LibGuides: Faculty Writing Resources: Home

HELP WITH YOUR OWN PROFESSIONAL WRITING

Have a grammar question? Who or whom? Where does my apostrophe go? Shop around here for quick guides to basic punctuation, grammar and usage rules.

English is So Weird: Tips and Tricks
Effect or affect? Whose or who's? Prospective or perspective? Quick explanations and mnemonic tools for these very common head-scratchers.
Common Comma Rules, Condensed
There are SO many comma rules. If you learn just these five, you will solve most of the problems writers have with this ubiquitous punctuation tool.
Punctuation Beyond the Comma
Punctuation is your toolbox for telling your reader how to read your sentences. Fine-tune their reading by sharpening your tools.
Other Grammatical Conundrums that Trip Us Up
When do I use "myself"? Is "neither" singular or plural? Who or whom? Check here for an answer to the these and other burning grammar questions.

TIPS FOR WRITING GREAT COMMENTS, COLLEGE RECS, AND EVALUATIONS

How to Write a Great College Recommendation
From the College Counseling office, this is a document that college admissions officers produced to help teachers write effective recommendations.

What are some other resources for my own writing?

HOW YOU CAN HELP YOUR STUDENTS WRITE BETTER

What should you expect of your students' writing? When should they know how to use a comma? What does typical student writing look like and what are students learning at different grade levels? And why should you care? The boxes below have resources to help you understand and help improve student writing and why it's so important.

What We Teach and When We Teach It

These links lead to departmental statements about writing instruction and expectations across the curriculum and through grade levels.

Why You Might Want to Assign More Writing
More reasons to have students write more
What Students are Working on, Grade by Grade
Culled from faculty responses, here are the skills your students need help with at every grade level.

Writing Instruction in the Upper School in brief
An overview of writing elements that are taught in each grade in the Upper School in English courses.

What Does Student Writing Look Like? What Should it Look Like?

These links constitute a "What to Expect" catalogue of student writing.

THE TYPICAL TEN
These ten mistakes are very common in adolescent writing. If you are able to spot and help with these ten problems, you will address the majority of their grammatical issues. Fuller explanations of each can be found under the typewriter to the left!
Faculty Responses about Student Writing
This is what departments report about the writing they assign and their expectations around use and citation of secondary sources.
6th grade samples and assignments
7th grade samples and assignments
8th grade samples and assignments
9th grade samples and assignments
10th grade samples and assignments
11th grade samples and assignments
12th grade samples and assignments

Rivers Writing Resources

These links will take you to various explanations of particular writing expectations we have of students' writing, including formatting, grammar, punctuation, and common usage issues.

English Department Formal Writing Guidelines
Here is a one-page overview of how students are required to format and compose formal writing in all English courses.

Assorted Writing Advice for Students
Handouts teachers have given students to help them write more effectively

What are some other resources to help me use writing effectively in the classroom?

Academic Integrity and Plagiarism

English Department Academic Integrity Contract
Click here for a copy of the document students and parents sign for every English course in the fall.