Write in formal academic style with deliberate register control (CCSS L.8.3; W.8.4)

Produce prose in formal academic register: third-person default; precise modifiers; varied sentence openings; deliberate active/passive choice; no contractions; signposting; purposive meta-discourse. Code-switch between formal and conversational register as the task demands. Treat academic style as a learnable code (Graff), not a hidden gift.

Mastery threshold

85%

Min instances

Typical minutes

Spaced intervals (days)

1, 3, 7, 14, 30

Prereqs

Cut throat-clearers, hedge stacks, and empty filler from analytical writing (CCSS L.7.3.a applied)

Successors

Common misconceptions

Treats 'formal' as 'inflated' — substitutes long words for clear words ('utilize' for 'use', 'commence' for 'start').
Believes formal style forbids first-person — uses awkward third-person workarounds even when self-reference is appropriate.

Exercise pool (3)

Diff	Stem	Type
2	Revise these 5 conversational-register sentences into formal academic register. Apply at least 3 of the 9 features (third-person...	register revision
3	Audit one paragraph of your synthesis essay draft against the 9 features of formal academic style. For each feature: present? absent? deliberate?	academic style audit
4	Audit 5 sentences for nominalization. For each, apply Williams's actor-action routine. Revise where nominalization doesn't earn its...	nominalization audit