In-Formation

Section E106

Congratulations, Class. By now, all your work is done and your Final Portfolio has been uploaded to OpenLab in either WORD or pdf format according to the guide I distributed in class (once again, you can also see it here: 1121 UNIT 5 formula).

Grades are posted on OpenLab by midnight of May 28th.

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On to Unit 4: Multi-Modal. To put it simply: the Multi-Modal Project basically takes your Research and presents it in a digital genre. A video essay? A video PSA? A podcast? Your choice. Your Project doesn’t have to be polished or anywhere near perfect. In fact, you don’t have time to do anything polished. Share what you’ve got in progress next class. _If you have technical skills and are willing to help others in the class, we would be very grateful. We will probably divide into groups in order to get this done.

We will continue to discuss the format for UNIT 5 — the Final Portfolio — next class.

Here is a document describing the format for your Final Portfolio:

1121 UNIT 5 formula

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For the first day back from break (Apr 29) the following assignment is due for a grade. It will finish out our UNIT 2: Genre.

Printed out, in hard copy, I need:

+A hard copy example of the genre you chose to write in, clearly labeled.

+A short but clear analysis of this genre that includes at minimum, the following information: who wrote it/the speaker; the audience; the kind of community that is invested in or impacted by this writing; the purpose of this writing; some key vocabulary or language terms you might find (if any) that are common in this form of writing; the sorts of ways that people try to write effectively in this genre (feel free to go into logos, pathos, ethos here if you can or wish).

+And, finally, your writing about your topic (skill, interest) in this genre. Yes, you should already have posted these to OpenLab.They will now be graded, so: Feel free to augment or edit them in any way you feel will make them better. : ).

No recipes, please. Thank you.

Make sure your example and all the three elements are properly labeled so I can understand them. This includes your name, section #, and the like.  I would much appreciate their being stapled and fastened.

-Updates on your research project format to come. Please check back before and during break.

OK. Update In. Please look at the front of our website. (Direct link here). You will find a post for all sections of my 1121 classes on your upcoming Research Project. One of the WORKSHEETS is due the day we get back from Spring Break (Apr 29).

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During class you discussed your preliminary research. You have at least three sources that talk about your topic in challenging ways. Now, can you suggest what sort of research project you would most ideally want to conduct? You can post on OpenLab or write to me directly. Check back here for updates before Spring Break.

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For April 15: Bring in a hard copy or electronic EXAMPLE of the genre on which you based your writing. Who wrote it? For whom is it written/what is its audience? What purpose does this piece of writing serve? Be prepared to discuss these issues next class.

Looking forward to our research UNIT, please make some notes. Brainstorm. Ask yourself the following questions about your topic: How do other people talk about this topic? What arguments have arisen around this topic? What do you feel/what is your opinion in these arguments? Be prepared to discuss this next class as well.

Grammar Exercise: This is meant for your own practice, as a large number of students need work on pronouns. You can complete the exercises and bring them next class.

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Hi Class. Our Library Session Re-Schedule on April 8 will interrupt our homework for this week. Our Librarian will introduce us to citations, and discuss the lists of cultural influences we put on our “shelves” back in February (you remember those!) and help us make citations for our entries.

Time permitting, after our session with the Librarian, we will continue to discuss our genre exercises, so come with any questions you may still have.

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Hi Class. If you have not already done so, please post your reflections on the Donald Murray reading to OpenLab. Also, post your genre writing assignment to OpenLab (see below). Use Category UNIT 2 Assignment 2 when you post for both.

Going forward, your assignments for Monday April 1: Do your Outer and Inner Listening writing while you are in transit. Note the setting of where and when you got this information. Bring your writing to next class.

Also for April 1: Remember to use your three new vocabulary words in actual conversation (and or text) with someone you know. Note how it went/their reactions.

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You have one reading assignment, one OpenLab post, and two writing assignments for next week, Mon 18.

