Category: Class Notes

Today we reviewed the expectations for the Midterm Exam, and how to prepare for it.

We went over the basic 5-paragraph essay structure, incorporating sources into your essays, and evaluating/writing effective thesis statements.

We also read and discussed responding to a sample midterm article, titled “Hello, Stranger.”

Homework:

1) Complete your 5-paragraph essay response to “Hello, Stranger” that you started in class. Due 10/1.

2) Continue to revise your Personal Narrative essay. Due in class on 10/3. Please see previous post from 9/24 on what you need to hand in. Papers that are missing any of the listed components will not be accepted and incur a late penalty.

3) REMINDER: Summary and reading response for New York Times article is due on Monday, 10/1. (See post from 9/17 for full instructions.)

4) Do the readings for Topic 3. Verb Tense & Who vs. Whom in our Grammar Guide. The next quiz will be during Week 7. Please ensure you do the readings and the practice examples, especially if you’ve been getting low quiz marks. Bring any questions you have to class prior to the quiz.

Today’s class was devoted to the peer review workshop for the Personal Narrative essay. Students must complete the Peer Review worksheet started in class and return it back to his/her partner by Wednesday, 9/26. Please let me know if you do not receive this worksheet back by then.

Homework

1) Revise Personal Narrative essay based on Peer Review workshop. Essays are due in class on Wednesday, 10/3 at the beginning of class.

I strongly recommend that everyone make an appointment with a tutor at the Learning Center as you go about revising your essays. This will help you to earn a higher grade. Bring the assignment sheet and your draft to your tutoring session.

Note, on 10/3, you must turn in the following, paper clipped together in the order stated below (do not hand them in loose):
a) a paragraph that briefly states what your story is about, how you characterized your neighborhood, the role of your neighborhood in the story in changing/shaping you, and the lesson/insight you want readers to get from reading your story
b) final draft
c) the inspiration photo
d) the feedback sheet filled out by your group member during the workshop (if you participated)
e) a signed slip from your Learning Center tutor that you attended a session (if applicable)

Also, make sure you follow the directions for properly formatting your paper (see the syllabus). Your paper will not be accepted if you are missing any of the above materials or if you do not follow the appropriate guidelines for formatting papers (margins, heading, spacing, font, etc.).

2) Print and read all of the readings in Unit 3 for 9/26. (**NOTE: The third reading on “Thesis Statements” is a one-page PDF with links to 5 additional readings (which you must also print and read).

3) REMINDER: Summary and reading response for New York Times article is due on Monday, 10/1.

4) Do the readings for Topic 3. Verb Tense & Who vs. Whom in our Grammar Guide. The next quiz will be during Week 7. Please ensure you do the readings and the practice examples, especially if you’ve been getting low quiz marks. Bring any questions you have to class prior to the quiz.

Today, we discussed the three sample personal narratives by Sherman Alexie, Anna Quindlen, and Colson Whitehead.

Homework:

1) No classes on Wednesday, 9/19. Our next class is Monday, 9/24.

2) Complete the first full draft of your personal narrative AND print 3 copies for class on Monday, 9/24. You must bring 3 copies of your Personal Narrative draft in order to participate and received credit for the peer review workshop. If you arrive more than 15 minutes late, or do not have 3 printed copies of your essay with you, then you will be marked absent and not be able to participate.

3) Complete the readings for Topic 2: Subject-Verb Agreement & Comma Usage in the Grammar Guide. Be prepared for our next in-class quiz on 9/26.

4) DUE DATE: Monday, October 1

Using your NY Times subscription, select any article published in September 2018, print out the article, and read it. Afterwards, you will need to type a summary of the article and a reading response. The typed summary and reading response AND the article must be turned in on Oct. 1.

Summary Paragraph:

1. Begin by stating the author’s name, the title of the article, and the article’s main point: a. In “Latinos in Santa Cruz County” Juan Mendoza describes the range of jobs Latinos work at in Santa Cruz county.

We began by going over the assignment sheet for Essay 1: Personal Narrative. Then students began filling out the Personal Narrative Pre-Writing Worksheet using their neighborhood photos as inspiration.

