Writing and Thinking (Spring 2005)

Monday, April 25

Today you’ll conduct peer review on your handouts and edit them for correctness. We’ll also talk about strategies for creating good visuals and presentations.

Assignment For Next Class: Please work on creating the visual components (such as transparencies, drawings, pictures, or a PowerPoint presentation) of your argument.

Wednesday, April 27

There will be no class today to give you time to work in the computer labs to create visuals for your presentations.

Assignment For Next Class: Please bring a printed copy of a draft of your visuals or your PowerPoint presentation to class.

Friday, April 29

Today you’ll conduct peer review on your visuals and we’ll discuss and practice presentation strategies.

Assignment For Next Class: Next week, you will give your presentation. Make sure that you’re prepared. You should make at least 17 copies of your handouts.

As part of this project, you’ve defined and described a local problem, proposed a specific and concrete solution, and responded to arguments against your problem and solution. You’ve done research that’s helped you understand the scope of your problem and possible solutions within your community and within other communities, and you’ve done research within your community that’s helped you to understand what people think and feel about an issue. You’ve written a letter to a person or group that you feel could help you with your problem, and you’ve written an academic paper that spells out your problem and solution.

For the last component of this project, you’ll produce an oral presentation that will include supporting visuals (such as a PowerPoint presentation) and handouts that allows you to speak to others about your problem and solution and convince them to support your solution. You’ll then give your presentation to the class during the last week of classes.

Specifics

Your oral presentation should:

• Be no more than five minutes long
• Present your problem, solution, and rebuttal.
• Make reference to research where appropriate.
• Include appropriate rhetorical appeals.
• Use appropriately persuasive tone, gestures, and body language.
• Include visuals appropriate to your presentation and your audience (such as a PowerPoint presentation or transparencies).
• Include a handout for your audience that summarizes your main points.
• Include answers to questions from the audience (if there is time).

After time in class discussing and working on various aspects of the oral presentation, you’ll give your presentation to the class during our final week of classes and turn in a copy of your visuals and handout to the instructor after you are done.

Grading Criteria

Your presentation will be graded on:

• The quality of the problem, solution, rebuttal, and information presented in your speaking, visuals, and handout.
• Your use of evidence and appeals in your speaking, visuals, and handout.
• The quality of tone, body language, delivery, and audience interaction.
• The quality of your visuals and handout and the attention and care that you pay to document design.

Each component of the project (speaking, visuals, and handout) will be worth a third of the project’s grade. You can earn a total of 150 points (out of 450 points total for the project) for the presentation.

Due Dates

You will be assigned a presentation date of May 2, May 4, or May 6 the week before your presentation.

Monday, April 18

Today you’ll have a chance to discuss your drafts with your group members and provide them with your peer review sheets. We’ll then discuss editing for attributive tags, editing your works cited list, and strategies for improving the sentence quality of your writing. You’ll also receive the instructor’s comments on your drafts.

Assignment For Next Class: The final draft of your paper is due. Please include your peer review sheets with the final draft.

Wednesday, April 20

Today you’ll turn in the final drafts of your research proposal and we’ll begin the oral presentation component of this project. We’ll go over the assignment and discuss strategies for creating good presentations.

Assignment for Next Class: An outline of your oral presentation is due.

Friday, April 22

Today we’ll discuss strategies for writing scripts for oral presentations and what written material you should give to your audience or include in visuals.

Assignment for Next Class: Please bring a draft of your handout to class on Monday.

Monday, April 11

Today we’ll discuss incorporating research and appeals into your paper, focusing especially on introducing and integrating quotations into your work. We’ll also review MLA style guidelines for parenthetical citations and creating a works cited list.

Assignment for Next Class: Write two paragraphs of the rebuttal section of your paper and bring three copies to class.

