Modules 4 and 5 for June 2nd

First I want to talk about Module 4, which involves planning, writing, and revising.  I've learned after reading and from experience that it is true that the actually writing takes the shortest amount of time.  It is the planning and revising that takes about two-thirds of your time.  It is recommended that when you are planning you could try one of the following techniques: brainstorm, freewrite, cluster, or talk to your audiences.  Also, storyboards and planning guides may allow you to see the big picture.  When we use revision we are to revise, edit, and proofread in combination.  I also want to say that in Module 4 on page 68 there are some very helpful checklists for thorough revision and light revision.  I think one of the most important things from Module 4 to remember is that a grammar checker is not good enough for your revision process.  I've noticed that some people just use spell check in Microsoft Word when revising a paper and this is just simply not enough.  I also think another important point made in Module 4 is cycling.  It is very important to proofread, revise, and get FEEDBACK, and then proofread and revise again and again.  Now I'm moving on to Module 5!  I love Module 5 because it's everything except traditional academic writing.  I think it's most important to know the tips when writing on paper, and they include: use white space, use headings, try to limit all caps, use no more than two fonts, and decide on margin style (justified or ragged right).  This isn't the type of layout that you would use for a typical research paper that you have to write with long, lenghty, boring to the eyes paragraphs.  This design described in Module 5 is more appealing to the eyes with less lengthy paragraphs, more indents, bullet marks, headings, and visual appeal.  No one wants to read a bulky paper, and no one probably would have time.  The text also talks about presentation slides and web page designs.  We should keep slides simple, relevant, and interesting!  Be creative with big fonts, bullets, and customization.  Also, when creating web pages they must be interesting to look at and read, and the first screen must contain information on what the visitor is looking for.  Don't make them search! Lastly, and very importantly, we should test our designs and like always use the feedback to make changes.