Inclusive of the scope and authoritative references from earlier editions, this edition additionally embraces the digital world and provides practical suggestions for performing the "act of teaching."

Teachers of writing at all levels will applaud this edition for its new features designed to help teachers to understand and teach to today's new paradigms in writing. New to this edition are two chapters on cognition and technology, respectively; a chapter on early literacy, with student samples; and, for the first time, an online connection that links readers to important articles, visuals, and resources.

Essay writing is explored through discussion of the thesis and its criteria; five organizational patterns for the expository essay; and distinctions among the opinion, persuasive, and argumentative essay. Several new prewriting strategies are also provided: A Sense Notebook, Looking, Contouring, an expanded explanation of Blueprinting, and a discussion of a hierarchical approach to organization.