Wednesday, April 13

Today we’ll talk about creating and responding to rebuttals to our arguments and avoiding logical fallacies when doing so. We’ll also review strategies for good paragraphing, making transitions between ideas, and introductions and conclusions. There will also be time to ask questions and discuss problems that you might be having with your paper.

Assignment for Next Class: The first draft of your paper is due. Please bring three copies to class.

Friday, April 15

Today we’ll review a sample research proposal to practice peer review, and then you’ll work in groups to provide feedback on each other’s papers.

Assignment for Next Class: The first draft of your research proposal is due.

This project has asked you to identify a local problem and propose a feasible solution. So far, you’ve done local and contextual research, thought about how your audience would react, and written a letter to a specific person, group, or media outlet that could reach your audience.

Now, you’ll take your research and your understanding of your problem and solution and use them to develop a longer proposal. A proposal, which is very much like an academic paper, presents your problem, solution, counters rebuttals to your argument, and above all attempts to convince your audience that they should implement your solution.

Specifics

You’ll write a longer (4-6 page) proposal aimed at members of your community or anyone else who might be interested in enacting a solution. This proposal should:

• Be an academic description of your problem and proposed solution.
• Set out your problem, convince your audience that it is a real issue, and propose your solution.
• Include a rebuttal of possible arguments or counters to your solution.
• Use classical argument structure to organize your presentation.
• Use your local and contextual research to help explain your problem and solution.
• Attribute your research using MLA format. This means that you will use parenthetical citations in your text to attribute sources, and that you will create a Works Cited list at the end of your paper that lists all of the sources that you have cited in the paper.
• Be 4-6 pages in 12-point serif font (Times New Roman, Courier, or other serif fonts).
• Contain a heading on the first page of the paper with your name, your section of Writing 100 (D), the name of the assignment (Investigating a Local Issue), and the date.
• Contain page numbers in the upper right hand corner of each page except the first.

You will produce two drafts of your proposal; one will receive peer feedback from your classmates and your instructor, and the other will be your final draft. Final drafts that are the same as your first draft will get lower grades than papers that show evidence of revision and correction of errors.

Grading Criteria

This paper will be graded on how well it:

• Describes and realistically situates the problem.
• Proposes a realistic solution and explains how it could be implemented.
• Responds to counter-arguments.
• Shows evidence of revision.
• Uses research and attributes it correctly.
• Pays attention to formatting guidelines.
• Uses standard written English.

You can earn a total of 150 points (out of 450 points total for the project) for the proposal.

Due Dates

First Draft Due: Friday, April 15
Final Draft Due: Wednesday, April 20

Monday, April 4

For today, you should bring three copies of the first draft of your letter to class. Today, you’ll work in groups to review people’s letters and to give them feedback on their argumentative strategies and their use of English.

Assignment for Next Class: The final draft of your letter is due.

Wednesday, April 6

Today you’ll turn in the final draft of your letter. After going over the research proposal component of the paper, we’ll talk more about argumentation, rhetorical appeals, and audience analysis as they relate to creating a proposal by reading and reviewing some sample proposals. We’ll also talk about strategies for mapping out and planning arguments.

Assignment for Next Class: Read “A Modest Proposal.”

Friday, April 8

Today we’ll talk about proposals by mapping the arguments in A Modest Proposal and discussing the appeals that the writer uses. We’ll then discuss the types of appeals that you may want to use in your own argument.

Assignment for Next Class: Please bring three copies of two sample body paragraphs of your paper to class.

Wednesday, March 30

Today we’ll discuss the elements of researching and writing a persuasive argument and generate a sketch of the arguments that you’ll be using in your letter, paper, and presenatation. You’ll also learn about the letter component of the Local Issue Assignment. Finally, you’ll turn in the research assignments that you’ve done over the last two weeks.

Assignment For Next Class: Decide on an appropriate audience for your letter. Obtain an address for the person, group, or media outlet to whom you’ll be addressing your letter.

