Using her unique MAP approach (model-analysis-practice), Susan Fawcett has helped over three million students become better college writers. GRASSROOTS engages students with minimal instruction, varied practices and writing assignments. The text covers the paragraph and essay, rhetorical patterns, grammar, mechanics, style and spelling, and offers a professional readings unit. Deftly written models, paragraph- and essay-length practices on high-interest topics and fine student writing all inspire by example. Critical-thinking and –viewing tasks build problem-solving and team skills, and integrated ESL coverage anticipates diverse learners' needs. The twelfth edition adds new instruction on the reading-writing connection, expanded reading strategies and new professional readings that highlight relevant issues, careers, strategies for success and inspirational figures.

Each chapter in Units 2–8 also includes Chapter Highlights, Proofreading Strategy, Writing and Proofreading Assignments, Chapter Review and Exploring Online.
Preface.
Unit 1: WRITING EFFECTIVE PARAGRAPHS.
1. Exploring the Writing Process.
The Reading and Writing Connection. The Writing Process. Subject, Audience, and Purpose. Guidelines for Submitting Written Work.
2. Prewriting to Generate Ideas.
Freewriting. Brainstorming. Clustering. Keeping a Journal.
3. Developing Effective Paragraphs.
Defining the Paragraph and the Topic Sentence. Narrowing the Topic and Writing the Topic Sentence. Generating Ideas for the Body of the Paragraph. Selecting and Dropping Ideas. Arranging Ideas in a Plan or an Outline. Writing and Revising the Paragraph. Proofreading and Writing the Final Draft.
4. Improving Your Paragraphs.
More Work on Arranging Ideas: Coherence. More Work on Revising: Exact and Concise Language. Turning Assignments into Paragraphs.
5. Illustration, Narration, and Description.
Illustration. Narration. Description.
6. Process, Comparison and Contrast, and Classification.
Process. Comparison and Contrast. Classification.
7. Definition, Cause and Effect, and Persuasion.
Definition. Cause and Effect. Persuasion.
8. Moving from Paragraph to Essay.
Defining the Essay and the Thesis Statement. The Process of Writing an Essay.
9. Proofreading to Correct Your Personal Errors.
Identifying and Tracking Your Personal Error Patterns. Proofreading Strategies.
Unit 1 Writing Assignments.
Unit 1 Review.
Unit 1 Writers'' Workshop: Discuss Your Name.
Unit 2: WRITING COMPLETE SENTENCES.
10. Subjects and Verbs.
Defining and Spotting Subjects. Spotting Singular and Plural Subjects. Spotting Prepositional Phrases. Defining and Spotting Action Verbs. Defining and Spotting Linking Verbs. Spotting Verbs of More Than One Word.
11. Avoiding Sentence Fragments.
Writing Sentences with Subjects and Verbs. Writing Sentences with Complete Verbs. Completing the Thought.
Unit 2 Writing Assignments.
Unit 2 Review.
Unit 2 Writers'' Workshop: Discuss an Event That Influenced You.
Unit 3: USING VERBS EFFECTIVELY.
12. Present Tense (Agreement).
Defining Agreement. Verbs in the Present Tense: TO BE, TO HAVE, and TO DO (+ NOT).
Changing Subjects to Pronouns. Practice in Agreement. Special Problems in Agreement.
13. Past Tense.
Regular Verbs in the Past Tense. Irregular Verbs in the Past Tense. Troublesome Verb in the Past Tense: TO BE. Review.
14. The Past Participle in Action.
Past Participles of Regular Verbs. Past Participles of Irregular Verbs. Using the Present Perfect Tense. Using the Past Perfect Tense. Using the Passive Voice. Using Past Participles as Adjectives.
15. Progressive Tenses (TO BE + -ING Verb Form).
Defining and Writing the Present Progressive Tense. Defining and Writing the Past Progressive Tense. Using the Progressive Tenses. Avoiding Incomplete Progressives.
16. Fixed-Form Helping Verbs and Verb Problems.
Defining and Spotting the Fixed-Form Helping Verbs. Using the Fixed-Form Helping Verbs. Using CAN and COULD. Using WILL and WOULD. Writing Infinitives. Revising Double Negatives.
Unit 3 Writing Assignments.
Unit 3 Review.
