Over 1,000 Windows 95 Programs/Over 1000 Windows 95 Programs (Microforum) (Disc 2).iso/0225/winguide.txt

Text File | 1997-03-26 | 11.5 KB | 286 lines

Trial Program Guide

WRITING STYLE DEMONS
Skill levels 7 - 10

Trial version: Level 2 (Limited sample)

Complete program: 3 levels
Level 1: for the below-level to average student
Level 2: for the average to good student
Level 3: for the good to excellent student

Windows or MS-DOS (VGA display)

Designed for students in grades seven and up at different levels of
writing proficiency, the program can be used as well by advanced ESL
students.

Each level contains many Writing Style Demons, or topics. The program
helps students recognize common problems in writing style. Sentences
contain up to four highlighted choices, one of which may be identified as
faulty sentence structure, unclear meaning, illogical thought, grammatical
shift, or one of several other writing problems. The program provides
explanations that teach the underlying grammatical concepts. Each lesson
is self-directing.

NOTE: The program includes a game and an individual Demon drill. We
recommend that students play the game first so that the teacher can
identify those Demons that present problems to the student. The Record
Management program will show the number of times the student has played
each Demon. The drill may then be used for extra help for those students
who need it. For the School version of the program there is a hide/show
feature that permits teachers to activate or deactivate the Customized
Drill.

OVERVIEW

The Writing Style Demons program provides practice at different levels of
difficulty.

Level 1 has 12 Demons with two highlighted words or phrases per sentence.
Level 2 has 12 Demons with two or three highlighted words or phrases per
sentence. Level 3 has 12 Demons with three or four highlighted words or
phrases per sentence. All texts also include a `No Error' option.

MOUSE OPTION

You may use the mouse, or the keyboard, as soon as the first exercise
appears on the screen.

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The student is asked to use the mouse or Tab key to select a highlighted,
incorrect word or phrase in a sentence, or to choose the `No Error' option
if the sentence is correct. After the student responds s/he is shown the
correct sentence and is given the grammatical reason(s) for the correct
answer. If the student answers correctly, s/he receives a congratulatory
word or a graphic reward.

After logging in his/her name the student is offered two options:
1. Play a round of Demons (game). 2. Work on a customized drill.

Demons Game: The Demons are presented to the student in the same order
in which they are listed in the program guide. In each round, the student
is given twelve sentences which cover the material for four Demons. There
are three randomly selected sentences per Demon. To master a Demon, the
student must choose the correct answer for all three sentences in the
round. Until the student gets the three sentences correct, s/he will
continue to receive sentences for that Demon in subsequent rounds.

For the final round, if fewer than four Demons remain unmastered in the
game, the round will include only those Demons still unmastered.

PROGRAM HELP FEATURES

The program provides three help features. First, the sentence appears in
its correct form, regardless of the student's answer. Second, the computer
gives the grammatical reason(s) for the correct answer. The third feature,
the individual Demon drill, gives the student the opportunity to focus on
specific troublesome Demons. From the drill menu, the student may choose
up to four Demons to work on per round. There are three sentences for each
Demon. A star next to a Demon on the menu indicates that the student has
mastered that Demon. Starred Demons may be chosen for additional drill.

SCORING

Scores for mastered Demons in the game and drill are recorded. When a
Demon is mastered in the game it is starred on the customized drill menu
and will not reappear in the game. Starred Demons may be chosen for
additional drill. However, if the student does not remaster the Demon the
star is removed and the Demon reappears in the game.

Students may choose to exit the program at any time during a round. Even
if the round is not completed, a Demon is scored as `mastered' if the
student's answers are correct for that Demon's three sentences.

If a student masters all Demons and chooses to play again, the record
manager will add `M' for `mastered' after the student's last name. The
student's name will then appear again for subsequent rounds.

RECORD MANAGEMENT

To see student records, run RECORD from the directory, or press [CONTROL]T
while at the title screen.

The default directory for the windows trial version is:
     c:\MAVDEMO\WSTY*-WTD\RECORD.EXE

This version saves records for only two students. A third name will
automatically replace a previously entered name. (The single user School
version saves records for as many students as disk space allows. The
Network version saves records for 1,000 students.)

The records can go to the screen or the printer. You may see the records
of the entire class, or choose an individual student's scores. If you
choose to look at the scores of the entire class, you may have them
displayed in alphabetical order or from highest to lowest.

Use the following keys to make your selections:

ALT: Allows you to choose items in the Top Menu: (1)Order (2)View
(3)Select (4)Print (5)Delete (6)Exit. In each of the first three options,
you will have the choice of selecting records from the Pull Down Menu by
name, date, skills mastered, or class code.

TAB: Changes the category of information that is displayed in a fixed
cycle, e.g., from students' names to last dates played, to highest
mastered skill levels, to class codes, to a student's entire record and
then back again to the students' names.

