ before ‘e’, except after ‘c’, or when sounded as ‘a’ as in ‘neighbour’ and ‘weigh.’
  Examples: Believe, chief, piece, thief, deceive, receive, weigh, and freight.
  Common exceptions: Efficient, weird, height, neither, ancient, caffeine, foreign.

IV.  Easily Confused Words – English language is filled with words which are pronounced differently as compared  to how we write it. Some of these can be written in a wrong manner as they are similar in structure.  

Examples

Words Underlined are the correct formation of that word.

Sometimes we may write words which though sound similar but their meanings are not.

Examples

V.  Punctuation Rules -  Punctuation are special characters, symbols or marks used to clarify meaning by indicating separation of words into sentences and clauses and phrases. These characters are: full stop, comma, colon, semicolon, question mark, exclamation point etc. Know in detail about Punctuation Rules

VI.  American English and British English – There is a lot of difference in U.S. English and U.K. English Spellings. Sometimes these spellings also alter the meaning of a Word. For Example - Tire, in U.K. English stands for ‘Getting Tired’ whereas in U.S. English it means ‘Hoop that covers a wheel’.

Common Differences

VII.  Writing Fast and Neatly– Writing fast can be achieved through knowing ‘What type of Writing’ do we have?’ Mostly people have the habit of ‘Finger-writing’ where we actually draw Letters with our fingers.  This method is incorrect as it is slow and often painful if you have to write a lot.

If you want to Write Fast, then:

• You’ll have to hold your pen/pencil in such a way that your pen/pencil rests over or just forward of the bottom knuckle on your index finger, not between thumb and index finger.

• Hold the pen lightly; don’t squeeze it. Consider the barrel as soft rubber and squeezing will get you a big, fat blot.

• Hold your fingers fairly straight and write slightly above and just between your thumb and index finger, right where you’re holding the pen. Don’t curl your hand over and write to the left of your palm; that will result in a crampy position.

• You should learn Cursive Writing. With cursive, the proper sequence of letters and the end of each word is much more prominent. The hand is lighter in the flowing movement, so it does not tire so readily. With regular practice, one can write fast as well as neatly.

• Never rush into writing as it makes your Handwriting sloppy. Slow down and avoid illegible scrawling. Form each letter carefully.

• Select a writing instrument that fits comfortably into your hand. Some people are able to write better with a thick writing material, while others write very neatly with a skinny pen or pencil. Try different writing material to see which suits your handwriting, the most.

• You should have an Outline of what you want to write or have a good idea about what you want to write. This planning is good for writing both short and long pieces. Write down your ideas as soon they occur to you, sort them out whenever you have a minute or two, and be ready to go when you sit down to write.

• You should have a general set of rules like writing in points. Having a pattern in your mind makes it easier to move from one point to the next when actually writing.

• You should write what you know and what you don’t know in a draft. You can leave any symbol for what you don’t know and search for it later.

• One can keep a Timer, to remind oneself of achieving certain amount of writing in a specific span of time.  It provides you a goal and motivates you to write faster.

VIII.  Web Based Training – The Internet is filled with all types of word games and activities. Some of them are Paid while others are Free. Those wishing to improve their Hand Writing can utilise these. There are Online Workshops for classroom teachers that are interested in implementing the writing process in their classroom.