Course Syllabus

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The following is a copy of your schedule of classes taken from your syllabus:

Spring Semester 01/17/11 – 05/10/12

Please note: read The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch and Jeffrey Zaslow by the beginning of class February 14.


Unit I. Defining Good Writing: The Short Article (Chapters 1-3)
During this unit, students should read a major newspaper (hard copy or online) on a regular basis and be sensitive to the way short articles are written. Students should keep a notebook of their reading experiences.


1/17/12
Letter to Students
Overview of the Writing Process
Introduction to the course, text, and classmates.
Diagnostic Skills Test: In-class introductory (diagnostic) essay.
Write: no more than one page on “I Like (Dislike) Who I am Because….” Who are you really? What do you like or dislike about yourself and why? Who/what are you becoming?
Acquire: the course syllabus.


1/19/12
How to Succeed in This Class
Writing and Reading: Diagnostic Punctuation Exercise. In class.
Read: Chapter 1: The Writer’s Process, pages 3-37, 47-49.
Write: Practice 1.4: Freewriting, page 10.
Acquire: Practice 1.3: Keeping a Notebook, page 8.


1/24/12
Writing with Clarity
Grammar Exercise
Read: Chapter 2: Writing with Style and Voice, pages 51-71.
Write: Practice 2.9: Identifying Figurative Language, Sound, and Rhythm, page 69 AND Practice 2.10: Revising for Style, page 70.


1/26/12
Critical Thinking
Grammar Exercise
Read: Chapter 3: Reading, Thinking, and Looking Critically, pages 73-99.
Write: Practice 3:2: Annotation and Outlining, page 80.
Choose Katie Robbins’ essay on page 164 to do this exercise.
Annotate in the margins of the textbook.


Unit II. The Short Article; Brookhaven’s Open Book Project: The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch and Jeffrey Zaslow. We will read the book and discuss it in class. Have the book read by class time February 14.   


1/31/12
The Short Article
Read: Chapter 4: Short Articles: Writing Exposition, pages 101-121.
Write: Assignment, page 103 AND
Read: Writer’s Notebook Suggestions, page 136.


2/2/12
Wednesday’s Presentation Discussion
The Short Article
Read: Chapter 4: Short Articles: Writing Exposition, pages 121-137.
Write: Annotate “Going with the Grain,” pages 123-124.
Review: Chapter 17: Grammar Refresher, pages 669-680.
Write: Practice 17.6 Parts of Speech, page 680.
Review: “Common Editing and Proofreading Marks,” back inside cover of textbook AND page 692.
Begin: The Last Lecture. Finish by 2/14/12.


2/7/12
The Short Article Workshop
Grammar Exercise
Bring to Class: Four copies of short article draft.
In class: Chapter 4, Peer Editing Log, pages 136-137.
Review: Revision Checklist for short article, page 137.


Unit III. Application Essays: Writing for a Specific Audience
This unit introduces limited research to support an application for a grant, a job, an internship, a transfer to another college, a scholarship, or a year studying abroad.  Each student will go before a selection committee of peers who will evaluate your application and you. Your peers will act in their roles as part of the applicant selection process.


2/9/12
Application Essays
Grammar Exercise
Read: Chapter 5: Application Essays: Writing for a Specific Audience, pages 139-152.
Write: Warm-up Practice 5.1: Collaborative Activity, pages 142-143. How well has the writer understood his or her audience?
Choose: an application piece from option “b” of Practice 5.3 Analyzing Prompts, page 146; however, instead of the Office of Exhibits, choose your own place of internship OR focus on a prompt aimed at your personal choice of employment or opportunity to study abroad for a summer OR choose option 2, 5, 6, or 10 from pages 169-170. Essay should be 400-500 words.
Confirm: that you have covered the checklist on page 171: Revision Checklist.


Due: final draft of short article.


2/14/12
Valentine’s Day: A Love Story
The Last Lecture
Discuss: The Last Lecture
How is the book a “love story”?