Friday, April 1

Today we’ll discuss what makes a successful solution letter and about how rhetorical appeals are used in letters, including reviewing sample letters to groups and media outlets. We’ll also talk about letter format.

Assignment For Next Class: The first draft of your letter is due. Please bring three copies to class.

Overview

After you’ve identified your issue and done research, you’ll next identify a person, group, or media outlet who could help solve your problem and write a letter to that group. In your letter, you will describe your problem, propose your solution, and attempt to convince this individual or group (or the individuals and groups reading your letter in the media) to help you enact your solution.

Because a letter is a short document, you will need to focus on presenting your arguments and being persuasive in a short amount of space. You will also need to think about what rhetorical appeals will work best to convince your group.

Specifics

Your letter must:

• Be addressed to a real individual, group, or local newspaper or other media outlet.
• Identify and describe your problem in detail.
• Propose a specific solution.
• Ask for help that that individual or group can give to redress the problem.
• Uses research appropriately to support your arguments.
• Be no more than two pages (single-spaced).
• Uses block business letter format.
• Be signed by you.

You will produce two drafts of your letter; one will receive peer feedback from your classmates and your instructor, and the other will be your final draft. You do not need to mail your letter; however, you may do so if you choose for ten points of extra credit.

Grading Criteria

Your letter will be graded on how well it:

• Presents your problem and solution.
• Uses rhetorical appeals and other aspects of argumentation to convince your audience.
• Presents your point in a short amount of space.
• Uses business letter format appropriately.

Grading rubrics will be returned to you with the final draft of your letter to help you understand your grade. You can earn a total of 100 points (out of 450 points total for the project) for the letter.

Due Dates

First Draft Due: April 4
Final Draft Due: April 6

Monday, March 14

Today you’ll turn in the final versions of your brochures. We’ll introduce the Investigating a Local Issue assignment, choose topics for that assignment, and assign the research component which you will complete over the next two weeks.

Assignment For Next Class: Complete the “Researching A Local Issue” assignments given out in class.

March 16-March 28: NO CLASS

Over the next two weeks, please complete the research assignments related to your topic. Your research assignments will be collected on Wednesday, March 30. You may find the following Web links helpful in conducting your research.

You may find these resources useful for finding contextual or local information about your local issues.

Library Sources

• Lexis-Nexis indexes many local and national newspapers that can provide information about your topic.
• ProQuest allows you to search the full text of many major newspapers that may have coverage on your topic.
• The Subject Guide to Finding Articles will help you look for articles based on your topic.
• The News and Current Events links provided by the library will also give you access to many sources of news and information.
• The Library Catalog and Ebrary will allow you to find books based on your topic.

Web Resources

Local Newspapers

• Google News indexes 4500 news sources from all over the world, which includes some local and regional newspapers (including the Buffalo News and the Niagara Gazette).
• News Voyager and the Internet Public Library offer links to local newspapers that are organized by state.

Subject Collections

• The Internet Public Library’s Subject Collection is a good place of starting points for Web research about specific issues.
• The Niagara Library offers a collection of subject-matter indexes, including links to the New York State Statistical Yearbook.

After determining a local problem and a possible solution, you’ll need to conduct some research to help you put the problem in context and also to understand what can be done. You will use the research you acquire in this stage in your letter, proposal, and oral presentation and you will be expected to cite this research appropriately using MLA format.

For this project, you’ll conduct two types of research: local and contextual.

• Local research involves collecting information from within the community itself in order to identify and describe your issue and propose a good solution. This might involve conducting interviews and surveys, collecting documents from the community, or doing archival research in local newspapers or other sources. Local research will involve talking to people and collecting documents from within your community. You will need to either conduct an interview or create a survey for your project and use this information in your projects.
  
  
• Contextual research involves collecting information from other contexts in order to your local issue more context and to help you propose a good solution. This might involve researching similar situations or issues to yours in order to compare and contrast situations or to borrow ideas for solutions, or researching different aspects of possible solutions. Global research will involve doing more “traditional” research on the Web, in the library, or outside of your community.

