Skills Lessons – Creating and Using Outlines

All of the following are steps in creating a useful outline except __________.

grouping related ideas together
writing the rough draft of an essay
labeling using main and subheadings
developing a working thesis statement

writing the rough draft of an essay

The headings and subheadings of the body of an outline should be __________.

long
parallel
interesting
complicated

parallel

Read the outline below and answer the question that follows.

Thesis statement: Although many young people want to leave their family home immediately after high school, the transition can be quite difficult.

I. Cooking

A. How much does it cost?

B. __________

C. How healthy is it?

II. Cleaning

A. Common areas

B. Bathroom

C. Clothes

III. Bill-paying

A. Creating a budget

B. Planning for future expenses

Which of the following would best complete the missing piece of the outline?

Time and effort required
I want to know how much time and effort is required.
To require time and effort
How much time/effort does it require?

How much time/effort does it require?

All of the following word groups show parallelism except __________.

to Washington, DC; to the beach; to my grandmother’s house
by yellow bus, by orange and blue airplane, by turquoise car
little soda cans, impossible peanut bags, uncomfortable seats
I want to go on vacation, my mom and dad, traveling overseas

I want to go on vacation, my mom and dad, traveling overseas

When dividing a heading in an outline, it should be divided into __________.

single-syllable words
two or more parts
pieces of sentences
four or five phrases

two or more parts

How would you change "my biology test" to make it parallel with "completing my homework"?

by removing "my" and "test"
by changing "biology test" to "homework"
by adding "studying for" to the beginning
by replacing "biology test" with "essay exam"

by adding "studying for" to the beginning

All of the following are parallel in structure with "novel" except __________.

story
poem
reading
memoir

reading

Which word group shows parallelism?

purple sunglasses, wearing striped shorts, I saw her pink lipstick
seashells, squishing my toes in the sand, stung by a jellyfish
to take a warm shower, to dry myself off, to comb my wet hair
bright blue sky, lying in the hot sun, when the cloud floated over

to take a warm shower, to dry myself off, to comb my wet hair

All of the following word groups show parallelism except __________.

funny, arrogant, kindhearted
to walk to the store, to jump over a puddle, to run around the yard
smiling at my mother, when I cleaned my room, to ask my parents for a favor
if we wanted to eat lunch, if we needed to buy a car, if we wished to go on vacation

smiling at my mother, when I cleaned my room, to ask my parents for a favor

Read the outline below and answer the question that follows.

Thesis statement: Drive-through facilities, while innovative, have had a negative impact on American society.

I. Uniformity of culture

A. Pervasiveness of national franchises

B. __________

II. De-personalization of relationships

A. Pharmacies

B. Banks

III. Sacrifice of quality for convenience

A. Food/drink establishments

1. Fast-food restaurants

2. Coffee shops

B. Religious institutions

Which of the following would best complete the missing piece of the outline?

Local businesses lost
Losing local businesses
Loss of local businesses
To lose local businesses

Loss of local businesses