Chapter 2: Decoding Genre
Key Takeaways and Extensions
Key Takeaways
- Our beliefs about writing and who we are as writers can be helpful, but they can also hold us back
- Academic or scholarly writing is a genre. Genre can be defined as a shared understanding between writers and readers about how to respond to a situation or context. Put simply, genre = situation + form.
- Scholarly writing in STEM disciplines like Forestry and Land and Food Systems shares many “generic” features
- STEM writing often follows a clear organization: IMRAD (Introduction, Methods, Results, Analysis, Discussion)
Extension: Love Letters and Recipes
RECIPES
- Write down the instructions for a favourite recipe. Maybe this is a family recipe, the first recipe you ever made, or the best thing you’ve ever tasted. Pay special attention to the conventions of genre when writing down your recipe. Who is your audience? How will this be shared? Will there be photos, video, or will it be written on an index card to be tucked away in a recipe box?
- Create a playlist to last for the duration of the cooking (i.e. if the recipe takes 30 minutes to make, create a 30 minute playlist).
- Share your recipe and playlist with a friend or family member.
LOVE LETTERS
- Following the genre conventions of a love letter, write a love letter to a favourite tree or plant
- Take a photo of your love letter and share it on Instagram or print it out and anonymously post it in a public place.