Assignments

Over the next week and over Spring Break, you should do research on the Web and using the library to find information that helps you define your problem and present your solution. You will be expected to turn in a list of possible sources for contextual information (formatted in MLA style) on March 30. This list of sources will be graded and worth 25 points.

You will also need to develop interview or survey questions for your local research. A copy of your interview or survey questions will be due on March 30 and will also be worth 25 points. If you would like to conduct the interview or survey over the break, please feel free to do so; however, just the questions are due.

In total, you can earn a total of 50 points (out of 450 points total for the project) for the research activities that you do in this component.

Grading Criteria

Your list of sources will be graded on its depth and breadth of possible research and on your correct use of MLA format to present types of sources.

Your interview and survey questions will be graded on how appropriate they are for your topic. Grading rubrics will be provided with each assignment to help you understand your grade.

We are all part of various communities in which we live, work, and play. Our membership in these communities forms an important part in what we do for ourselves and others. Problems often arise in communities, and it is up to their members to use various tools, including writing and speaking, to help arrive at a solution. In this part of the semester, you will be asked to choose and investigate a local issue in a community in which you are a member and to produce two written documents and an oral presentation that explain the issue and propose a solution to the problem. Communities could include:

• Niagara University (you would want to choose a specific aspect of community at the University)
• your hometown
• your workplace
• clubs or activities you participate in
• other communities of which you are a member

Please note that topics for this assignment must be related to specific local problems that could be solved.You may not write about general social issues such as gun control, legalizing marijuana, lowering the drinking age to 18, abortion, television violence, or other topics that affect US or Canadian society as a whole. (However, if you wanted to talk about how one of these larger issues is a local problem and how it could be solved locally, that might be acceptable. Talk to the instructor first.)

No matter what community you choose, you will need to identify a specific issue or problem being faced by the community, research the problem in both a local and a global context, and propose a solution for that problem. The more specific and narrow your problem and solution, the better.

Project Components

This project will have four components:

• Researching Your Issue
• Writing A Letter
• Producing a Proposal
• Giving an Oral Presentation

You will produce written work during each component and an oral presentation as part of the last component. As we work on each component, you will receive an assignment sheet that outlines each component of the project in more detail. You must complete all assignments in order to receive full points for this project. Short descriptions of each component are given in the rest of the assignment.

Researching Your Issue

In order to understand your problem and to identify possible solutions, you’ll need to conduct two types of research: local and contextual.

Local research involves collecting information from within the community itself in order to identify and describe your issue and propose a good solution. This might involve conducting interviews and surveys, collecting documents from the community, or doing archival research in local newspapers or other sources. Local research will involve talking to people and collecting documents from within your community.

Contextual research involves collecting information from other contexts in order to your local issue more context and to help you propose a good solution. This might involve researching similar situations or issues to yours in order to compare and contrast situations or to borrow ideas for solutions, or researching different aspects of possible solutions. Global research will involve doing more “traditional” research on the Web, in the library, or outside of your community.

We will spend time in class learning about both local and global research. You will be expected to turn in a list of your possible sources (formatted in MLA style) at a date specified by the instructor. Furthermore, you will be expected to include both local and global research in your letter, proposal, and oral presentation and to cite this research appropriately. You can earn a total of 50 points (out of 450 points total for the project) for the research activities that you do.

Writing A Letter

After you’ve identified your issue and done some research, you’ll next identify a person or group who could help solve your problem and write a letter to that group. Your letter must:

• Be to a real individual or group.
• Identify and describe your problem.
• Propose a specific solution.
• Ask for help that that individual or group can give to redress the problem.
• Be no more than two pages (single-spaced).
• Use business letter format as presented in class.
• Be signed by you.

You will produce two drafts of your letter; one will receive peer feedback from your classmates and your instructor, and the other will be your final draft. You do not need to mail your letter; however, you may do so if you choose. You can earn a total of 100 points (out of 450 points total for the project) for the letter.

