Schmidt/Ojeda 1

Jerik R. Schmidt and Ernesto J. Ojeda

Instructor Tania Lefevre Hernandez
28 September 2015
INGL3103-041
Joining the Conversation: An Outline Summary of Chapter Six
Chapter six of Joining in the Conversation goes over writing to inform. It defines what
an informative essay is and lays out a list of species that exist within the genre. The chapter also
provides an outline for writing an informative essay; this includes setup, format, and passages
with step-by-step guidelines that are easy for readers to follow. However, the chapters lengthy
nature can be tedious to read. Therefore, an outline and conclusion are provided below:
I. Introduction
a. Definition of an Informative Essay.
b. Informative essays provide raw data.
c. Informative essays should be written from a reporters perspective.
II. Documents used to Inform
a. Information may be derived from precedent or external resources so long as it is properly
cited.
b. Information provided must be easy for the reader to interpret.
III. Informative Essay
a. Informative assays are a form of sharing information in a well organized structure.
b. The author of the essay may choose what sort of audience the essay is going to inform.
c. The author must draw information from different sources to provide evidence for
replicability in their claim.

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d. Those sources must be cited or referenced appropriately (MLA or APA).
e. An unbiased perspective should be achieved.
IV. Infographics
a. A visual representation of information/data.
b. Must be cited or referenced appropriately.
c. Any infographic within the essay must be coherent with the main idea as well as the
subject of both preceding and succeeding lines of writing.

V. Profiles
a. Profiles concentrate on information regarding people, places, or things.
b. They are relatively brief and tend to focus on a particular.
c. Obtained from interviews and observations.
d. Pictures are also common in this genre.
VI. Writing an Informative Essay
a. Expertise is not a requirement, comprehension is.
b. An author able to express research thrives.
VII. Find a Conversation and Listen In
a. Spend time thinking about your topic and the audience you will be addressing.
b. Look for a topic that will interest you and your reader.
c. Explore your interests:
i. Personal interest and hobbies.
ii. Academics
iii. Work

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iv. Reading
d. Spend some time free writing and brainstorming and then review your notes to identify the
ones that are most important.
e. Of those that are more important take a least 2 that interest you the most and write the
things that you already know and that you have to search.
VIII. Use Your Library
a. Take a few keywords and search it on the library catalogs.
b. The search results will give you a general idea of what other authors think about your
subject.
c. If the subject isn't too big and you chose it and write where the books are located.
IX. Gather Information
a. You need to create a search plan.
b. Think of how you need to find and how you are going to find it.
c. Collect sources.
d. Search them in library catalogs, in databases, and on the web.
X. Evaluate your sources.
a. Be sure the information you chose is relevant.
b. They rely on information to support the author's ideas.
c. Look for sources that are written by experts on your subject.
d. The more resent the article is the better it is.
XI. Take notes.
a. Write the things that are most important of your subject on your own words.

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b. By doing this you will have a clearer view of what are most important things about your
subject.
XII. Conduct an interview.
a. You seek information from another person by asking them a series of questions.
b. This may be face to face or via telephone, video chat, messages, etc.
Informative essays demand attention, consistency, evidence, and fluency.
Maintaining a consistent perspective requires writers to express raw data in a continuous
manner that is both intelligible and smooth. To check for continuity, writers can read their
essays backwards. An essay whose conclusion can be extracted from the same
information provided by the body paragraphs will read fluid and consistent. Evidence
should be provided from various unaffiliated resources to establish reliability and
confirmation about the data being expressed. As you go over your resources, make sure to
check dates and associations with the author to ensure that your evidence is indeed
unbiased and has stood the test of time. However, be aware of information that is too old
and is not complemented by current data, as it may be outdated. Attention to detail is key
to preserving your readers trust. Refutable writing is not informative. A fluent essay gives
your reader clarity when looking over your work. Make it worthwhile to focus on this
aspect of writing as it the most important one to follow.