Announcements & Visual Portfolio Assignment

Dear Class,
Sorry we couldn't have class today. After being surrounded by sick roommates and friends for the past few days, I started coughing last night. I actually feel okay, but with all the paranoia about swine flu, I didn't want to risk passing germs on to you all.

So, what do you need to know?

--> We will back to business as usual on Tuesday. Have your extended drafts ready to go and I'll have a checklist of areas to go over before you turn in the final drafts next Thursday.

--> We'll also talk about the RA reading and we'll have our LOP finale discussion on Tuesday.

--> "Ms. Liu, what is the Visual Portfolio assignment??" Good question! You all have examined several different visual portfolios in RA this semester. Now it's up to you to put together your own. Going along with our last unit in RA, the topic is "Religion in America." You can flip through magazines, print pictures off the web, take your own pictures, etc. Minimum: 3-4 pictures. Then, write 1 page (TYPED please) about why you chose the pictures you did--is there some kind of theme or message you were aiming for? Was there some sort of personal link for you? etc. Attach your pictures and turn this in on Tuesday. This will be worth 2 homework assignments.

--> Last presentation group: Be prepared to do your presentation on Tuesday. We WILL squeeze you into the schedule.

--> If you have any questions, just e-mail me or post them here. Have a good weekend!

CHANGE for Thu, 4/23

Dear Class,
Don't forget that we'll be meeting directly at the library (room 827) on THU, 4/23. Also, please keep finding as many sources as you can for Paper #5 and skim through those sources. Because it's so important that you've skimmed through a number of sources this week, I'm not assigning the homework article for tonight--just focus on your Paper #5 research.
See you Thursday!

Changes to Syllabus

Dear Class,
Please don't forget that the calendar on your syllabus has changed. Although all the reading assignments will stay the same, anything that has to do with Paper #5 has been changed--see the Paper #5 prompt for correct dates.

We will NOT be doing the library workshop on Tue, 4/21. Instead, we will meet in our usual classroom. Stay tuned for more changes.

p.s. I will post the Paper #5 prompt at MyGateway in case you still need to get a copy.

Extra Credit

1) If you went to the Holocaust survivor talk today and would like to receive extra credit, post a response (here) in which you discuss what you learned at the talk and what impacted you.
Length: two well-developed paragraphs
Due: by the END OF THIS WEEK

2) I just checked the list and there are TWO WORKSHOPS LEFT at the Writing Center. Whether or not you need the extra credit, I would HIGHLY recommend attending because the topics are ones that would benefit all of you:
--> Thursday, April 23, 3-5PM MLA Documentation and Citation (Doug Eisner) [yes! we all
need a refresher!]
--> Saturday, May 2, 2-4PM Pump Up Your Essays (Sandy Rohr) [this has to do with
expanding your essays when they're not long enough!]

4/2 Change in OH

Dear Class,
My office hours on Thu, 4/2 have been changed to 9-10AM and 2-3PM.

Homework Test & New Extra Credit Opp

For your homework tonight, read LOP & the handout I gave you in class. In addition, click on the link below, choose any of the tests listed, and click on one of the blue buttons to take the test. It should take less than 10 minutes to complete. If you would like extra credit, write one full paragraph about your reactions to your test results here.

https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/demo/selectatest.html

Spring Open Mic Extra Credit

Another extra credit opportunity!!

Our campus is holding its Spring Open Mic on Tuesday 3/31 from 7-9PM in Rooms 224-226 (2nd floor of the building the cafeteria is in).

What's an Open Mic? It's a chance for you all to read pieces of your own writing (poems, songs, stories, essays, anything!) and to hear the writing of your peers on campus. You sign up for a time slot when you arrive and I believe you're limited to 3 minutes of reading. If you went last semester, you know that it's a lot of fun (and there's free food if you get there before they run out--pizza, drinks, cookies).

If you go, make sure you check in with me there and I'll offer extra credit for attending. If you read a piece of your own writing, I'll give you twice the extra credit.

Start choosing your piece of writing now! :)

Post #6: "The Crossing"

For your new blog response, answer the following question on "The Crossing." --> What would you have done if you were in the author's shoes?

Length: One full paragraph
Due: Before our next class meeting

Post #5: 1-2 Things

For your new blog response, please answer the following question--what are 1-2 things that you would like to spend more time on in the next several weeks? (for example, "I would like to work more on coming up with a strong thesis statement for timed essays.")

