The first draft of your essay was due in class today. This will be returned to you on Thursday, and you will have a week before the final draft is due.

Final draft of Essay #1 is due Thursday, March 5th (3/5).

Homework due for Thursday is the second grammar packet, distributed in class. If you were absent, please contact me to receive the homework. It will be due at the beginning of class on Thursday.

I also wanted to say again that you all did an amazing job with your “Snake & Fox” stories. They were funny and sad and sometimes morbid, but really great regardless! Here are our morals, for reference (and to remind us to think deeper about what an author is saying–don’t forget to ask “why?” and see if you can push your critical thinking just a little bit further!):

Violence begets violence.
Hate is a product of ignorance.
Respect thy neighbor (in the Bronx).
Don’t cast blame.
Seize every moment, even with those you encounter.
Don’t underestimate the weak.
Accept unlikely help from an unlikely source.
God has your back.
Crises bring people together.
Don’t underestimate yourself.
Courage can appear when you least expect.
Don’t wish bad luck upon others, because it may happen to you.
Enjoy every moment.
Take a hint!
Don’t judge a book by its cover.
Be aware of your surroundings.
Deception is a fool’s tool, and wisdom is prosperous.
Trust others (sometimes).

“And don’t forget that punctuation always goes inside of the quotation marks,” said Professor Ostiz (unless, of course, you are citing a source, which we will discuss more later in the semester).