Activities to Teach Students to Avoid Double, Illogical, and Unclear Comparisons
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As students progress through their education, they are often required to write essays and reports that require them to compare and contrast different subjects. While comparisons can be effective, they can also be problematic when used incorrectly. Some common issues include double comparisons, illogical comparisons, and unclear comparisons. Fortunately, there are many activities that teachers can use to help their students avoid these issues and improve their writing.
Double comparisons occur when a writer uses two comparative words to describe the same thing. For example, a sentence like “The dog was bigger and more friendly than the other dogs” contains a double comparison. To help students avoid this issue, teachers can provide them with sentences that contain these errors and have them rewrite them correctly. For example, a sentence like “Her painting was more beautiful and detailed than any painting I’ve ever seen” could be rewritten as “Her painting was more beautiful and detailed than any I’ve ever seen.”
Illogical comparisons occur when writers compare two things that cannot be logically compared. For example, a sentence like “The taste of strawberries is better than the color blue” is illogical because taste and color are not comparable. To help students avoid these types of comparisons, teachers can provide them with a list of words that are commonly used in illogical comparisons (such as taste, smell, and sound) and have them identify sentences that contain these errors.
Unclear comparisons occur when writers use vague or ambiguous language to describe a comparison. For example, a sentence like “The party was better than the other one” is unclear because it doesn’t specify what the writer is comparing. To help students avoid these issues, teachers can provide them with sentences that contain unclear comparisons and have them rewrite them to be more specific. For example, a sentence like “The book was more interesting than the other one” could be rewritten as “The book was more interesting than the one I read yesterday.”
In addition to these activities, teachers can also provide their students with examples of well-written comparisons to help them develop a better understanding of how to use comparisons effectively. By incorporating these activities into their curriculum, teachers can help their students avoid common writing mistakes and improve their overall writing skills.