Well Good advice. But still unable to get Idea or moving to start to write essay I am worried to take my test on January 15th . and I need to start or just giving up. I did try reading every day for one month and copying others. Or, what was the other word for copying statements making it your own?
Still having hard time to come up with an idea to write!

Okay, Vic, here’s some more advice! Hopefully we can get you going:

You’ve worked from some other people’s essays… now it’s time to start one on your own. Take some GED essay topics (see below) and try starting from scratch. Sit down with one of them and think about how it relates to your life, what you think about it, what it makes you think of. Seriously, don’t worry at all about what exactly you should write, just start getting ideas out there. That’s what all the freewriting and word webs come down to… getting SOME ideas down on paper, whatever they are.

Once you have some ideas to work on, then you can start to organize them into an essay, pick the ones you like, don’t use the ones you don’t like. It might take you some time to think of things at first. Don’t worry about the time right away. Just start with ANY ideas, even if you don’t think they’re very good. It doesn’t have to be perfect… and getting started is more important than making it perfect or even great.

So, work all the way through writing one, no matter how long it takes. Then, practice with other topics, and try to bring your time down. Here’s a list of topics to work with:

Topic 1
What are three qualities you value in a friend?
In your essay, describe those qualities and explain why they are important to you. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge to support your essay.

Topic 2
Many American children watch 3 or more hours of television a day.
Is watching television a good or bad influence on children? Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge to support your essay.

Topic 3
What would your perfect job be?
In your essay, identify your perfect job and explain why that job would be perfect for you. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge to support your essay.

Topic 4
Why do you want to get your GED certificate?
In your essay, explain what you hope to gain by passing the GED. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge to support your essay.

Topic 5
A picture is worth a thousand words.
Think of a time when a picture or image was important in communicating to you. Tell about that time and explain how the picture or image was important. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge to support your essay.

Topic 6
Would you rather own a truck or a passenger car?
In your essay, explain why one vehicle would be better for you. Explain advantages and disadvantages of each kind. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge to support your essay.

Topic 7
How has the invention of the Internet affected everyday life?
In your essay, explain how the Internet has affected you and the world around you. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge to support your essay.

Topic 8
What is the most important invention?
Choose an invention that has affected your life and explain why you think it’s the most important invention. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge to support your essay.

Topic 9
What is the greatest problem facing our country today?
Explain what issue you believe is most important to our country and why it is important to deal with this issue. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge to support your essay.

Topic 10
Two-thirds of US adults are overweight or obese.
In your essay, explain what factors cause American adults to become and stay overweight. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge to support your essay.

Im takeing my test next week,and I have a question about,how I start out an essay.Im also a little nervouse about,when they give you a topic,you have to write about it,my brain kinda freezes up.what if I can’t think of anything?How do I go about this? Please help!

Hi, Tanya! I know the essay can be a little intimidating. Here are some things to help…

1)Try to think of some things in advance, that you might use on your essay. You don’t know what the question will be, but you can think of some things that might help, like:
–Who are some people you admire, and why?
–What’s important to you in life? What are your goals?
–What are some important events that happened to you, that really made you think or taught you something?
–What’s an important world event that has a special meaning or memory for you?

Thinking about these kinds of questions gets your juices going… you  might find that you can use them in your essay, or else it’s just good practice!

Also, here are some techniques you can use to brainstorm while you’re in the test. Practice these before the test on some of the questions above, or other practice GED prompts…

1) Freewriting… write down the question and just write for 3-4 minutes, whatever comes into your head. Don’t even worry if it’s a good idea!

2) Listing… write a list of as many things related to the idea as you can think of.

3) Word Web… write the main idea in the center. Then, draw 3-4 lines from the center, connecting to 3-4 related ideas. Write 3 details or new ideas about each related idea.

4) Questioning… write 3-4 questions about the topic, and then try to answer them.

5) Try answering these questions about the topic (and add more if you can think of them!):
–What’s my feeling or opinion about this topic?
–Who’s a person I know who taught me something about this topic?
–What’s a memory I have about this topic?
–How is this topic related to my life?

That will give you some ideas to start organizing into an essay. Some techniques work better for some people, so try these out to see what works best for you. Practicing beforehand really helps, so you’ll have your essay-writing muscles all flexed and ready to go!

Also, it’s really important to try to relax. That means, eat a good breakfast. Get plenty of sleep the night before. Bring some good snacks and water along. Wear comfortable clothes. And don’t worry! Just concentrate on your essay.

Good luck!
Liz

I came up with a list of ways you can prewrite:

Questions

A good way to get ideas is to ask a lot of questions. What would you want to know, if you were reading the essay? What questions does the issue raise for you?

Brainstorm

Brainstorming means to just write down whatever comes into your head, anywhere on a piece of paper. It’s easier to do with a friend, but you can practice brainstorming on your own. Some people even like to doodle in their brainstorming!

Freewriting

Freewriting means that you just pick up your pencil and start writing on the topic. Write anything that comes to mind! Then, you can use your freewriting as ideas to write an organized draft.

Visualizing

If you’re a visual person like Dwaynee and like pictures, you can close your eyes and try to picture things related to what you’re writing about. You can draw pictures or sketches about what you want to say, and then use that to help you find the right words!

List of Ideas

This is just writing down your ideas in a list. Then, you can organize them later. You can put your ideas in an outline or an idea web…

Outline

An outline gives structure to what you’re going to write. You might write:

1. Introduction: (then your ideas for the introduction.)
2. Paragraph 1: (main idea)

• a. (detail a)
• b. (detail b)

… and keep going like that until you get to the end. I like outlines, because you can just follow down the whole outline as you write. It’s already got the structure!

Idea Web

An idea web is more visual, so Dwayne likes it a lot. You can start with your idea in a circle in the center, and then use lines to connect it to related ideas. Then, you can connect other ideas to those related ideas… so you end up with a web. Here’s more information on idea webs: http://www.inspiration.com/vlearning/index.cfm?fuseaction=webs

Remember, it doesn’t matter how you prewrite… do what works for you. So, practice a few different ways and find out what you like best.