Writing 3 Class Notes -- Week 15 (December 16)

 Greetings!

We had a marvelously full day today.  Most of the class was there early at 8:30 so that we could get all of the presentations in.

I always feel so proud of my students on our presentation days.  They have worked hard on their research papers, and listening to them talk about aspects of their topics allows the rest of the class to appreciate their hard work.  Another aspect of the presentations is that the students are able to give visual images for the information that they had been putting into words.  Whether it's maps, charts, videos, etc.  these items provide broader representations of their topics.  They also all did especially well with the question and answer section.  As their classmates asked questions, they skillfully contributed more information, showing just how well they knew their topics.  

For those who are interested, I've posted 3 Google Classroom materials posts with the slide shows for the presentations.  A couple of students have video presentations that will also be posted on Google Classroom when they are turned in.

Now, all that's left to do is get the final drafts in. As I told them last week, I will take any work (except rough drafts) until Sunday at 11:59 p.m.   

I would love to get everything graded and have grades out before Christmas, but that might not happen.  I have final drafts from all three classes, so the whole process might take a little longer.  When I am done, I will have paper copies with notes to give to them; these can be picked up at CHAT in January.  I can also scan and send the papers digitally.

This class has been a pleasure.  May all of the students have a well-deserved rest!

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

Links for this Week:

Writing 3 Class Notes -- Week 15 (December 16)

Presentations for December 2

Presentations for December 9

Presentations for December 16

Writing 3 Class Notes -- Week 14 (December 9)

 Greetings!

We had a great class today.  We began with a Quick Write (Christmas traditions) and then proceeded to student presentations.

This morning we heard about Shintoism from Benjamin, AR-15s from Philip, and Psychopathy from Josie.  Not only did all three present good information, but they expertly fielded questions from the rest of the class.

We have one class period left.  I've been going over drafts as they come in; students who handed in papers in the past couple of days will get them over the weekend.  We're at the point that students should be polishing up their drafts ready for the final draft.  Some of the refinements needed included correcting grammatical errors, fixing in text citations, and correctly formatting the Works Cited page.  

We still have quite a number of presentations to get through, and to do that, I gave the students options.  First, we're going to start at 8:30 next week -- I promised food -- so that we have more time.  Also, a couple of students were interested in recording their presentations and posting them on Google Classroom so that the rest of class could see them.  

Students who want to record their presentations can do a video of themselves speaking.  If you want to do a presentation that includes slides (Google Slides or Powerpoint) you can use Zoom to do that.  Basically, you have a Zoom meeting with just yourself.  You can share your screen and record the meeting.  The Zoom app then converts the recording, and that recording can be uploaded to Google Classroom.  Here's a good video that explains the process:  Record a Virtual Presentation.  If a student wants to do this, please contact me!

Next week is the last week of classes for CHAT.  We'll start at 8:30, and even though we will be doing presentations, it will be our end of the semester Christmas party.  Students can bring goodies to share if they'd like.  Because we will have a full class period of presentations, I won't be taking time for the end of class reflection that I usually do.  Students should complete the reflection on this Google Form.  

The goal is to have all work done on the last day, December 16.  That said, I have told the students that I would take final drafts until Sunday, December 19.  If a student is not sure what work needs to be done, Google Classroom is the place to look.  I will send out a Grade Report over the weekend so that you can see current percentages.

Assignments for Next Week:

Finish all the things!

Have a great weekend! 

Mrs. Prichard

Writing 3 Class Notes -- Week 12 (November 18)

Greetings!

We had a good day in class and covered a lot of ground.

Quick Write

For today's Quick Writes, we had the following prompts:

1 -- Contribute to the list of Quick Write ideas to be used for my classes for the rest of the year.

2 -- Write about a sports mis-hap that happened to you or that you know about.

3 -- November 18 is National Princess Day and November 16, 1553, was the day that Queen Elizabeth I became the queen of England following the death of her sister, Mary.  Write about any royalty that you are especially interested in.

