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Best Back to School Supplies Lists 2017 by Grade Level

The beginning of the school year is also a time of excitement and nervousness. Kids don't want to go back to school, parents can't wait until they have free time again, and teachers are busy getting lesson plans together for the school year. On top of all of this, parents need to make sure that their kids have the right school supplies so there's also back to school shopping. Back to school sales are everywhere trying to get you to buy everything even if your kids are never going to use them. Below we've listed out the best back to school supplies you'll probably need to buy for your kids so that you have the essentials for school, but nothing extra. We've organized this list by grade level so that you can easily find the school supplies list your kids will need. Please Note: While fidget spinners have become increasingly popular, these are not a recommended school supplies item. There has been no proof scientifically that fidget spinners are an effective treatment for ADHD, autism, or any other focus issues. Kindergarten School Supplies Crayons (from $6 on Amazon) Color Pencils (from $5 on Amazon) Pencil Box (from $5 on Amazon) Blunt-tipped Scissors (from $4 on Amazon) Glue sticks (from $2 on Amazon) No.2 Pencils (from $2 on Amazon) Pencil sharpener (from $3 on Amazon) Assorted construction paper (from $3 on Amazon) Erasers (from $2 on Amazon) Washable Markers (from $9 on Amazon) Wide-ruled notebook or pad (from $6 on Amazon) Backpack (from $15 on Amazon) Hand Sanitizer (from $2 on Amazon) Lunchbox (from $12 on Amazon) Elementary School: [...]

2017-08-22T17:53:23+00:00 Blog, Students|0 Comments
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Best Gifts for Writers 2017

Are you looking for a gift for your favorite writer?  Whether it's for Christmas, a birthday, or something else, you've come to the right place. As a community of writers, we can tell you the best gifts for writers. Below we've listed ten gift ideas for your favorite writer. While we have tried to provide gift options that will work for most people, we recommend that you only use the following list as a way to get ideas for gifts. You will want to buy a gift that you know will delight your writer. 1. Notebook As one of the de facto best gifts for writers, the classic notebook is a must. There are so many options to choose from it can often be overwhelming. We recommend looking for a style that you think your favorite writer will like. Moleskine notebooks generally fit the bill pretty well as gifts for writers. You'll want to make sure that the notebook is small enough that it can easily be carried around and stylish enough that your favorite writer won't be embarrassed to be carrying it around. Click Here for Details and Reviews on Amazon 2. A Cure for Writer's Block Most writers will encounter writer's block occasionally if not on a daily basis. Why not get them a gift that will cure their writer's block? This literal block features over 780 ideas to help your writer overcome their momentary inability to write. They can simply open this block anytime they are stuck and they will instantly get ideas for writing. This 3"x3"x3" is so portable and small that it [...]

2017-09-21T17:37:19+00:00 Blog, Writing|1 Comment
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How to Write a Descriptive Essay

Essay writing is part of any academic activity. From grade school through college, you will often be asked to write descriptive essays so it's important to understand what a descriptive essay is and how to write one. What exactly is a descriptive essay? It is a type of essay that requires the writer to describe something whether that thing is an object, a person, experience, or a situation. Through descriptive writing, the writer describes the situation in such a way that the reader can see and feel the situation, almost as if the reader is interacting with the object or thing as they read. All of the human senses are given importance while writing such an essay. The reader is able to understand the situation clearly because of illustrative language and the writer should be able to convey the same using crisp and clear language.   Steps to Writing a Descriptive Essay How to write a descriptive essay is something that most of the students and first-time writers ponder when they first are asked to write a descriptive essay. They may have a situation in hand, but conveying the same to the reader without losing the situation's true essence is tricky. Here are seven steps you should follow to write a descriptive essay that conveys the idea in your mind: Understand the audience: The first and foremost step to writing a descriptive essay is to understand the audience for whom you are writing. The tone of the essay depends on the audience. If the audience is small children, then the description should contain simple words that small children are able to comprehend. For a more [...]

2017-06-30T06:49:27+00:00 Blog, Writing|0 Comments
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Canceled or Cancelled?

  The English language can play tricks on unsuspecting minds. One word may sound similar to the other but it could mean a totally different thing. There’s rug and rag. There’s pick and peek. One of the most common grammar problems in English is the use of canceled vs cancelled. Which is correct? How do you spell cancelled (canceled)? Is it really canceled or cancelled?   The spelling really depends on which version of the English language you use. American English uses “canceled” with a single “l”. It follows the general rule of appending “-ed” to the end of the verb if the word ends in a consonant.   However, British English spells "cancelled” with “ll.” The British do still spell "cancel" with only one "l" though and there is only one correct spelling of "cancellation" regardless of which style of English you use.   Americans prefer to use one L while the British prefer to use two Ls. According to Grammar Girl, the difference in usage of cancelled or canceled can be attributed to the influence of Noah Webster in shaping the American English Language as we know today.   The AP Stylebook, predominantly American, uses “canceled." Therefore, most American publications and papers written for an American audience use “canceled” in their writing. In addition to this, Mr. Webster has also incorporated standard American spellings that use shorter words compared to its British counterpart. There’s color vs colour, flavor vs flavour and favor vs favour.   By principle, both canceled and cancelled are correct. However, you need to keep in mind your audience and which method they will prefer. Even if you are used to American English, if you are writing [...]