Producing A Proposal

Next, you’ll write a longer proposal aimed at members of your community or anyone else who might be interested in enacting a solution. This proposal should:

• Be an academic description of your problem and proposed solution.
• Set out your problem, convince your audience that it is a real issue, and propose your solution.
• Include a rebuttal of possible arguments or counters to your solution.
• Use your local and global research to help explain your problem and solution.
• Attribute your research using MLA format.

You will produce two drafts of your proposal; one will receive peer feedback from your classmates and your instructor, and the other will be your final draft. You can earn a total of 150 points (out of 450 points total for the project) for the proposal.

Giving An Oral Presentation

Finally, you’ll produce an oral presentation that will include supporting visuals and handouts that allows you to speak to others about your problem and solution. Your oral presentation should:

• Be at least five but no more than ten minutes long.
• Present your problem, solution, and rebuttal.
• Include visuals appropriate to your presentation and your audience (such as a PowerPoint presentation, transparencies, or slides).
• Include a handout for your audience that summarizes your main points.
• Include answers to questions from the audience.

After time in class discussing and working on various aspects of the oral presentation, you’ll give your presentation to the class during our final week of classes. You can earn a total of 150 points (out of 450 points total for the project) for the presentation.

Grading Criteria

Each project will be graded on how well it presents a problem and solution in an audience-appropriate and genre-appropriate way, and how well it uses local and global research. Grading rubrics will be distributed with the final versions of each project that will explain your grade and its distribution of points.

Due Dates

• Research activities: March 30
• Letter First Draft: April 4/Final Draft: April 6
• Proposal First Draft: April 15 /Final Draft: April 20
• Presentations: May 2-6

Monday, March 7

Today we’ll discuss characteristics of brochure text, including infochunks, lists, and headings. We’ll work to generate sample text and review it for clarity and conciseness.

Assignment For Next Class: Please write the text of your brochure and bring printouts of some possible images that you could use in it to class.

Wednesday, March 9

Today we’ll discuss the ways in which a brochure is laid out on the page as well as choosing and using appropriate clip art. You’ll also receive documentation on how to create brochures using Microsoft Publisher.

Assignment For Next Class: The first draft of your brochure is due. Please bring three copies to class.

Friday, March 11

Today we’ll conduct in-class peer review of your brochures. Over the weekend, you’ll receive comments from the instructor about your brochures in order to help you revise.

Assignment For Next Class: The final draft of your brochure is due. Please include copies of your peer review sheets.

The writing minor is sponsoring a poetry contest for all interested Niagara students.

The winning poet will be invited to read from his or her work at a public reading at the Castellani Museum with a featured poet. One of the winner’s poems will be published in The Niagara Index. The winner will also receive $100.

All current students of Niagara University are eligible. Page restrictions: Submit a set of 3-5 poems, no more than 20 pages total. Poems should be typed, single-spaced, on one side of the page only, on white 8 ½” x 11″ paper. Clear photocopies are acceptable. Print no more than one poem per page. Please do not send your only copy, as manuscripts cannot be returned. Enclose a cover sheet with your name, student ID number, rank and major, address, telephone number, and email address. Your name and other identifying information should appear only on the cover page and should not appear on any page of poetry. Each student may enter only once.

Entries must be delivered to: Dr. Jennifer Morrison, Department of English, Dunleavy Hall by 5:00 p.m. Friday, April 1st. Entries may also be mailed to: Dr. Jennifer Morrison Poetry Contest Department of English Niagara University, NY 14109 Deadline: April 1, 5:00 p.m.

At this point, you’ve spent roughly a month gathering and using information about a specific topic related to your major and career. You’ve practiced using information in an annotated bibliography and an academic research paper. At this point, you’re an expert on your particular topic. Now it’s time to take your expertise and use it to inform an audience about your topic through the creation of a brochure.