Words of the Day

We had no words because I anticipated the class time to be too full.

Homework Discussion

We went around the room, and the students shared where they were in the process of their papers and what challenges they were experiencing.  Some common themes about their challenges came up:  time management issues, difficulties finding the right resources, personal challenges, overcoming perfectionism,  refining and defining the focus and topic, etc.  The students are all in different places in their progress, but they're all moving forward.  Some rough drafts have been handed in the the past couple of days, and I will get them back to students over the weekend.  

One of the common challenges was finding enough resources. I recommended trying ProQuest or EBSCO, online databases of peer reviewed, academic articles.  Most local, public libraries have access to these articles and journals.

Presentations

Students are required to present something to their class.  It can be a quick overview of all their topics or a focused look at one aspect.  They can have some kind of visual aid to help them in their presentation.  Lots of students use PowerPoint slides, but they could use a poster or use some other object.  Because we have a large class, the presentations will need to be short (10 minutes), about which some students are really glad.  I showed them a short, humorous video about giving presentations.  I'm also posting some of next week's assignments, because they're related to our presentation.  

Below is our Presentation schedule:

December 2 -- Michael, Gabi, Philip, Levi, Tyler, Jessie

December 9 -- Benjamin, Elliot, Josie, David, Kara, Maria

December 16 -- Ellie, Ethan, Carson, Brooke, Leighton

Sample Paper Reading

Students took some time to read a sample paper by one of my students from about 8 years ago. This was a well-written paper, but not perfect.  They were told to look for what the writer did well and what was not as strong.  

Helpful Resources

In the links below I've included some websites that might be helpful at this stage of their writing.  Some students might need help with in text citations and the Works Cited page.  Even though we've talked about this multiple time, it's always a little different when you're actually doing it.  One resource listed below is something that one of the students, Kara, said she was using.  Supernotecard is an online note-taking app.

We won't have class next week. Enjoy your family and Thanksgiving weekend.

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

Homework for Next Class (12/2)

Research Paper Assignments

Research Paper Rough Draft #1

Research Paper Rough Draft #2

Research Paper Rough Draft #3 (opt.)

Presentation Assignments

Presentation Outline

Presentation Self Evaluation

Links for This Week

Writing 3 Class Notes -- Week 12 (November 18) 

Quick Write (11/18)

Zoom Recording -- November 18

Presentation Rubric

SuperNoteCard

How to Sound Smart (TEDTalk)

How to Give a Great Presentation (video)

EasyBib Writing Center

Purdue OWL General MLA Format

Purdue OWL Works Cited page

MLA Works Cited page on Google Docs (video)

MLA Works Cited page in Microsoft Word (video)

How to Format Entries on a Works Cited page
 

Writing 3 Class Notes -- Week 11 (November 11)

 Greetings!

We had another full class time this week.  When I first started teaching at CHAT, I didn't know how I would fill a 90 minute class.  Now I wish I could have the students for even more time because there's always more to cover.  On Google Classroom this week I have a couple of posts that include material that might be helpful as they work on their in text citations and Works Cited pages.

Quick Write

Our prompts for today:

Nov. 10 was the birthday of the US Marine Corps

Nov. 11 was Veterans/Armistice Day

Nov. 12  was National Chicken Soup for your Soul

Students could write something about the military or about something that has to do with social/mental/emotional self-care.

Words of the Day

Today's words were war-related:

military -- fr. Latin militis, "soldier" -- of or relating to war, soldiers, army

veteran -- fr. Latin, veteranus, "old, aged, experienced" -- someone who has served in the military; someone who has had long experience in an occupation/skill

armistice -- fr. Latin, arma, "weapons" and stitium, "to stand, be firm" -- a temporary halt in battles

war -- fr. PIE (Proto-Indo-European) wers, "to confuse, mix up" -- a fight carried on in battle using arms

Homework Check

At this point in the semester, all of the students are in varying places in their writing.  The first rough drafts were due a few weeks ago, and some of the students are still working on that draft.  As I've said, the purpose of the rough draft is to make sure students have enough content and have a good organizational plan.  After any content and organizational issues are corrected, the paper is then ready for me to go over with a "fine tooth comb."  If students are behind, they need to find the time to get their writing done.

