UNIT: MEASUREMENT

ACT-Based English: Sentence Clarity in Technical Writing

OBJECTIVE:

This activity helps students refine sentence clarity and conciseness in technical writing by rewriting poorly structured measurement-related sentences.

MATERIALS NEEDED:

List of unclear or wordy measurement-related sentences (provided)

Editing worksheet (to track revisions and reasons)

Peer review checklist

Pens, highlighters, or digital editing tools

STUDENT DIRECTIONS:

Goal:

In this activity, you will practice revising unclear or wordy technical sentences to make them concise, grammatically correct, and easy to understand—a skill that’s important in STEM fields and on the ACT English section.

Step 1: Read the Sentences Carefully

Review each sentence from the provided list of technical statements.

Highlight or underline parts that are:

Wordy or repetitive

Grammatically incorrect

Confusing or awkward

Too passive or vague

Step 2: Rewrite Each Sentence
On your Editing Worksheet, rewrite each sentence so that it is:

✅ Clear and direct

✅ Free of unnecessary words or phrases

✅ Grammatically correct

✅ Technically accurate

✅ Written in active voice when appropriate

💡 TIP: Ask yourself—how would a scientist or engineer clearly communicate this?

Example:

Original: "The ruler, which was used by the student for measuring the object’s length, was sometimes not aligned properly, which resulted in errors in the measurements."

Revised: "Misalignment of the ruler led to measurement errors."

Things Needed to Prepare:

List of wordy or unclear sentences

Editing worksheet

Peer review checklist