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Choices
A Writing Guide with ReadingsSixth Edition| ©2016 Kate Mangelsdorf; Evelyn Posey
PACKAGE THIS TITLE WITH OUR 2016 MLA SUPPLEMENT, Documenting Sources in MLA Style (package ISBN-13: 9781318084479). Get the most recent updates on MLA citation in a convenient, 40-page resource based on The MLA Handbook, 8th Edition, with plenty of models. Browse our catalog or contact your repre...
PACKAGE THIS TITLE WITH OUR 2016 MLA SUPPLEMENT, Documenting Sources in MLA Style (package ISBN-13: 9781318084479). Get the most recent updates on MLA citation in a convenient, 40-page resource based on The MLA Handbook, 8th Edition, with plenty of models. Browse our catalog or contact your representative for a full listing of updated titles and packages, or to request a custom ISBN.
Choices equips beginning writers with the skills and confidence to produce writing that matters. Kate Mangelsdorf and Evelyn Posey draw on over 40 years of combined classroom experience to ease students into the writing process through accessible and supportive writing instruction, encouraging students to actively participate in each step of the writing process. Along the way, students discover for themselves how to transform their brainstorming to discovery drafts and revised essays.
Incorporating suggestions from developmental writing instructors across the country, the sixth edition emphasizes the connection between reading and writing. A diverse collection of student and professional essays support the text’s focus on reading well to write well while a new chapter, Reading to Improve Writing, expands the coverage on active and critical reading and offers guidance on tools and strategies for pre-reading, reading, and reflecting.
This all-in-one writing guide, reader, research text, and handbook empowers students to become effective academic writers—all at an affordable price.
To support students at all levels of writing, Choices can now be packaged with free access to LaunchPad Solo for Readers and Writers, a robust media package that brings together video tutorials, interactive grammar quizzes, and valuable writing instruction and gives students the practice to master the skills they need to succeed. Use ISBN 1-319-03958-8 to order Choices and LaunchPad Solo for Readers and Writers.
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A hands-on guide to reading and writing for students at any skill level.
PACKAGE THIS TITLE WITH OUR 2016 MLA SUPPLEMENT, Documenting Sources in MLA Style (package ISBN-13: 9781318084479). Get the most recent updates on MLA citation in a convenient, 40-page resource based on The MLA Handbook, 8th Edition, with plenty of models. Browse our catalog or contact your representative for a full listing of updated titles and packages, or to request a custom ISBN.
Choices equips beginning writers with the skills and confidence to produce writing that matters. Kate Mangelsdorf and Evelyn Posey draw on over 40 years of combined classroom experience to ease students into the writing process through accessible and supportive writing instruction, encouraging students to actively participate in each step of the writing process. Along the way, students discover for themselves how to transform their brainstorming to discovery drafts and revised essays.
Incorporating suggestions from developmental writing instructors across the country, the sixth edition emphasizes the connection between reading and writing. A diverse collection of student and professional essays support the text’s focus on reading well to write well while a new chapter, Reading to Improve Writing, expands the coverage on active and critical reading and offers guidance on tools and strategies for pre-reading, reading, and reflecting.
This all-in-one writing guide, reader, research text, and handbook empowers students to become effective academic writers—all at an affordable price.
To support students at all levels of writing, Choices can now be packaged with free access to LaunchPad Solo for Readers and Writers, a robust media package that brings together video tutorials, interactive grammar quizzes, and valuable writing instruction and gives students the practice to master the skills they need to succeed. Use ISBN 1-319-03958-8 to order Choices and LaunchPad Solo for Readers and Writers.
Features
- Step-by-step guidance in essay writing teaches students how to brainstorm, draft, and revise an array of common writing assignments while following a student writer through each stage of the writing process: exploring choices, drafting, revising, editing, and sharing.
- Relevant topics enhance each writing assignment. Each writing chapter is designed thematically around ideas that best support each assignment’s key features and guide students to choose topics that matter—while also providing flexibility for instructors.
- Essential coverage of the elements of writing—including active reading strategies, thesis statements, paragraph development, introductions and conclusions, organization, and patterns of development—are presented in four accessible introductory chapters.