ENTER:Selects or deselects any piece of information on which the cursor
is placed. Selected items can be viewed, printed, or deleted as a group.
They appear on the screen highlighted in red.

Screen Layout:  Instructions are placed in color boxes at the bottom of
the screen. The number appearing at the end of the last line of
instructions on the screen indicates the position of the cursor in the
total number of records. Just before this number is a description of what
information is being displayed, e.g., name, date, etc.

Moving the Cursor: To move the cursor use the arrow keys. To see preceding
screens, use the Page Up key. To go to following screens, use the Page
Down key. To go to the beginning of a list, press the Home key. To get to
the end of a list, press the End key.

To See Records: All information may be viewed on the screen or printed
out. To clear previously selected records, choose Select from the Top Menu
and Deselect from the Pull Down Menu. Note that your viewing selections
are cleared each time the program is restarted or the computer is turned
off.

Examples

1. To print out the records of one class, follow these directions:

     Top Menu     Pull Down Menu    Other Keys     Remarks/Actions

ALT   Select          Class         Cursor keys    Find the beginning of
                                                   the class

                                    ENTER          Mark the beginning of
                                                   the class

                                    Cursor keys    Find the end of the
                                                   class

                                    ENTER          Mark the end of the
                                                   class

ALT   View            Selected                     Now only that class is
                                                   displayed. (Repeating
                                                   this step would restore
                                                   screen as it was.)

ALT   Order           Name                         Class now alphabetized

ALT   Print           Selected                     Printing is optional.
                                                   Information can be
                                                   viewed on the screen.

2. To print the highest (or lowest) skill level, follow the steps
above, replacing Class, from the Pull Down Menu, with Mastered.

3. To see the records of all students in a range on the screen, choose
View from the Top Menu and choose Entire from the Pull Down Menu.

4.  To see the records of an individual student on the screen, place
the cursor on the name of the student whose records you want to view,
and press TAB to change the information displayed.

ERROR FIX

If the program runs but does not keep student records properly, or if
some streaks appear in the Demons graphics, access the RECORD program
and delete all records.

WRITING STYLE DEMONS

LEVEL 1

 1. Misplaced modifiers, I
 2. Sentence fragments, I
 3. Misuse of conjunctions, I
 4. Shifts in tense
 5. Illogical comparisons
 6. Lack of agreement (pronoun/antecedent)
 7. Mixed constructions
 8. Lack of agreement (subject/verb), I
 9. Comma fault
10. Dangling modifiers, I
11. Unclear pronoun reference
12. Superfluous words

LEVEL 2

 1. Faulty parallelism, I
 2. Misplaced modifiers, II
 3. Lack of agreement (subject/verb), II
 4. Sentence fragments, II
 5. Shifts in person
 6. Dangling modifiers, II
 7. Misuse of conjunctions, II
 8. Run-on sentences
 9. Omitted prepositions
10. Split constructions, I
11. Squinting modifiers
12. Weak pronoun reference

LEVEL 3

 1. Omitted verbs
 2. Misplaced modifiers, III
 3. Misuse of conjunctions, III
 4. Split constructions, II
 5. Sentence fragments, III
 6. Shifts in voice
 7. Incomplete comparisons
 8. Faulty parallelism, II
 9. Faulty tense
10. Faulty coordination
11. Misuse of conjunctions, IV
12. Sentence fragments, IV

Copyright 1994-1996 Merit Audio Visual
All rights reserved GTDR
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

We hope you enjoy previewing WRITING STYLE DEMONS. The School version
of the program contains the following:

1. Three levels of exercises

2. Record management for as many students as disk space allows

3. A hide/show feature for the Customized Drill

4. A teacher's guide

Merit offers a full range of educational software for writing, reading,
grammar, vocabulary, ESL, and math. Merit also offers networking for
Novell and other LAN, and licensing. School or Institutional Purchase
Orders accepted.

We will be happy to answer any questions you might have.

MERIT AUDIO VISUAL

[phone]    [phone]    FAX: [phone]

Call us Monday through Friday between 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM Eastern Time.
Or write MERIT AUDIO VISUAL, 132 W. 21 Street, New York, NY 10011, for
free software catalog.


This program is produced by a member of the Association of Shareware
Professionals (ASP). ASP wants to make sure that the shareware principle
works for you.  If you are unable to resolve a shareware-related problem
with an ASP member by contacting the member directly, ASP may be able to
help.  The ASP Ombudsman can help you resolve a dispute or problem with
an ASP member, but does not provide technical support for members'
products.  Please write to the ASP Ombudsman at 545 Grover Road, Muskegon,
MI 49442-9427 USA, FAX [phone] or send a Compuserve message via
CompuServe Mail to ASP Ombudsman 70007,3536.