Brochures differ from academic papers in many ways due to their format and their genre. What does this mean for you as a writer? It means that you need to think about how to present your material in a non-academic context. You’ll have to do more than copy and paste chunks of information from your paper.

Specifics

For this project, you’ll take a specific aspect of your topic and create a three-part (trifold) brochure about it. The audience for your brochure knows little to nothing about your topic.

Your brochure will:

• Present solid chunks of information drawn from your existing research that present your point and inform your reader.
• Provide a list of one or two sources of additional information drawn from your research.
• Be written in an informal and engaging style.
• Be tri-fold (three part) on both sides of a piece of 8”x11” paper.
• Be created on a computer or hand-drawn by you.
• Contain at least one but no more than four pictures, graphics, or pieces of clip art that help inform and educate your reader. You can draw the graphics yourself or get them from other sources.
• Use elements of document design to appeal to your reader.
• Show an understanding of how brochures work as a genre.

In class, we’ll work on activities related to learning about brochures, composing text, selecting graphics, and doing document design. You’ll have time off of class to work in computer labs and to consult with the instructor about using computers for brochure design.

Grading Criteria

This project will be graded on the following criteria:

• How well it presents information to a non-expert reader about a specific aspect of your topic.
• How well it combines text and graphics to provide information to the reader.
• How well it uses principles for good brochure design.
• How well it uses conventions for written English and presents information in an engaging style.

Grading rubrics will be provided with the final version of the project to help you understand your grade. You can earn a total of 100 points for this project (out of 400 points total for the project).

Due Dates

• Brochure Topic Due By Email: March 7
• Brochure Text Due: March 9
• First Draft of Brochure Due: March 11
• Final Draft of Brochure Due: March 14

WRT 100: Weekly Agenda for February 28-March 4

Monday, February 28

Today we’ll talk about and practice strategies for responding to academic papers with some sample papers. Then you’ll exchange your papers in your peer review groups. Make sure that you’ve brought three copies to class.

Assignment For Next Class: Please complete the peer review sheets for your partners and bring them to class.

Wednesday, March 2

Today you’ll talk about your papers with your peer review groups. We’ll also have an editing workshop that focuses on finding and correcting common mistakes. You’ll also receive my feedback on your papers.

Assignment For Next Class: The final version of your academic paper is due.

Friday, March 4

Today you’ll turn in the final versions of your academic papers. We’ll then go over the guidelines for the brochure assignment and begin thinking about ways to create brochures.

Assignment For Next Class: Please find three different brochures and write a paragraph comparing their similarities and differences. Bring all this to class.

Monday, February 21

NO CLASS.

Assignment for Next Class: Please read pp. 200-211 in The Curious Researcher and begin working on a draft of your paper. Based on the reading, write a paragraph that uses one of the strategies described as well as using the work of others and bring it to class.

Wednesday, February 23

Today we’ll discuss paragraphing strategies, including integrating quotations, paraphrases and summaries and making transitions between pararaphs.

Assignment For Next Class: Please read pp. 191-195 and pp. 204-207 in the Curious Researcher and do Step 1 of Exercise 4.3 on page 195.

Friday, February 25

Today we’ll discuss strategies for introductions and conclusions. We’ll review the three leads you wrote for your paper in Exercise 4.3 and discuss which of them is right for your paper. We’ll also experiment with writing possible endings for your paper.

Assignment For Next Class: The first draft of your academic paper is due. Please bring THREE COPIES to class on Friday.

Monday, February 14

Today you’ll turn in your annotated bibliographies. Next, we’ll go over the guidelines for the research paper portion of this project. After that, you’ll work on a Research Inventory that will help you evaluate what you need to do for your paper.

Assignment For Next Class: Please do Exercise 4.2 on pp. 184-185 of The Curious Researcher and read pages 184-191. Bring Exercise 4.2 to class.