- An extensive, easy-to-use handbook complements writing instruction with coverage of grammar, word choice, spelling, punctuation and mechanics, help for multilingual writers, and more than 150 additional exercises for students who need practice.
- Digital writing tips encourage students to develop digital literacy and use digital programs and social media to improve their academic writing. Topics include using social networking sites to brainstorm topics and using word processing programs to help organize ideas.
New to This Edition
- A new chapter, Reading to Improve Writing, expands the coverage on active and critical reading and offers guidance on tools and strategies for pre-reading, reading, and reflecting, culminating in an example annotated reading and writing summary.
- Stronger integration of instruction and student writing emphasize the writing process. Chapter 1 weaves together instructional material on exploring topics and rhetorical choices, drafting, revising, and sharing with a student model so students see the writing process in action.
- Eleven new student models allow students to see example writing from their peers to help them make smarter writing choices—from brainstorming, through multiple drafts, to a final, revised essay ready to share.
- New timely and engaging readings (about 40% new) provide models and spark ideas for writing. Highlights include:
- Mike Rose on whether college is the right choice for everyone
- Jessica Winter on selfie culture and the narcissism of social media
- Louise Aronson on robot caregivers as the solution to our national neglect of the elderly.
- New Getting Started activities use photographs to introduce each chapter’s theme and to build visual analysis skills.
- An updated and enhanced focus on research in Part Three leads students through the stages of research for one assignment, offering guidance for conducting research, evaluating sources, and writing responsibly.
LaunchPad Solo for Readers and Writers includes multimedia content and assessments, including LearningCurve adaptive quizzing, organized into pre-built, curated units for easy assigning and monitoring of student progress. Get all our great resources and activities in one fully customizable space online; then assign and mix our resources with yours.
LearningCurve for Readers and Writers: LearningCurve, Bedford/St. Martin's adaptive quizzing program, quickly learns what students already know and helps them practice what they don't yet understand. Game-like quizzing motivates students to engage with their course, and reporting tools help teachers discern their students' needs.
“I am impressed with the variety and number of writing activities and reading selections offered in Choices. This textbook caters to diverse teaching and learning styles and provides a plethora of ideas and topics.” –Patricia Moseley, Central Carolina Technical College
“[Choices] allows you to teach at the level of your students, and offers some great resources for class activities and assignments.” –Simona Chitescu, Georgia Gwinnett College

Choices
Sixth Edition| ©2016
Kate Mangelsdorf; Evelyn Posey
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Choices
Sixth Edition| 2016
Kate Mangelsdorf; Evelyn Posey
Table of Contents
PART ONE
Composing Ourselves, Writing for Others
1 The Writing Process
WRITING ASSIGNMENT
A Writer’s Composing Process
Step 1. Explore Your Choices
Analyzing Your Audience and Purpose
Journaling
Charles’s Audience and Purpose
Gathering Ideas
Charles’s Brainstorming
Step 2. Write Your Discovery Draft
Choosing a Topic
Sharing Your Ideas
Charles’s Drafting
Step 3. Revise Your Draft
Developing Your Ideas
Building Your Essay
Charles’s Revising
Step 4. Edit Your Sentences
Using Standard Written English
Correcting Errors
Charles’s Editing
CHARLES LUJAN, “Thinking about Writing”
