It is about as important for high school students to be able to
write a formal outline as it is for them to be able to groom a dinosaur.
After high school English class, if most folks outline something,
they typically use an informal
outline. Word processing software can put in the outline
format symbols to transform the informal outline to hoity-toity
formality.
Limit levels
Outlines aren't supposed to be activities. They are supposed to
be tools. It is pointless to have 18 subdivisions just to
show off the fact that you know the formal outlining codes for 18
subdivisions.
The few places where I�ve seen classical outlines used outside
the classroom, they have been limited to at most three levels
of detail instead of the five or six shown in English textbooks.
For the papers my students write (under 10 pages), two levels of
detail are plenty. I suspect the same will be true for you. However,
I have a chart showing the outline
numbering scheme if you need to know it.
Limit information
It's also pointless to have outlines that say everything a writer
intends to put in a paper. Outlines are supposed to be, well, outlines.
Outlines for 3-5 page essays typically have fewer than
a dozen points. Usually there are three main points (Roman numeral
level), with an average of three subpoints (A-B-C-level) for each.
Besides showing which points are the really important ones and
which ones are of lesser importance, the outline also suggests how
much must be said about one subtopic compared to another.
If the first main point has two subpoints and the second main
point has seven subpoints, readers expect the discussion of the
second point will take longer than the discussion of the first point.
Teaching tip
A good word processing program can transform an informal
outline into a formal outline, supplying the correct symbols and
lining up the periods even if there are more than three Roman-numbered
points.
All the writer needs to do is type all his/her points each followed
by a hard return made with the enter key. Once all the points are
keyed in in order, the writer follows the word processor's directions
for formal outline formatting.
You may be able to simplify your life even further by handing the
computer technology teacher the job of teaching your writing students
to use the software.
Your time is better spent teaching students to use writing skeletons™
or other informal outlines as tools for planning their writing.