2/16/12
Application Essays Workshop
Grammar Exercise
Read: Chapter 5: Application Essays: Writing for a Specific Audience, pages 152-171.
Read: “That Other Part,” pages 166-167.
Write: an answer to share with the class from Questions for Writing and Discussion, focusing on question 2, page168.
Consider: Questions 1-7 on pages 167-168, to be discussed in class.
Read: Writing in the Works: Interview with Nitya K. Venkataraman, pages 168-169.
Bring to class: Four copies of application draft (the essay you chose to write on 2/9/12).


2/21/12
Grammar Review
Review: Chapter 17: Grammar Refresher Phrases, Clauses, Sentence Types, pages 683-688.
Write: Practice 17.11 Phrases and Clauses, page 686 AND Practice 17.12 Sentence Types, page 689.


Unit IV. Writing Narratives: Memoirs
During this section on writing narratives, you should read a variety of articles in both print and electronic magazines and newspapers, as well as books. Try to read as many first-person narratives as you can.


2/23/12
Memoirs
Grammar Exercise
Read: Chapter 6: Memoirs: Writing a Narrative, pages 173-187.
Write: Practice 6.7 Show, Don’t Tell, page 186.
Review: Chapter 19: Common Errors, pages 710-731.
Write: Practice 19.2: Agreement, page 717. AND Practice 19:1: Fragments, Fused Sentences, and Comma Splice Errors, page 714 AND Practice 19.3: Pronoun Case, page 721.


Due: final draft of application essay.


2/28/12
Memoirs
Grammar Exercise
Read: Chapter 6: Memoirs: Writing a Narrative, pages 187-208.
Annotate: “Excerpt from What Is the What: The Autobiography of Valentino Achak Deng, A Novel, pages 211-214. In addition to content annotation, include “story arc” annotation, noting the “set up,” announced conflict, incremental developments, rising action, climax, resolution.
Be Prepared: to answer and discuss questions 1-7, pages 214-215.
Write: Chapter 19: Common Errors Practice 19.4: Verb Tense Progression, page 722 AND Practice 19.5: Verb Tense Consistency, page 723.


3/1/12
Memoirs Workshop
Bring to class: four copies of memoir draft
Review: Revision Checklist, page 219.
Review: Peer editing Log, pages 218-219.
In class: Peer edit of memoirs.
Caution: Memoirs can be very intimate and very personal. As a writer, be aware of the peer editing process and carefully choose the content for your memoir. As a peer editor, be aware that your focus is on the writing techniques: look for conflict, setting, character, incremental development (story arc, turning point), and theme. An editor’s job does not include questioning or critiquing the writer’s memories.


3/8/12
Websites
Read: Chapter 11: Websites: Writing for Electronic Sources, pages 387-409.
Review more carefully: “Anatomy of a Webpage,” pages 406-410.
In class: Be prepared: to discuss questions on page 409.
Design: your own website


3/13/12 SPRING BREAK
NO CLASSES


3/15/12 SPRING BREAK
NO CLASSES  


3/20/12
Websites
Browse: Pick a website to critique.
Presentation: Be prepared to present, discuss, and critique a website. You will use the discussion points we covered in class on 3/6/12.
Due: final draft of memoir.


3/22/12
Electronic Messages
Grammar Exercise
Read: Chapter 11: Websites: Writing for Electronic Sources, pages 410-414.
Annotate: The section in your textbook on “E-mail and Instant Messages,” pages 410-411.
Netiquette



3/27/12
Web Design Presentations
Based upon your website design from 3/8/12.



3/29/12
Wed Design Presentations continued
Film Reviews
Retain: your web design info in your notebook.
Read: Chapter 12: Film Reviews: Writing Evaluations, pages 417-432.
Explore: Practice 12.5: Exploring a Website, page 431.


4/3/12
Film Reviews
Read: Film Reviews: Writing Evaluations, pages 432-445.
Annotate: “Little Miss Sunshine: You’re Either on the Family Bus, or You’re Off,” pages 443-445.
Read: “Interview with Roger Eber,” pages 453-455.
Write: Question 1 on page 456 AFTER doing question 3 on page 456. Obviously use the same movie and your clustering to help you organize and write your email.


4/5/12
Movie Time
In-class movie TBD


4/10/12
Movie Time
Complete Movie
Remember: Last Day to Withdraw is April 12.    .
Choose: a current movie that is playing or came out on DVD within the last 24 months and write an email review of it (Due 4/19/12. A copy goes into your notebook and another on our class blog.)
In-class discussion of movie.