Step 5. Share Your Essay
Charles’s Sharing
CHAPTER CHECKLIST
REFLECTING ON YOUR WRITING
2 Reading to Improve Writing
WRITING ASSIGNMENT
Purposes for Reading
Myths about Reading
Active Reading
Keeping a Reading Journal
Writing Summaries
A Student’s Reading and Writing Process
RONALD E. RIGGIO, “Beauty Is More Than Skin Deep: The Different Types of Attractiveness”
Ofelia’s Ideas
Ofelia’s Discovery Draft
Ofelia’s Revised Draft
Ofelia’s Edited Draft
Ofelia’s Sharing
CHAPTER CHECKLIST
REFLECTING ON YOUR WRITING
3 Crafting Paragraphs
WRITING ASSIGNMENT
Topic Sentences
Unity
Organization
General-to-Specific Order
Topic-Illustration-Explanation Order
Progressive Order
Directional Order
Question-and-Answer Order
Specific-to-General Order
Special Kinds of Paragraphs
Introductions
Conclusions
From a Paragraph to an Essay
A Student’s Paragraph
Javier’s Choices
Javier’s Drafting
Javier’s Revising
Javier’s Editing
JAVIER ESPARZA, “Leaving”
Javier’s Sharing
CHAPTER CHECKLIST
REFLECTING ON YOUR WRITING
4 The Patterns of Development
WRITING ASSIGNMENT
Description
Narration
Examples
Process Explanation
Classification
Definition
Comparison and Contrast
Cause and Effect
Argument
A Student’s Writing Process
Carlos’s Ideas
Carlos’s Drafting
Carlos’s Revising and Editing
CARLOS MONTIJO, “Television and Children”
Carlos’s Sharing
CHAPTER CHECKLIST
REFLECTING ON YOUR WRITING
PART TWO
Writing to Share Ideas
5 Remembering: Significant People, Events, and Experiences
Read to Write: Reading Essays That Remember a Significant Person, Event, or Experience
A Significant Person: An Annotated Reading
JOSHUA BELL, “My Maestro”
A Significant Person
THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN, “My Favorite Teacher”
A Memorable Event
JAMES DILLARD, “A Doctor’s Dilemma”
An Important Experience
BRENT STAPLES, “Black Men and Public Space”
Writing Your Essay: A Step-by-Step Guide
WRITING ASSIGNMENT
Step 1. Explore Your Choices
Analyzing Your Audience and Purpose
Gathering Ideas
Step 2. Write Your Discovery Draft
Choosing a Topic
Sharing Your Ideas
A Student’s Discovery Draft
Step 3. Revise Your Draft
Developing Your Ideas
Description
Narration
Building Your Essay
A Student’s Revised Draft
PEER REVIEW for an Essay That Remembers
Step 4. Edit Your Sentences
Combining Sentences Using Coordinating Conjunctions
Correcting Run-on Sentences
A Student’s Edited Essay
MOUSHUMI BISWAS, “The Most Beautiful Gift”
Step 5. Share Your Essay
CHAPTER CHECKLIST
REFLECTING ON YOUR WRITING
6 Explaining: Cultural Symbols, Traditions, and Heroes
Read to Write: Reading Essays That Explain a Cultural Symbol, Tradition, or Hero
A Cultural Symbol: An Annotated Reading
NORA OKJA KELLER, “My Mother’s Food”
A Cultural Symbol
JHUMPA LAHIRI, “Rice”
A Cultural Tradition
LIZETTE ALVAREZ, “Latinas Make Sweet 16-ish Their Own”
A Cultural Hero
JEFFREY ZASLOW, “What We Can Learn from Sully’s Journey”
Writing Your Essay: A Step-by-Step Guide
WRITING ASSIGNMENT
Step 1. Explore Your Choices
Analyzing Your Audience and Purpose
Gathering Ideas
Step 2. Write Your Discovery Draft
Choosing a Topic
Sharing Your Ideas
A Student’s Discovery Draft
Step 3. Revise Your Draft
Developing Your Ideas
Examples
Process Explanation
Building Your Essay
A Student’s Revised Draft
PEER REVIEW for an Essay That Explains
Step 4. Edit Your Sentences
Combining Sentences Using Conjunctive Adverbs
Correcting Sentence Fragments
A Student’s Edited Essay
AUTUMN HARRISON, “Two Voices, One Idea”
Step 5. Share Your Essay
CHAPTER CHECKLIST
REFLECTING ON YOUR WRITING
7 Analyzing: Career Paths, Workplace Communication, and Job-Related Problems
Read to Write: Reading Essays That Analyze a Work Issue
A Career Path: An Annotated Reading
HEATHER ROBINSON, “I Am Not a Babysitter”
A Career Path
MIKE ROSE, “Should Everyone Go to College?”
Workplace Communication
PERRI KLASS, “She’s Your Basic L.O.L. in N.A.D.”
