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Literary Arts Festival Information

Check out the great poster (click on image below). 

Your first formal assignment (due Tues, March 23) is HERE.

Here is a Revision Checklist:

Rough Draft Checklist

I. Writing, like building, is a process.

No matter what we are writing (a job cover letter? An essay? A podcast? An editorial? A presentation for class?), there are 3 useful steps:

1. Pre-writing (brainstorming, sketching structure, outlining)
2. Writing
3. Proofreading (checking clarity of ideas, organization, development, grammar, formatting)

Blank Literacy-Narrative-Outline Form for You

II. Essay Structure

Introduction

• Begins with a HOOK (to grab reader’s attention)
  • Possible hooks: brief anecdote (personal story or current events story), quote from relevant source (source citation info needed), ample detail about setting of story to come (set the scene for your reader)
• After hook, transition to introducing topic and providing background info to orient your reader, lay groundwork for discussion to follow
• Can end with thesis statement or main point of essay (if writing persuasive essay; sometimes narrative essays end with a thesis, too)
• No set length; typical minimum 4-5 sentences

Body Paragraphs

• Conventional academic essays have 3 or more paragraphs but there is a whole world beyond this; do not feel constrained
• Paragraph chronology (sequence) should help you progress through your ideas
• Paragraphs= minimum 4-5 sentences
• Content Breakdown
  • Topic sentence: first sentence of paragraph that indicates your main idea and provides an overview
  • Supporting sentences: develop and explain your idea; supporting details elaborate on what you mean and include examples and evidence in form of personal story, sometimes connections to outside material (texts, TV, film, current events/ newspaper articles, statistics, etc)
  • Wrap-up/ concluding sentence: draws conclusions from info just presented, supports thesis

Conclusion

• Reflects back on subject matter and wraps up ideas of essay
• Potential implications of your work
• No set length; can be shorter than intro and BPs (3 or more sent)

III. Incorporating Quotes Into Your Essay: 

.  Bread: Set up and introduce quote. Include the author, text title (capitalized), and publication year.  Summarize the text fully (this will take several sentences!)

Example: In “Maybe I Could Save Myself by Writing” (2017), Jose Olivarez writes about the challenge of navigating different aspects of his identity in school settings. (continued in other summary sentences) ●

  2. Veggies/ meat/ tofu: The quote itself, with a page citation if possible (if no page, cite

  paragraph #), or line number citation if a poem

Ex: Olivarez writes, “I’m telling you this because I wrote a book of poems with one foot in the past, one hand in the present, and a nose on the future” (45).

3. Bread: Analyze quote. Avoid repeating the quote or merely paraphrasing. Instead, say what the quote means, and then explain how it relates to your own writing.

Ex: Here Olivarez emphasizes the importance of his family history in his writing, as well as who he is as an individual. His point relates to…

For additional tips see: The Quote Sandwich

Last week’s assignment: Complete the following three prompts. Then upload the file onto our Google Docs Drive.

1. Choose an activity on which to focus. Think about something you are really good at and how you developed your talent.  As an alternate topic, you could focus on your educational development and the challenges and successes you’ve had over time. In my essay, I will explore/examine …
2. Jot down supporting examples/anecdotes and organize these ideas into an outline (bullet points are fine)
3. Identify the essay(s) (and quotes) you will refer to in YOUR essay.

Read: José Olivarez, “Maybe I Could Save Myself by Writing” and “Mexican American Disambiguation” (2018)

Annotate: Think about Olivarez’s texts. What are some interesting CHOICES he makes in his writing? Who do you think he is writing FOR (who is his intended audience)?

Watch (In-Class): 2019 LAF student video on Olivarez. Share any response you have to the student comments. Can you relate to something a fellow City Tech student articulated?

Here is Olivarez reading his poem “Mexican American Disambiguation”

Post: Choose a favorite line or section from Olivarez’ poem or essay. Explain what you found interesting about this section or quote. Try not to repeat what a student before you has commented on.

TOPICS: WHY I WRITE, INFLUENCE, GENRE, USE OF QUOTES

READ (and take notes):

1. George Orwell “Why I Write”

Also in WHY WE WRITE PDF (20-37)

2. “Why I Write” by Aaron Barlow in WHY WE WRITE PDF (70-76)

POST:

In 1-2 paragraphs, describe an important moment in time when a teacher, mentor, or family member taught you an invaluable skill or life lesson. Carefully describe both the person and the lesson with close details.

William Blake: “The Tyger”

Link to Coleridge Poem: “Rime of the Ancient Mariner”