Unit V. Putting It All Together: Research PSA Campaign: Analysis of Public Service Advertising and Campaigns
Research data appear in scholarly journals, newspapers, magazines, and online. Begin observing and identifying public service ads, presentations, billboards, bus ads, advocacy websites, etc.  As you observe and learn about PSAs, come up with your own PSA ideas to be used in class.


4/12/12
Last day to withdraw from class.

4/17/12
Public Service Messages: Writing Appeals
See below for more….


Read: Public Service Messages: Writing Appeals, pages 343-385.
Determine: What are the differences between ads meant to sell a service or product and those meant to serve the public?
Read: Public Service Messages: Writing Appeals, pages 366-385.
Do: Practice 10.1 Collaborative Activity, page 346. Bring to class one or two PSA ads you found and graded according to the scorecard on page 346. The ads do not have to score well. The source of the ads is up to you, but be ready to tell the class where the ad appeared. We will discuss them in class.
Warning: The ads you bring to class must be PSA ads, ads that serve the public, seek to change a behavior, create a behavior, and/or raise awareness. The ads should not be selling a product or service.


4/19/12
PSA Research Campaign continued


Choose: a topic for a PSA research topic, page 343. You are going to be a part of a team competing against other class teams. Your topic will be listed on the board along with others. Each team member will be responsible for a different public service message as well as specific areas of the research process. Choose a topic that is close to your heart.
Review: Writing and Revision Strategies, pages 384-385. Look on these pages for help on your choice of a PSA and what it must do to be successful. You may choose to design a website to raise awareness of your PSA.
Note: The sources of the materials used in your PSA campaign must be properly credited. The MLA Style is required.


Due: Film review sent to blog and retained in notebook.

4/24/12
PSA Campaign continued.
Write: Practice 10.10 Write a Pitch Letter, page 376. However, your pitch letter should focus on your own PSA within your team’s campaign and be directed to its appropriate target audience: an advocacy group, website, ad agency, charitable group, etc.


4/26/12
PSA Workshop
Note: Your PSA must be persuasive. The writing must be clear, concise, accurate, and appealing to its audience.  Your PSA will combine images and words to create messages that serve your community by raising the awareness of an issue, initiating a new behavior or attitude, or changing a behavior or attitude.


You will also present your campaign to the class. This session is a time to run through a variety of your ideas and your project plan. The idea is to present a roadmap, an overview, of how you plan to create and present your PSA. This is an in-class discussion opportunity to refine, clarify, redirect, and revise pieces of your campaign. It is also a time to help your peers and to be inspired by the ideas of your classmates.
Bring: Your PSA campaign materials to class. You will work with your team and discuss how all of your materials will fit together to make an effective presentation to the targeted group. Team PSA competition will begin next class with team campaign presentations, selected by lot. Each team member will be responsible for his/her own part of the PSA campaign.


5/1/12
PSA Campaign Presentations
Be prepared: Everyone
Scenario: Each team is waiting to be ushered into its client’s conference room to give its PSA “pitch.”


As determined by lot, the team campaign presentations begin. Time limit is 20 minutes for each team: 5 minutes per team member’s own special PSA focus, with 5 minutes to allow for introductions and conclusions (as determined by each team).
Class members receive two grades: one for the personal presentation and one for the campaign as a whole.


5/3/12
PSA Campaign Presentations
The team campaign presentations continue.


5/8/12
PSAs and Notebooks


Grammar Exam (5%): The exam will cover the types of grammatical issues we covered in our in-class grammar exercises.


Due: your class notebook
Due: your specific PSA evaluation
You should include a page summary of your team’s PSA campaign, the role you played, and your evaluation of the team’s individuals and presentation. Your own specific PSA that you presented should be turned in as a paper or PowerPoint presentation.


Warning: The sources of the materials used in your PSA campaign must be properly credited. The MLA Style is required. After all of your hard work, do NOT pass off anything as being your own when you got it somewhere else!


5/10/12


Exam Essay (5%): You will be given a choice of topics. One essay will be required comprising a minimum of 400 words.


5/14/12
All grades must be posted. As soon as the grades have been tabulated, they will appear on econnect for your viewing.