A Job-Related Problem
ELLEN GOODMAN, “The Company Man”
Writing Your Essay: A Step-by-Step Guide
WRITING ASSIGNMENT
Step 1. Explore Your Choices
Analyzing Your Audience and Purpose
Gathering Ideas
Step 2. Write Your Discovery Draft
Choosing a Topic
Sharing Your Ideas
A Student’s Discovery Draft
Step 3. Revise Your Draft
Developing Your Ideas
Classification
Definition
Building Your Essay
A Student’s Revised Draft
PEER REVIEW for an Essay That Analyzes
Step 4. Edit Your Sentences
Combining Sentences Using Subordinating Conjunctions
Correcting Pronoun Reference and Agreement
A Student’s Edited Essay
ANGELICA HOPKINS, “The Translator”
Step 5. Share Your Essay
CHAPTER CHECKLIST
REFLECTING ON YOUR WRITING
8 Evaluating: Products, Performances, and Places
Read to Write: Reading Essays That Evaluate a Product, Performance, or Place
Evaluation of a Product: An Annotated Reading
NICHOLAS CARR, “The PC Officially Died Today”
Evaluation of a Product
AARON GULLEY, “Trail Tested: Salsa Bucksaw”
Evaluation of a Performance
DIANE HEIMAN AND PHYLLIS BOOKSPAN, “Sesame Street: Brought to You by the Letters M-A-L-E”
Evaluation of a Place
NICHOLAS JENNINGS, “A Palace of Rock”
Writing Your Essay: A Step-by-Step Guide
WRITING ASSIGNMENT
Step 1. Explore Your Choices
Analyzing Your Audience and Purpose
Gathering Ideas
Step 2. Write Your Discovery Draft
Choosing a Topic
Sharing Your Ideas
A Student’s Discovery Draft
Step 3. Revise Your Draft
Developing Your Ideas
Comparison and Contrast
Building Your Essay
Express Your Judgment
Give Criteria
Provide Evidence
Keep a Balanced Perspective
A Student’s Revised Draft
PEER REVIEW for an Essay That Evaluates
Step 4. Edit Your Sentences
Combining Sentences Using Relative Clauses
Correcting Comma Splices
A Student’s Edited Essay
PAUL LAPRADE, “The Disappeared”
Step 5. Share Your Essay
CHAPTER CHECKLIST
REFLECTING ON YOUR WRITING
9 Arguing a Position: Media, Censorship, and Stereotypes
Read to Write: Reading Essays That Argue a Position about Media, Censorship, and Stereotypes
A Media Issue: An Annotated Reading
TARA PARKER-POPE, “An Ugly Toll of Technology: Impatience and Forgetfulness”
An Media Issue
JESSICA WINTER, “Selfie-Loathing”
A Censorship Issue
MCKENZIE MAXSON, “What You Aren’t Seeing on Social Media”
A Stereotyping Issue
SAMUEL L. JACKSON, “In Character”
Writing Your Essay: A Step-by-Step Guide
WRITING ASSIGNMENT
Step 1. Explore Your Choices
Analyzing Your Audience and Purpose
Gathering Ideas
Step 2. Write Your Discovery Draft
Choosing a Topic
Sharing Your Ideas
A Student’s Discovery Draft
Step 3. Revise Your Draft
Developing Your Ideas
Cause-and-Effect Analysis
Building Your Essay
A Student’s Revised Draft
PEER REVIEW for an Essay That Argues a Position
Step 4. Edit Your Sentences
Combining Sentences Using Introductory Phrases
Correcting Subject-Verb Agreement Errors
A Student’s Edited Essay
SUSANNAH GOYA-PACK, “Girls Just Want to Play Games: Sexism in Video Gaming and How We Can Fix It”
Step 5. Share Your Essay
CHAPTER CHECKLIST
REFLECTING ON YOUR WRITING
10 Proposing a Solution: Health, Education, and Environment
Read to Write: Reading Essays That Propose a Solution to a Problem
A Health Problem: An Annotated Reading
LOUISE ARONSON, “The Future of Robot Caregivers”
A Health Problem
SALLY SATEL, “How E-Cigarettes Could Save Lives”
An Education Problem
MARY SHERRY, “In Praise of the F Word”
An Environmental Problem
TARA HAELLE, “Childhood Obesity Is a Product of Environment”
Writing Your Essay: A Step-by-Step Guide
WRITING ASSIGNMENT
Step 1. Explore Your Choices
Analyzing Your Audience and Purpose
Gathering Ideas
Step 2. Write Your Discovery Draft
Choosing a Topic
Sharing Your Ideas
A Student’s Discovery Draft
Step 3. Revise Your Draft
Developing Your Ideas with Argumentative Techniques
State the Problem
Provide Evidence
Propose a Solution
Building Your Essay
A Student’s Revised Draft
PEER REVIEW for an Essay That Proposes a Solution
Step 4. Edit Your Sentences
Combining Sentences Using Appositives
Correcting Shifts in Person
A Student’s Edited Essay
ANDREA BENITEZ, “Why Go Vegan?”