Due: Before our next class

Post #4 & Important Announcements

Dear Everyone,

Please read this carefully as there is quite a bit of important information here:

1. Your Paper #3 Final Draft is due Thu, 3/12. The electronic copy is due at turnitin.com. The hard copy (with all work + pink writing center slip attached) is due at the HUMANITIES Division office in room 522-O (2nd floor of the 500 building). You will see a large envelope with "Ms. Liu's English 100 7AM Class" on the front. Put your work in there. Do this by NOON on Thursday.

2. In addition to the other readings listed on your syllabus for this week, I would like you to do a blog response. First, do a search (you can try ebscohost, google,...whatever you like) and find an article (at least a full page long) that deals with gender in American society. Look up something's that interesting to *you*. In your blog response, give us the full title of the article, the source (what publication it can be found in), and then explain how this article challenges, complicates, or adds to our ongoing conversation about gender in American society. For example, maybe you think that our society pays a lot of attention to the issue of women and eating disorders but you think that eating disorders and body image are significant issues for men as well--then you can do a search for an article on that topic, read the article, and write your blog response on it.
Length: 2-3 paragraphs
Due: before our next class meeting (3/17)

Week 8 Announcements

Your due dates for Paper #3 have been extended by one class day. However, you still have work due this Thursday. Here are the new due dates:

Thu, 3/5: Come to class with the bibliographic information for 4 sources. Also, skim through those sources before you come to class. I will have you write on those 4 sources during class. Also, please come to class with a revised thesis ready.

Tue, 3/10: Rough draft (min. 2 typed pages, double-spaced)

Thu, 3/12: Final draft (with all work attached) and turnitin.com submission

a few research paper reminders

Just a few reminders for your research papers:
1. Although you do have to use it in your paper, Rereading America does not count as one of your 4 required sources.
2. Your final draft must be 4-5 full pages (not including the Works Cited page).
3. You do need to go the Writing Center for feedback at some point in the writing process for this paper.
4. You do need to address and refute potential counterarguments in the course of your paper.

Research Question Feedback

Do you want feedback on your research question? Go ahead and respond to this post and type in your question. Anyone who offers a thoughtful response to someone else's question will receive extra credit.

Responses don't have to be long; they just need to help the writer.

Things to consider:
--> Does the question address the prompt?
--> Is the question specific enough to address well in 4-5 pages?
--> Will the question lead to a debatable argument (or will it simply provide a list of answers--you don't want a list!)

Due: Before our next class.

Week 7 Announcements

1. Additional HW assignment for tonight: Read through Ch. 6 of Researching and Writing. Write up a bullet-point list of the most important poitns you gleaned from the chapter. Bring this to class on Thursday.

2. No Office Hours on Wed, 2/25. Instead, I will have extended office hours on Thu, 2/26, from 1-4PM.

3. Extra Credit: Go to a restaurant like "Jerry's" and have a meal, dessert, drink. Study the working conditions in the restaurant, paying special attention to the kinds of problems Ehrenreich faced on her shifts. Write a short reflection (2-3 paragraphs) here on this blog. Due: by next Tuesday (3/3).

4. On Thursday, 2/26: GO DIRECTLY TO ROOM 827 (2nd floor of the library). We will have class in there that day. Do NOT come to our regular classroom.

Post #3: Dalton v. Hamblin

For your next post, consider the Dalton and Hamblin articles. Which one do you agree more with? Explain your choice and support your opinion.

Length: 1-2 well-developed paragraphs.
Due: Before our next class.

Post #2: Zoos, School Bullies, and Malcolm X

For your next blog response, answer each of the following questions:

1. Consider Pi's defense of zoos. Do you agree with him? Why/why not?
2. What is "Para Teresa" about??
3. What are your reactions to "Learning to Read"?

Length: At least one well-developed paragraph per question
Due: Before our next class

p.s. Don't forget to bring Researching & Writing to our next class meeting (or bribe someone nice to share with you).
p.p.s. I forgot to mention this today, but your first Extra Credit opportunity of the semester will involve attending a Writing Center workshop and writing a 1-page reflection afterwards. Since the workshops have already started, go ahead and download the Workshop List from MyGateway under our class files. Choose one that you think would really help you as a writer and attend it. I'll give you the details about the 1-page reflection later.

Post #1: First Reading Response

Based on Ch. 1-3 of LOP, how would you describe Pi's character so far?

Length: 1-2 well-developed paragraphs
Due: Before our next class

p.s. To write your response, click on the "comments" link (next to the little pencil icon at the bottom of this post), type your response, click on the dropdown menu and choose "NAME/URL," type your name, and click "Post Comment."