Looking at Student Models

Guess what day it is!

Let's read.

You'll need to get yourself to this blog, and open your Writer's Notebook.

Yesterday you did a little bit of research and individual work based on your needs.

Let's get ourselves focused on the upcoming task. We're going to spend the next couple days looking at some student models. These are real personal statements that high school students wrote. 

Right now you only need to focus your attention on one of the following. I will tell you which link to click on.

Example ONE

Example TWO

Example THREE

Example FOUR

Copy and Paste the following questions into your Writer's Notebook:

1. Which model are you reading?
2. What does the writer want you to learn about her/him? What was his or her goal in telling you this particular story?
3. How does the writer introduce their essay? How is it effective or not effective?
4. What are 1 or 2 powerful sentences that show who this person is and what they are trying to convey?
5. What part of their writing was most successful? (Voice, word choice, story arc, clear ideas, etc)
6. Do you see any instances of ethos (credibility), logos (logic), or pathos (emotion)? How do the affect the writing?
7. How might you apply these techniques to your own writing?
8. What could make their essays better or stronger?

Letter to a Friend

Over the past week you've read two articles, watched a few TED talks, and worked to respond to those texts using your own thoughts and experiences.

At this point, I want you to forget about making the perfect essay.

Today, write a letter to a trusted friend or family member

Some ideas to get you started:

• Ask for advice about your ideas and explain why you need the advice
• Explain why you are prepared for the next stage of your life
• Describe your concerns
• Tell about an even that shows your skills, including strengths and weaknesses
• Write questions you have about the next stage of your life and answer them 

Write without consulting your notes. Write freely. If you feel like you've written all you can about an idea. Try tackling it from another angle. Let yourself get side-tracked. It is a letter to a friend, after all.

The goal is to produce as much as you can. It doesn't matter how good it is. Just push your ideas further.

Don't Stop Writing.

Reminder:

You need to make sure the assignments in your Writer's Notebook are completed.
This includes:

• 9/19 - Letter to a friend
• 9/18 - Reflective Questions about the texts
• 9/16 - Three Truths and Freewrite
• 9/11 - Angel Perez Advice/comments table and description of a time you were "less than perfect."

If you don't know what these are, scroll down to check the blog posts from those days, ask me, or email me.

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There is one change that's going to be made starting Monday.
Each day when you come to class and are waiting for your computers to load, we will take the first ten minutes of class to read.

"For a man to write well, there are required three necessaries: to read the best authors, observe the best speakers, and much exercise of his own style." (Ben Jonson, Timber, or Discoveries, 1640)

I have reserved time for you to go to the library on Monday if you need a book (You will need your ID). You are also welcome to bring one of your own. Either way, you will need to bring a book to class every day starting Tuesday.

"Words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with deeper meaning." - Maya Angelou

Happy Thursday!

Please get your computers out and sit in your new assigned seats. 


Yesterday you began reading an article in partners called Hidden Intellectualism using the Say Something protocol explained in yesterday's blog post.

You will work to continue reading that article today.

BUT FIRST!

We will watch a TED talk. It's called "Hackschooling Makes Me Happy" -  which ties into the idea that we must seek to find our hidden intellect and true happiness. 

As you continue reading "Hidden Intellectualism," (you should already have your own copy in your drive) begin to identify important sentences or ideas that you believe the rest of your classmates should know or take note of.




For homework, in your Writer's Notebooks, please begin to cultivate and detail your thoughts on the following questions. You will need to refer to both the Perez and Graff articles. You may even use the Hackschooling TED talk if you found it valuable and relatable to your personal story.

This must be completed by Monday, 9/22. Please make sure to complete this entry at the top of your document. (Some of these questions are the same as yesterday. If you started it yesterday, you may continue working on that one, but make sure you answer all of these questions.)

1. What is Graff's thesis?  Restate in your own words.  
2  What is your Hidden Intellect?   
3.  What is your area of expertise/knowledge?  
4.  How can this benefit you in the future?
5. How have Perez or Graff or the TED talk added any insight to your thoughts about your career or schooling in the future?

6. Explain how these resources have made you (re)think of any moments in your life that represent who you are now?
7. How have the articles and the video caused you to change your attitude or your state of mind? If they haven't, explain why not.
8. What do these three resources have in common? Give specific examples.

Words Matter

Get your computer, log in, open this blog.
12thWritersWorkshop.blogspot.com


We all have different ideas about who we are and what represents us. Today you'll look more closely at the words that you use to define yourself.

But first I need you to Create a Writer's Notebook:

1. Create a new document in Google Docs. 
2. Name it with your Period# name Writer's Notebook  (i.e.  4 Alyssa Black Writers Notebook)
3. Share it with Ms. Black using her gmail address.

You'll be using this almost every day. Unless the internet breaks. But we're going to pretend that won't happen. You'll need to write today's date on your document to signify your first entry.

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Okay. Now let's get to the real work.

Below is a list of words. It is not a comprehensive list, and that's okay. 

Choose the ten words off of this list that best fit your sense of self and write them in your Writer's Notebook.

Now, add 10 more words to your list that describe how you see yourself at this stage of your life. These may or may not come from this list. 

Last, rank those 20 words based on which words are most important to you in your life.

Making Predictions and Asking Questions:

The last thing you're going to do today is to reflect on the language you've chosen to describe yourself with, and to consider the significance of it. This goal is to be able to make predictions and develop ideas about what you'll need to do to best represent yourself in your personal statement. In your Writer's Notebook, answer the following questions:

• Why did you rank your words as you did?
• What do your words tell you about your opinion of yourself in terms of readiness for work or college?
• What would someone who knows you well think of the words you chose?
• Based on your analysis, predict what you will need to do learn more about to achieve your goals.
• Predict how well your words/concepts will work for you as you move into the next stage of your life. For example, if one of your words is "stubborn," how do you think that will work for or against you in the future?

Homework: (It's not that bad, I promise.)

Find someone you trust and show them or share with them your list of words.

Ask them what they think of your choices, and ask them to share their thoughts about how you've defined yourself. 

This may be difficult, and that's okay. Listen (without talking or interrupting), and jot down some notes about how people perceive your words and choices. You may even write down your opinion of what others said.

It's never a bad time to ask for more perspectives on concepts such as these words represent. It is difficult to represent yourself to others if you don't have a solid sense of who you are and what you believe about yourself.