Wednesday, February 16

Today we’ll talk about what you still need to do regarding research and planning for the paper. Then we’ll discuss planning strategies for your paper, including generating a guiding claim with reasons and working on various ways of outlining the content of your paper.

Assignment For Next Class: Please read pp. 200-211 in The Curious Researcher and begin working on a draft of your paper. Based on the reading, write a paragraph that uses one of the strategies and bring it to class on Monday.

Friday, February 18

NO CLASS: WINTER BREAK

Assignment For Next Class: Please read pp. 200-211 in The Curious Researcher and begin working on a draft of your paper. Based on the reading, write a paragraph that uses one of the strategies and bring it to class on Monday.

Over the last few weeks, you’ve formulated a research question about a topic related to your major and career, and done research to help answer that question. You’ve summarized, assessed, and reflected on your sources in an annotated bibliography. Now it’s time to write an academic paper that brings together your reflections, arguments, and experience with the research that you’ve done. This paper should use your research and your knowledge to inform your audience about a specific aspect of your topic.

Specifics

You will write a 4-6 page (12 point font; double-spaced) academic paper in which you:

• Write an informative paper that addresses your research question and explains it to a non-expert audience.
• Present a clear thesis (a claim supported with reasons) based on your research question.
• Provide well-developed reasons and evidence to support your thesis.
• Use the results of your research to support your thesis and provide appropriate attribution of sources.
• Make transitions between your ideas.
• Format your paper using MLA conventions, including using paranthetical citations and creating a works cited list.
• Show evidence of revision in your final draft.
• Pay attention to English conventions for spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

We’ll work together in class to help you develop all parts of your paper. You’ll also have an opportunity to give and receive feedback with your classmates on your first draft (which will be graded), as well as receiving comments from the instructor. The Writing Center, in the Seton Presidential Lounge, offers free tutoring in writing; you are encouraged to bring a draft of your paper there as well. You can make an appointment to see a tutor by calling 286-8075.

You will write two drafts of this paper. Your first draft is due on Friday, February 25 and your second draft is due on Friday, March 4. When you turn in your final version of the paper, you should also turn in your first draft and the peer review sheets you received. The final version of your paper must be turned in by the end of class on. Late papers will drop one letter grade for each day they are late. After five (5) days, you will receive zero points for the assignment.

Grading Criteria

This paper will be graded based on how well it:

• Presents a specific thesis statement and has a clear focus.
• Presents and incorporates information, including using the works of others and the opinions and experience of the writer.
• Organizes and presents information, including making transitions and connections.
• Uses MLA format to attribute information and format the paper.
• Shows evidence of revision by the writer.
• Uses conventions for written English, including grammar, spelling, and punctuation.

You’ll receive comments on your first draft, and a grading rubric with your final draft that explains how your paper met the assignment guidelines. You can earn a total of 150 points for this project out of 450 points total for the project.

Due Dates

First Draft Due: February 25
Final Draft Due: March 4

Monday, February 7

Today we’ll talk about annotating sources and review strategies for summarizing, assessing, and reflecting on sources. You’ll work in groups to create a sample annotation from a common source that we’ll review as a class. Then you’ll work individually to write an annotation for one of your sources.

Assignment For Next Class: The first draft of your annotated bibliography is due. Bring THREE COPIES to class.

Wednesday, February 9

Today we’ll talk about strategies for responding to people’s writing in groups. We’ll work as a class to review and respond to a sample annotated bibliography. You’ll then be assigned to peer writing groups and exchange copies for peer review that you’ll do at home.

Assignment For Next Class: Your peer response sheets are due for two of your group members. Also, please bring The Curious Researcher to class.

Friday, February 11

Today you’ll meet in your peer review groups to go over the feedback that you have for each other. You’ll also work in groups to help each other verify correct use of MLA style for citations and correct use of English. Finally, you’ll receive my comments on your drafts.

Assignment For Next Class: The final draft of your annotated bibliography is due.