E4: Elements of Writing (Feb. 2014)

Students were given a choice between reading pre-determined sections of various writing handbooks, six of seventeen articles collected over the last six months from online and offline sources, or a non-fiction book of their choice.

Four times over the three weeks provided for reading, students were asked to turn in paragraphs that answered the following questions:

1. What was the article/section about?
2. What was your reaction to the information?
3. Was it well written? Explain.

At the end of the three weeks, students were asked to write a claim for a five-paragraph essay that would include two citations (based on paraphrases or quotes) and a bibliography that included all their sources. They were provided with a slide-show and notes which reviewed our Fall unit on MLA formatting.

Students then spent five days in the library writing and revising their essay. The essays and two revised drafts were due February 25, 2014 and accepted through February 28, 2014.

The first round of rewrites are due March 7, 2014 and the second round of rewrites are due March 14, 2014.