Stanko 1

Jeannine Stanko
P. Souris
ENG 555
7 December 2016
Unit Plan: Writing an Analysis of a Cause and Effect Essay
The purpose of this college-level English 101 course is to teach students how to effectively
compose essays applicable to their chosen majors.
Course Objectives
Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to
Write academic essays that
o Develop a thesis
o Create an organizing structure appropriate to analysis principles
o Support ideas with relevant explanation and substantial evidence details
o Integrate and cite information from relevant print and/or electronic sources
o Provide a coherent introduction and conclusion
Revise drafts to develop or support ideas more clearly, address potential objections, ensure
effective transitions between paragraphs, and correct errors in logic
Edit and proofread, using standards for formal written English
This unit in particular will focus on analyzing the effectiveness of cause and effect essays.
Students will have already learned how to write introductions and conclusions as well as align
topic and concluding sentences. The class would have already reviewed MLA formatting, verb
passivity, prepositions, pronoun and antecedent agreement, shifts, sentence variety, run-ons,
fragments, capitalization, who/whom, which/that, apostrophes, semicolons, and colons. This unit
will focus on the application of cause and effect analysis principles to professionally published
essays.
Unit Objectives
Upon completion of the unit, students will be able to
Follow the writing process to produce a 3-4 page analysis assessing the effectiveness of a
cause and effect essay that adheres to MLA formatting guidelines.
Write an introduction that uses a hook, provides background information, and ends in a
specific thesis statement.
Write body paragraphs that contain clearly aligned topic and concluding sentences and
apply the following analytical principles to a professional essay: purpose, patterns,
reasoning errors, ethics, thesis, and details.
Write a conclusion that summarizes the main points of the essay, revisits the
introductions hook, and leaves readers with a final thought
Adhere to rules of grammar and mechanics
Required Readings for the Unit
Dobbs, David. Beautiful Brains. Strategies for Successful Writing: A Rhetoric, Research
Guide, Reader, and Handbook. Edited by James Reinking and Robert Von Der Osten, 11th
edition, Pearson, 2017, pp. 415-422
Knapp, Caroline. Why We Keep Stuff: If You Want to Understand People, Take a Look at
What They Hang On To. Strategies for Successful Writing: A Rhetoric, Research Guide,
Reader, and Handbook. Edited by James Reinking and Robert Von Der Osten, 11th edition,
Pearson, 2017, pp. 413-414.

Stanko 2
Luscombe and Stinchfield. Why We Flirt. Strategies for Successful Writing: A Rhetoric,
Research Guide, Reader, and Handbook. Edited by James Reinking and Robert Von Der
Osten, 10th edition, Pearson, 2014, pp. 553-557.
Reinking, James and Robert Von Der Osten. Chapter 14, Cause and Effect: Explaining
Why. Strategies for Successful Writing: A Rhetoric, Research Guide, Reader, and
Handbook. 11th edition. Pearson, 2017, pp.236-250.
Lesson Overview
Lesson 1 Lecture about Cause and Effect Techniques
Lesson 2 Small group discussion about element application to essays
Lesson 3 Student sample essay critique
Lesson 4 Conferences
Lesson 5 Editing and Peer Review
Part Two: Unit Applications
Backwards Design and Engaged Learning are two pedagogical practices that guide my
curriculum development for college composition throughout the course. Backwards Design
ensures that all activities fulfill the unit objectives, which meet the course objectives. The jigsaw
and Carousel techniques provide low-risk opportunities to solicit participation from even the
most reluctant student contributors. Additionally, think-pair-share and neighbor talks are often
used in order to help students gather and try out their thoughts before whole group discussions
occur. These small group discussions benefit learners of different demographics by ensuring that
their ideas and thoughts will be shared and heard by others without the added stress of speaking
in front of many people.
Student writing over different genres will be assessed in primarily the same manner as the
cause and effect analysis essay. The assigned essays that precede this assignment include a
narrative analysis essay and a comparison analysis essay. The essay that occurs after the cause
and effect analysis essay is argument based. All of these essays will be assessed through the use
of rubrics. The primary differences to the rubrics throughout the semester lies in the different
principles analyzed for the different essay genres. Additionally, adherence to grammar and
mechanical rules increases in difficulty as topics are reviewed in class.
Constructive written feedback on the evaluation of student submission for each
assignment will be employed by writing comments and suggestions directly on student essays.
By writing comments directly on students essays, students will be better equipped to revise and
resubmit their essays.