We also discussed “A Coney Island of the Mind” by Katie Roiphe as a great example of: (1) using present tense to slow down and put us in the moments of her story; (2) making the setting of Coney Island an individual character – we could feel exactly what the historic Brooklyn neighborhood looks, sounds, and feels like!; and (3) character development (showing us how a character changes through a particular turning point in her life).

Homework:

(1) Using the Personal Narrative Pre-Writing Worksheet that you completed in class, write your personal narrative introduction. This introduction will need to be posted online before 12pm on Sunday, September 16. Details can be found by clicking the “Discussion” tab, then clicking “Personal Narrative Introductions.”

(2) Print, read and annotate “The Way We Live Now: 11-11-01; Lost and Found” by Colson Whitehead. Create: (1) a vocabulary list; (2) a 1-2 paragraph summary of the reading; and (3) at least 2 critical thinking questions for us to discuss.

(3) Review the following stories we already read:
Superman and Me” by Sherman Alexie
“Hers; The Ignominy of Being Pregnant in New York City” by Anna Quindlen
“A Coney Island of the Mind” by Katie Roiphe (handout)

Note all of the elements of what makes a great story. Pay particular attention to how the stories unfold, how the authors develop characters, the incorporation of vivid detail and imagery to “show” us moments rather than just “tell” us about them, plot development, the “so what?”, and so on!

 

Thank you to all the students who posted their Labor Day Stories on time. I look forward to reading them! Constructive comments on these stories can be made up until class on Wednesday, 9/12. Remember to give specific feedback on what works well and what needs revising.

For those who didn’t post, please note that every assignment (or lack of assignment) counts towards your grade. Remember to complete all assignments by the deadlines as outlined on the “Class Notes/Homework” page.

Our discussions today focused on what makes an effective personal narrative. Responses were based on our own personal experiences as well as the tips from the readings in Unit 2.

We also discussed hooks and different methods for hooking readers into our personal narratives.

Students then spent some time drafting the introductions to their Labor Day Weekend stories.

Homework:

(1) No classes on 9/10. Our next meeting will be on 9/12.

(2) Bring an inspiration photo taken in your neighborhood to our next class on 9/12. This photo will be used in a class activity and serve as the basis of your personal narrative. It must be your own photo and printed out.

(3) Print and actively read the remaining readings in Unit 2 by 9/12:
Figurative Language
“A Coney Island of the Mind” by Katie Roiphe (handed out in class)
“Superman and Me” by Sherman Alexie
“Hers; The Ignominy of Being Pregnant in New York City” by Anna Quindlen

(4) For the stories by Roiphe, Alexie, and Quindlen, you must create: (1) a vocabulary list; (2) a 1-2 paragraph summary of the reading; and (3) at least 2 critical thinking questions for us to discuss. This can be written or typed, and will be checked/collected on 9/12.

(4) Finish and revise your Labor Day Weekend stories. Feel free to make them longer. Make sure to include figurative language. Post online under “Discussion” in the “Labor Day Weekend stories” by Monday, 9/10, so students have a chance to read and respond to them.

We began with a quick quiz on the course information provided on the Syllabus. Please review the Syllabus for any questions you may have about the course and make sure to reference it regularly over the semester.

We spent the remainder of class going over the Unit 1 readings.

Homework:

(1) Please note that there are no classes on Monday, 9/3, due to Labor Day. Our next class meeting will be next Wednesday, 9/5, and CUNY will follow a MONDAY schedule. Thursday, 9/6, will follow a regular Thursday schedule.

(2) Write a summary of the article titled, “TV Dinners in a Netflix World.” This will be collected in class on 9/5. (Typed summaries are optional, but greatly appreciated!)

(3) Download and print the following Unit 2 readings: Narration and Description. Actively read both texts and be ready to discuss them in class on 9/5. You must bring these readings to class.

(4) Begin looking for a personal picture (that you actually took, not from the Internet) that captures a memorable occasion in your neighborhood or one that encapsulates its spirit. This will be used for a class activity on Wednesday, 9/12. You must print this picture and bring it to class on 9/12.

(5) Reminder: Read the selections in topic 2 “Subject-Verb Agreement & Comma Usage” in the Grammar Guide by Week 5 (9/24).