Step 5. Share Your Essay
CHAPTER CHECKLIST
REFLECTING ON YOUR WRITING
PART THREE
Writing for Different Situations
11 Conducting Research
WRITING ASSIGNMENT: PART ONE
Preparing to Conduct Research
Narrow Your Topic
Write Research Questions
Primary Research
Making Observations
Surveying Others
Conducting Interviews
Secondary Research
Locating Sources of Information
Use a Search Engine
Visit Your Campus Library
Consult a Reference Librarian
Consult Your Library’s Online Catalog
Consult an Encyclopedia
Find a Print Source
Find an Electronic Source
Use Other Sources of Information
CHAPTER CHECKLIST
REFLECTING ON YOUR RESEARCH
12 Evaluating and Using Sources
WRITING ASSIGNMENT: PART TWO
Evaluating Sources of Information
Avoiding Plagiarism
Taking Notes
MIMI KO CRUZ, “Desperate Measures”
Quoting Information
Paraphrasing Information
Summarizing Information
Documenting Sources
In-Text Documentation
Works Cited Page
Sample Researched Essay
AILEEN LY, “An Illness of the Mind”
CHAPTER CHECKLIST
REFLECTING ON YOUR WRITING
PART FOUR
Handbook with Exercises
13 Writing Sentences
A. Subjects
Compound Subjects
Subject Pretenders
B. Verbs
Action and Linking Verbs
Verb Pretenders
Verb Tense
C. Subject-Verb Agreement
Singular and Plural Forms
Indefinite Pronouns
14 Expanding Sentences
A. Phrases
B. Clauses
Independent or Main Clauses
Dependent or Subordinate Clauses
Relative Clauses
C. Pronouns
Pronoun Reference
Pronoun Agreement
D. Adjectives
E. Adverbs
15 Combining Sentences
A. Coordination
Coordinating Conjunctions and Commas
Conjunctive Adverbs and Semicolons
B. Subordination
Subordinating Conjunctions
Relative Pronouns
C. Sentence-Combining Exercises
Specific Methods of Combining Sentences
Various Methods of Combining Sentences
16 Improving Sentences
A. Sentence Fragments
B. Run-on Sentences
C. Comma Splices
D. Misplaced Modifiers
E. Dangling Modifiers
F. Active and Passive Voice
G. Parallelism
17 Improving Vocabulary and Word Choice
A. Vocabulary
Find Meaning from Context
Learn Roots, Prefixes, and Suffixes
B. Unnecessary Repetition
C. Wordiness
18 Improving Spelling
A. Spelling Rules
B. Commonly Misspelled Words
C. Commonly Confused Words
19 Improving Punctuation
A. Commas
B. Semicolons
C. Colons
D. End Punctuation
E. Apostrophes
F. Quotation Marks
20 Improving Mechanics
A. Capital Letters
B. Italics
C. Abbreviations
D. Numbers
21 Guide for Multilingual Writers
A. Omitted or Repeated Subjects
Omitted Subjects
Repeated Subjects
B. Word Order
Adjective Placement
Adverb Placement
C. Verbs
Verb Tense
Helping Verbs
Verbs Followed by Gerunds or Infinitives
Two-Part Verbs
Participles Used as Adjectives
D. Active and Passive Voice
E. Articles
F. Count and Noncount Nouns
G. Prepositions
Authors

Kate Mangelsdorf

Evelyn Posey
Professional Writing Certificate Program at the University of Texas at El
Paso, where she has served as an associate vice president, associate
dean, chair, director of English education, and director of the West Texas
Writing Project. Posey has published articles in Computers and
Composition, The Journal of Developmental Education, and Teaching English in the Two-Year College.
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Choices
Sixth Edition| 2016
Kate Mangelsdorf; Evelyn Posey
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