Students Led Discussions

We had a presentation on transition words from Tyler, the Works Cited page from Josie, and Works Cited entries from Carson.  

Writing Instructions

We continued looking at in text citations and the Works Cited page.  We also covered hanging indents.

Assignments for Next Week

Research Paper Rough Draft #1

Research Paper Rough Draft #2

Citations Quiz (on Google Classroom)

A Note on Assignments on Google Classroom -- All drafts of the Research Paper should be submitted on Google Classroom instead of paper copies in class.  If students do this, I can read and correct them sooner and get them back to the students.

Links for This Week

Writing 3 Class Notes -- Week 11 (November 11)

Citation Resources

Video:  Formatting Works Cited in MLA in Google Docs

Video:  How to Set up Works Cited page in MLA in Google Docs

Video:  How to Set up Works Cited page in MLA in Word

Enjoy the changing seasons!!

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

Writing 3 Class Notes -- Week 10 (November 4)

 Greetings!

We had a full day, but the we do every week!

Quick Write

For today, we had a few options:

• November 3 was National Sandwich Day
• November 4 was National Candy Day
• November 5:  Guy Fawkes Night (1605) and the day Susan B Anthony was arrested (1872)
• And as always -- the "Whatever" option

Students could write about favorite sandwiches, candy, and political activism.

Words of the Day

Autumn -- fr. Latin autumnus, "increase" -- the season of harvest between summer and winter

Equinox -- fr. Latin aequus, "equal" and nox, "night" -- the time when day and night are equal length

Cornucopia -- fr. Latin cornu, "horn" and copiae, "plenty" -- a horn-shaped container containing food, drink in endless supply

Susurrus -- fr. Latin susurrus, "humming, whispering" -- a soft murmuring or whispering sound

Hibernaculum -- fr. Latin hibernaculum, "winter residence" -- the winter quarters of a hibernating animal

We did a small group check about their rough drafts.  In groups of 3 - 4, students shared their topics, thesis statements, challenges, and progress.  All of them are feeling a bit challenged with writing the rough drafts of their papers. The students are in all phases of writing their papers; they should let me know as soon as they submit their rough drafts on Google Classroom.

We had 2 student-led discussions:  Parallel structure and Expletives and "There is/are."  Here's the video for parallel structure.  

We closed out the class with some discussion about what to look for in rough drafts and how to revise.

Assignments for Next Week 

-- Rough Draft #1 (if not done)

-- Evaluating and Editing your Own Paper

-- Extra Credit -- Evaluating Introductions

Links for this Week

-- Writing 3 Class Notes -- Week 10 (November 4)

-- Revising a Rough Draft

-- Parallel Structure video

Writing 3 Class Notes -- Week 8 (October 14)

Greetings!

Great class today, as always.  This is a lively and engaged group of students.   Writing 3 is a great way to start my Thursday!

Quick Write

For today's Quick Write, I asked students to choose a topic about which they have strong opinions.  It could be something light-hearted and close to home, or it could be a topic of current cultural or political interest.  Then, they were to think about the perspectives of those who are on the other side of the issue.  My goal is that they would take some time consider what others think.  Not so that they could change their minds about their opinions, but so that they could be more understanding of those who they might view as opponents.  Being able to do this is a mark of a mature, wise, and graceful thinker.