Unit 3 Writers'' Workshop: Tell a Family Story.
Unit 4: JOINING IDEAS TOGETHER.
17. Coordination.
18. Subordination.
Defining and Using Subordinating Conjunctions. Punctuating Subordinating Conjunctions.
19. Avoiding Run-Ons and Comma Splices.
20. Semicolons and Conjunctive Adverbs.
Defining and Using Semicolons. Defining and Using Conjunctive Adverbs. Punctuating Conjunctive Adverbs.
21. Relative Pronouns.
Defining and Using Relative Pronouns. Punctuating Ideas Introduced by WHO, WHICH, or THAT.
22. -ING Modifiers.
Using-ING Modifiers. Avoiding Confusing Modifiers.
Unit 4 Writing Assignments.
Unit 4 Review.
Unit 4 Writers'' Workshop: Describe a Detour off the Main Highway.
Unit 5: CHOOSING THE RIGHT NOUN, PRONOUN, ADJECTIVE, ADVERB, OR PREPOSITION.
23. Nouns.
Defining Singular and Plural. Signal Words: Singular and Plural. Signal Words with OF.
24. Pronouns.
Defining Pronouns and Antecedents. Referring to Indefinite Pronouns. Referring to Special Singular Constructions. Referring to Collective Nouns. Avoiding Vague and Repetitious Pronouns. Using Pronouns as Subjects, Objects, and Possessives. Choosing the Correct Pronoun Case. Using Pronouns with -SELF and-SELVES.
25. Adjectives and Adverbs.
Defining and Writing Adjectives and Adverbs. A Troublesome Pair: GOOD/WELL. Writing Comparatives. Writing Superlatives. Troublesome Comparatives and Superlatives. Demonstrative Adjectives: THIS/THAT and THESE/THOSE.
26. Prepositions.
Defining and Working with Prepositional Phrases. Troublesome Prepositions: IN, ON, and LIKE. Prepositions in Common Expressions.
Unit 5 Writing Assignments.
Unit 5 Review.
Unit 5 Writers'' Workshop: Tell How Someone Changed Your Life.
Unit 6: REVISING FOR CONSISTENCY AND PARALLELISM.
27. Consistent Tense.
28. Consistent Person.
29. Parallelism.
Writing Parallel Constructions. Using Parallelism for Special Effects.
Unit 6 Writing Assignments.
Unit 6 Review.
Unit 6 Writers'' Workshop: Shift Your Audience and Purpose.
Unit 7: MASTERING MECHANICS.
30. Capitalization.
31. Commas.
Commas After Items in a Series. Commas After Introductory Phrases. Commas for Direct Address. Commas to Set Off Appositives. Commas for Parenthetical Expressions. Commas for Dates. Commas for Addresses. Commas for Coordination and Subordination.
32. Apostrophes.
Using the Apostrophe for Contractions. Defining the Possessive. Using the Apostrophe to Show Possession (in Words That Do Not Already End in-S). Using the Apostrophe to Show Possession (in Words That Already End in -S).
33. Direct and Indirect Quotations.
Defining Direct and Indirect Quotations. Punctuating Simple Direct Quotations. Punctuating Split Quotations. Ending Direct Quotations.
34. Putting Your Proofreading Skills to Work.
Unit 7 Writing Assignments.
Unit 7 Review.
Unit 7 Writers'' Workshop: Explain a Cause or an Effect.
Unit 8: IMPROVING YOUR SPELLING.
35. Spelling.
Suggestions for Improving Your Spelling. Computer Spell Checkers. Spotting Vowels and Consonants. Doubling the Final Consonant (in Words of One Syllable). Doubling the Final Consonant (in Words of More Than One Syllable). Dropping or Keeping the Final E. Changing or Keeping the Final Y. Choosing IE or EI. Commonly Misspelled Words.
36. Look-Alikes/Sound-Alikes.
Unit 8 Writing Assignments.
Unit 8 Review.
Unit 8 Writers'' Workshop: Examine Positive (or Negative) Values.
Unit 9: READING SELECTIONS.
Effective Reading Strategies for the Writer.
Active Reading. Reading Strategies for Writers. Annotated Essay: Diane Sawyer, "Daring to Dream Big." Connecting Your Reading and Writing.