The Reading Assignment is: Donald Murray: Internal Revision: A Process of Discovery

Here are the questions I want you to be able to answer and discuss next class, Mon 18:

1. How does Murray define writing? What is its purpose?

2. Talk about what Murray means when he uses terms like “discovery” and “ignorance.”

3. What is “product” vs. “process”?

4. What is “internal revision”? What is “external revision?”

5. Explain, in your own words, what Murray means by the following: “content,” “form and structure,” “language.”

Your OpenLab assignment is:

Try to define genre for yourself. (You might want to re-read your essay by Kerry Dirk called “Navigating Genres” and see how she defines it; you might want to look it up…) Now,  answer the following:

Name 10 genres you encounter in your everyday life.
Name one or two that you like best and say why. Who is their audience? What sort of language do they use?
What is your understanding of the term “genre”?  Post this under Unit 2 Assignment 1
Your first writing assignment is:
Finish the Recipe you started in class. Post it to OpenLab under Unit 2 Assignment 2
Your second writing assignment is:
Pick one of the following genres and write in its style and format on the same topic (something you do well/a skill you have/something you spend a lot of time doing) as your recipe:
A TripAdvisor entry of what to do (example here)
A poem that rhymes
A Yelp review (examples here)
A WikiHow entry (example here)
A letter to a friend via snail mail on actual paper
A rap or spoken word piece
Bring your first attempts of the above to share next class. You will post them shortly after.

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Hi class. You have two readings for Monday, March 3.

Reading 1 is the Chapter called “Shitty First Drafts” in author Annie Lamott’s book, Bird by Bird. Below is a free pdf of the entire book, and you can click on the appropriate chapter:

http://richardcolby.net/writ2000/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Bird-by-Bird-Anne-Lamott.pdf

After completing Reading 1 please answer the following and post your responses in OpenLab. 1) How many drafts do you typically make of a paper/piece of writing? Do you write a “down draft,” an “up draft,” and a “dental draft” like Lamott says? Were you surprised at her chapter’s title? Do you think you will have to change the way you write a lot if you decide to write a “shitty first draft”?

Your responses for Reading 1 should be posted to OpenLab under the category UNIT 2: Assignment 1.

Reading 2 is an article called “Navigating Genres” by a professor named Kerry Dirk. The link is here: Navigating Genres.

After completing Reading 2, please answer the following in writing. You can write in your notebooks for now, but be ready to post your responses to OpenLab under the same category soon after our next class:

1) This article (though somewhat old) mentions Facebook posts as a kind of genre. Can you briefly describe how comfortable you feel composing a piece of writing in this genre? Do you feel more comfortable than someone much older than you — your Grandmother, for instance? Why do you think this older person might not write as well in Facebook as you do? What are some of the mistakes they might make? 2) Dirk gives a few examples of titles in The Onion (a newspaper that was founded in 1988 at a college, btw). What was your favorite title? 3) On page 258, Dirk describes the rules we carry around in our head before we start writing in a particular genre. What are some of the rules you carry around in your head? Is there a particular genre in which you struggle to write?

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For Mon 19: Here is your first formal essay assignment. It has a reading component and a set of notes and lots of information, so please download it here: CUNY 1121 D439 UNIT 1 ASSIGNMENT 2 2019

It would be great if you could familiarize yourself with the assignment and possibly do the reading, which is short, so that I can address any questions next class. Hope you had a good break! I will go over some of your Fear and other posts for grammar, et al, next class.

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REMINDER: There is no school on Mon, Feb 18. Also, when you post your “fear” and “cure” writings, could you do so as text? I would like to be able to read them clearly and give notes. Thank you.

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Your tasks for next class, Monday (Feb 11) are: 1. Post your “no the,”  “fear” and “cure” writings to OpenLab.* Each one is a separate post. Please choose Category: Assignment 1 Unit 1 when you do so. You may use a photograph for your “no the” writing. 2. Please complete the following reflection, which you can download: CUNY UNIT 1 Main Reflection Spring 2019. 3. Look under READINGS on this website. There, you will find two articles on writing theory that we will be reading in our first UNIT: one is by Laura Carroll and the other is by Nelson Graff. You are assigned both of them. Read them now. Be prepared to discuss them over the next two weeks.

*I know a number of you are having difficulty logging in, posting, et al. If another student can’t help you, please consult with an OpenLab person directly —  You can see my previous post with their Office Hours here.