Words of the Day

stubborn -- fr, OE, stybb, "stump" -- fixed or set in an opinion; refusing to change

dogmatic -- fr. Greek, dogmatikos, "pertaining to doctrines" -- adhering only to principles or dogma 

indomitable -- fr. Latin, in, "not" and domitare, "to tame" -- incapable of being subdued

inexorable -- fr. Latin, in "not" and exorabilis, "moved/persuaded by entreaty" -- not convinced or persuaded by requests or petitions

Writing

We enjoyed and learned from the student-led discussions about signal phrases, quote sandwiches, in text citations, and block quotes.  Philip, Elliot, Maria, Gabi, Benjamin, Josie, and Ellie did a good job.  All of these topics relate to how students should incorporate their researched material into their papers.

Rough Draft

Students should be well on their way with their research and have a good idea about what material/subtopics they should include in their papers.  The first rough draft is due when we come back after fall break.  For this rough draft, I will be looking primarily for content and organization.  

Fall Break

We don't have CHAT classes next week; October 20 & 21 are our Fall Break days.  I hope you can find some fun outside activities to do.

Assignments for 10/28

Rough Draft #1

Signal Phrase & Block Quotes Quiz

Links for this week

Writing 3 Class Notes -- Week 8 (October 14)

Quick Write (10/14)

Persuasive Writing Techniques

Incorporating Material Resources

Have a marvelous Fall Break!

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

Writing 3 Class Notes -- Week 6 (September 30)

 Greetings!

We had a full day in class today.  I'm sure enjoying this group of students!

Quick Write

Today's prompt was inspired by the fact that is was on this day, September 30, in 1890 that Yosemite was named a national park.  I'm afraid I gave some incorrect information.  Yellowstone was the first national park, not Yosemite.  For the prompt, students were to write about some "great out of doors" adventure.  For responses, I heard about some close calls and some good times in nature.

Words of the Day

Vernacular -- fr. Latin verna (home-born slave) & vernaculus (domestic; native) -- "home-style language;" common language

Colloquial -- fr. Latin com (with) & loqui (to talk) -- language of a conversational style

Dialect -- fr. Greek dialektos (talk, conversation, speech) and fr. PIE -leg (to collect, gather, or pick out words) -- language specific to a particular region

Idiom -- fr. Latin idiomas (peculiarity in language) -- a figure of speech; words that have meanings other than their literal meaning

Homework Check

Usually after the beginning of class activities, I check in with the students about any homework questions.  We discussed assignments on Google Classroom.  I want to clarify an issue relating Google Classroom and the Grades Report that is emailed.  If students are missing an assignment, it will say "missing" on Google Classroom.  When I import the scores onto a Google Sheets spreadsheet using a grade book app, the missing scores are changed to zeros.  

Another note about homework.  I don't have a specific day that I correct homework, but the plan is to have it done and returned for the following class period.  When I'm done correcting work, I will update Google Classroom to reflect both the paper homework that was handed in during class and the assignments finished on Google Classroom.  

Student Led Discussion

Two groups of students presented to the class today.  First we heard about Note-taking from Eliana and Leighton.  The Madeleine and Levi gave us important bibliographical information related to Works Cited pages.  In addition to hearing about Evaluating Sources from Tyler & Carson, here's the plan for next week:

Week 7 (10/7)	Paraphrasing & Summarizing	1. Gabi Fletcher
		2.   Ethan Barns
	Mosaic Plagiarism	1. Madeleine Choe
		2.   Kara Smith
	Common Knowledge	1. Michael Miller
		2.   Ethan Barns

Student Group Discussions

After our presentations, I divided the students into small groups to discuss their topics and to work on their thesis statements for their research papers.  Their Research Proposals were due this week, and a preliminary outline is due next week.  As I've told students, the work for the first part of the semester is pretty light, but now it's picking up.  The first rough draft is due in two weeks!

Assignments for Next Week

Write Your Own Thesis Statement (2nd half)

Research Paper Outline

Links for This Week

Writing 3 Class Notes -- Week 6 (September 30)

About Note-Taking

Research and Relevant Sources

Have a wonderful Fall weekend!

Blessings!

Mrs. Prichard