Engl 1101 - assignments for Wednesday, Jan 28

Howdy all -

Good group work today in class. Peer work is always rated as one of the highlights of 1101 classes, so we'll do a fair amount of it provided it's productive time for everyone.

Here's the work for next class:

• Narrative Sketch: prepare a rough draft of your narrative essay that captures the major elements of your story as you envision it now. Remember: write without critiquing yourself at this point. Your goal is to get the "story" down, to capture details as you can but not to "perfect" a draft. Read through Chapter 4 about the nature of sketches. There's a sample sketch beginning on page 109. You do not have to type this; however, I'd like it to be in a condition that you can share with your group. In other words, photocopy it to share for feedback. We'll look at each others' work and discuss the broader elements, including conflict/opportunities for scenes, dialogue, etc. E-mail me or post any questions on this here blog.

• Reading: Have I mentioned the importance of reading Chapter 4, plus relevant material from previous chapters? Have I talked about re-reading and how that re-inforces what you've read? I hope to help you re-remember the importance of reading and then re-reading. I anticipate e-mailing or posting on Blackboard a good essay we might discuss.

• Essays: As you re-read Chapter 4, pay attention to the following details in these essays. On page 91, in Naomi Shihab Nye's essay, pay special attention to how she uses strong adjectives in her description, plus how she uses time -- the back and forth movement between present and past tense. On page 95 in Judith Ortiz Cofer's essay, pay attention to the details in her writing: the use of sight, sound, smell, etc. Also, note how she structures her essay in time. (Hint: look at the first two words of the essay.)

• Again, keep an eye out for an e-mail from me notifying you when Blackboard is up and running. Right now, I'm waiting for the computer folks to combine my two 1101 sections into one course so I can post everything just once.

See you in class on Wednesday.

mc