2017-07-13T01:37:13+00:00 Grammar|0 Comments
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How to Overcome Writer’s Block

Writer's block is inescapable and happens to nearly everyone. Regardless of whether you are a prolific writer or amateur, sometimes putting down your thoughts on paper or a blank computer screen can be an uphill battle. If you have ever experienced it, you will probably agree that writer’s block can leave you stuck. In this article, we hope to give you some creative ways to overcome writer's block so you can get back to writing. You may have faced writer's block when you first started writing or after you've already written several chapters. It doesn't matter; it affects us in the same way. Writer's block traps your mind, leaving you with little creative ability. Despite knowing what to say, it becomes hard to put it in words.   Common Causes of Writer's Block The common causes of writer’s block include poor timing, perfectionism, and fear. Poor timing: Sometimes you feel that it is not the right time to do your writing or you are just too late in writing your piece. This is when you lose your ideas, and you end up procrastinating. Usually, in this case, you may need to spend some time processing your ideas. The idea of perfectionism: This is when you want your writing to be perfect. You end up spending too much time fleshing out your ideas. Perfectionism can be very tempting, but if your writing isn't done correctly, you may end up writing nothing at the end. Fear: This is horrible and happens to all of us. You don’t want your audience and others to criticize your piece. In fact, fear, even the mere thought of it, is the big reason [...]

2017-06-08T05:41:25+00:00 Blog, Writing|0 Comments
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Hanged vs Hung

There is a lot of confusion surrounding the use of the word "hang" and its tenses. The question here is, are these words interchangeable? And if they are not, what is the difference between hanged vs. hung? Should you use hanged or hung when referring to that picture on the wall? The main point to remember is that hung is used when referring to inanimate objects while hanged when referring to people. Hang is the present tense form and means to suspend, decline downward or to cling tightly to something. Hanged is the past tense as well as past participle of hang. Hanged in most cases is used to refer to death by hanging. For example, in a sentence, we can say, The traitor was hanged in the public square. The word hanged has a very specific use. Hung is another frequently used word. It is a regular past tense of hang. In fact, it is used more often than hanged. In a sentence, we can say that: She hung the picture on the wall Hung is used with all the inanimate objects like shelves, paintings or ornaments. Most people claim that the two words can be used interchangeably especially when referring to putting people to death. However, it is less customary to use the two interchangeably in Standard English. Hung might be the conventional word to use if referring to hanging someone out of malice but without intending to kill or put to death. It is also vital to understand the origin of these two words. A majority of us wonder why there is two past tense for the same word. According to The New [...]

2017-05-30T08:09:23+00:00 Grammar|0 Comments
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8 Best Laptops for College Students

Are you looking for a new laptop for college? You have come to the right place. We have evaluated a number of laptops that our visitors use at college everyday. Continue reading for the best laptops for college students. Preparing for college can be stressful enough without having to decide which laptop to buy. Since most colleges require a laptop these days, it is necessary that you buy the right laptop with the right specs. Most colleges will give you the required specs of the laptops they allow, but we've gone a step further with this article to recommend laptops that not only meet the requirements of colleges, but generally exceed them. Given that most college students need to be mobile, we will keep this list to only laptops, but you can certainly get a desktop for college as well when you need more computing power in your dorm. The following guide of best laptops for college students is geared towards students who need lightweight laptop options to take to class, but anyone is free to read our guide. Before we begin, let us define what makes a great laptop for college students: What makes a great laptop for college students? Buying a new laptop can be a challenge if you aren't familiar with what specs are required. Most colleges will provide these specs, but here's an overview of what specifications you should be looking for in a new college laptop. The eight key things you need to look for when buying a new laptop are below: Recommended laptop configuration for college students: Storage: These days, at least 250GB is ideal. If you travel a lot, you may want [...]

2017-08-22T18:05:38+00:00 Blog, Writing|0 Comments
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8 Best Laptops for Writers 2017

Are you wondering what the best laptop for a writer is? Or just browsing laptop possibilities? You have come to the right place. As a web tool catered to writers of all kinds, we are uniquely able to tell you which laptops are best for writers. With each laptop review, we will also tell you for what writing the laptop is suited, be it for writing books, novels, notes, business proposals, etc.

2017-06-21T06:58:52+00:00 Blog, Writing|1 Comment
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Making a case for letter case

John Saito, a writer at Dropbox, recently posted on Medium a great article describing the reasons people and apps use title case and sentence case. If you haven't tried our title capitalization tool yet, we allow you to do both. John argues that while title case creates a nice symmetrical pattern for short sentences, sentence case creates a more casual and inviting visual appearances, something modern brands, such as Dropbox, will want to use. Additionally, he argues that Title Case actually makes picking out proper nouns in short sentences extremely difficult. In the example he gives below, he argues that users may not realize the "Calendar" app refers to a named app or just any generic calendar app. Source: Medium   Another interesting fact John talks about is that Google and Apple use different case styles: If you’re an Apple user, you’ll notice a lot of title case throughout their products. That’s because Apple’s design guidelines recommend title case for many UI elements, including alert titles, menu items, and buttons. If you’re a Google user, you’ll see a lot more sentence case throughout their products. And that’s because Google’s design guidelines recommend sentence case for almost everything. Source: Medium To read the full article, head over to Medium.  

2017-05-06T14:02:57+00:00 Blog, Formatting, Title Capitalization|2 Comments
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