Reading Selections: Sherman Alexie, "Superman and Me." Esther Cepeda, "Tamales and Other Holiday Comfort Foods." Beve Stevenson, RN, BN, "A Day in the Life of an Emergency Room Nurse." John Quinones, "Heroes Everywhere." James Campbell, "Are We Losing Connection to Nature?" Rebecca Sutton, "The Art of Sharing Secrets." Leonard Pitts, "Putting the Brakes on Driving While Texting." Christine Porath, "No Time to Be Nice at Work." Maya Angelou, "Mrs. Flowers." Constance Staley, "Zoom in and Focus." Andrew Lam, "Waste More, Want More." Liza Grossman, "The Hidden Life of Bottled Water." Kunal Nayyar, "Garbage, Man." Karen Cox, "World of Skillcraft: Four Types of Video Game Learning." Angela Johnston, "Charming Robotic Seal Raises Ethical Questions." Susan Cain, "Introverts Run the World--Quietly." M.P. Dunleavey, "Buy Yourself Less Stuff." Daniel Goleman, "Emotional Intelligence."
APPENDIX 1: Parts of Speech Review.
APPENDIX 2: Some Guidelines for Students of English as a Second Language.
Index.
Rhetorical Index to the Readings.
Thematic Index to the Readings.

Using her unique MAP approach (model-analysis-practice), Susan Fawcett has helped over three million students become better college writers. GRASSROOTS engages students with minimal instruction, varied practices and writing assignments. The text covers the paragraph and essay, rhetorical patterns, grammar, mechanics, style and spelling, and offers a professional readings unit. Deftly written models, paragraph- and essay-length practices on high-interest topics and fine student writing all inspire by example. Critical-thinking and –viewing tasks build problem-solving and team skills, and integrated ESL coverage anticipates diverse learners' needs. The twelfth edition adds new instruction on the reading-writing connection, expanded reading strategies and new professional readings that highlight relevant issues, careers, strategies for success and inspirational figures. Nearly 50 percent new professional reading selections: Nineteen readings feature top authors like Sherman Alexie, Leonard Pitts and Maya Angelou at a time when critical reading grows in importance, yet many competitors are cutting their readings. Nine new readings include Karen Cox on skill-building video games, Constance Staley on single-tasking as vital to success, Angela Johnston on the ethics of care-bots, immigrant Andrew Lam on American wastefulness, Esther Cepeda on disliking tamales and James Campbell on our fading connection with nature. Reorganized chapters on rhetorical patterns: Coverage of the nine rhetorical patterns is reorganized from two chapters to three. Instructors requested this logical and easy-to-teach division: Chapter 5, "Illustration, Narration, and Description"; Chapter 6, "Process, Comparison and Contrast, and Classification"; and Chapter 7, "Definition, Cause and Effect, and Persuasion." Thirty new high-interest practice sets: Hundreds of paragraph- and essay-length practice sets keep students reading as they proofread for errors in context, prelude to proofing their own work. New topics include 3D printing, America's opioid crisis, lessons taught by Shark Tank, urban farmer Will Allen, Latina businesswomen, San Diego Comic-Con, commercial drones, Kevin Durant, pros and cons of Facebook, Utah's canyons, Melissa Stockwell (amputee and Paralympian), Lin-Manuel Miranda's Hamilton, women on the police force and more. Many other topics are revised with the latest research. Improved visual image program with more than 30 new images: New images, charts and cartoons for analysis reflect the author's research in visual-verbal learning theory--which shows that underscoring verbal learning with images increases comprehension and retention. New images include an opioid addiction graphic, a boy's 3D printed hand, a Jacob Lawrence painting, New Yorker cartoons, a car body-type chart for a classification task, a veteran winning her Paralympic race and a robotic baby seal. Modular chapters and units enable instructors to customize their courses. Clear, step-by-step lessons are based on Fawcett's MAP (model-analysis-practice) strategy for student learning. More than 320 thought-provoking practices keep students involved. Engaging activities and assignments include 20 critical-thinking and -viewing activities integrated throughout the book. Nineteen diverse, high-quality reading selections--nine new readings in this edition-- include expanded "Reading Strategies for the Writer," language and vocabulary questions, discussion and writing questions and writing assignments.