Tuesday, November 13th, 2012--5 pm

Hello,

As you will note (and I am sure you already have) on the revised syllabus that I posted a few weeks ago, I am giving you the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, November 21st, off. Class is cancelled that day. You may have OTHER classes meeting that day, but we will not be meeting.
There will be, however, class on Monday, the 19th. Please do not ask to make up work you will miss that day if you decide to not attend. The same set guidelines apply. If you miss a class, you miss the work, with very rare exceptions.

See you tomorrow.

Sunday, Nov. 11th, 2012--9 pm

Greetings,

Below you will find the three readings for Packet 7 AND an assignment that is due on Wednesday. It will only take you a few minutes.

(Also, remember that if you are submitting a rough draft for out of class essay #3, it is due on Wednesday, as is the essay response to Frozen River.)

1. This assignment is NOT on your course outline. It is due on Wednesday, the 14th.
Directions:
At the top of your paper, please type: Musings on Immigration. Then go on to type whatever comes to your mind when you hear the word "immigration." Your response can be in any format you wish: bulleted list; paragraph; short paragraphs; etc. There is not a correct or incorrect way to respond.

There is NO requirement for length. YOU WILL NOT PUT YOUR NAME ANYWHERE ON THIS ASSIGNMENT. This assignment is worth 25 points. These 25 points are half of the 50 points you will earn for Group #3 on Friday.

When you turn this in on Wednesday, I will have a sign in sheet for you to record your name so you earn the 25 points. Again, please type this and do NOT put your name anywhere on the paper.

2. PACKET 7
"Fix Immigration Now"
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/fix-immigration-now/2012/11/11/0236101a-2acb-11e2-96b6-8e6a7524553f_story.html

"What are the Solutions to Illegal Immigration?
(Ten Top Pros and Cons)
http://immigration.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=000842

"The Political Inevitability of Immigration Reform"
http://www.heraldonline.com/2012/11/11/4403706/the-political-inevitability-of.html

Saturday, November 10th, 12:45 pm

Greeting, below you will find the prompts for the take home exam on Frozen River. It was distributed in class on Friday. It is due on Wednesday. Please be sure to read all the directions first before writing your response. 

Name_____________________________________________________English 1A, Section__________

Fall 2012—Prof. Fraga---In Class Essay #2 (100 points)--FROZEN RIVER

PLEASE READ THESE DIRECTIONS CAREFULLY.

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·      SELECT ONE OF THE THREE PROMPTS BELOW AND WRITE A WELL-FOCUSED, WELL-SUPPORTED ESSAY RESPONSE IN A BLUE OR GREEN BOOK.

·      PLEASE SKIP EVERY OTHER LINE (if you forget, no worries!)

·      PLEASE INDICATE WHAT PROMPT YOU ARE RESPONDING TO AT THE START OF YOUR ESSAY.

·      TAKE NO LONGER THAN 50 MINUTES TO PLAN AND WRITE YOUR ESSAY

·      new request! PLEASE WRITE IN PEN, NOT PENCIL! THANKS!:)

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PROMPT ONE: Do you consider the film, Frozen River, an authentic film? In other words, do you believe Lila and Ray’s lives are portrayed by the writer/director in a genuine and realistic manner? Support your response with specific examples from the film.

********************************************************************************

PROMPT TWO: Frozen River appears to be a film that is littered with symbolism. Some of the elements that could be considered symbolic of a particular theme or idea are:

·      the frozen St. Lawrence river

·      the double wide trailer

·      the landscape

·      the infant in the duffle bag

·      the blowtorch

·      Ray’s collection of bubble bath that she never uses

Select three symbols from this list (or come up with your own) and write an essay in which you discuss and analyze the use of these symbols (and their success and failure) in the film. ***********************************************************************************

PROMPT THREE: Complete this sentence by filling in the missing sections. Then use the sentence as the first sentence in your essay. You will then support this assertion specifically.

The film, Frozen River, is less about________________________________________________

and more about________________________________________________________________________.

Extra Credit: (optional)

1.     Troy Jr. is asked by one of the tribal policemen to apologize to a Mohawk woman. What is Troy apologizing for? (2points)

2.     Where does Ray work? (1 point)

3.     Troy Jr. tells his mom he just cannot have another dinner consisting of ______________________and ____________________. (fill in the blanks.) (2 points)

Tuesday, November 6th, 9 pm

Hello,

I realize some of you may not read this blog entry tonight, or maybe not even before class tomorrow, but eventually I assume all of you will.

Since we are watching a film tomorrow, I will not have the time to remind you of the following, thus this blog entry now.

I am working on evaluating the revisions of out of class essay 2 that were submitted yesterday.

Some of them are quite good and definitely earned more points.

However, the majority of them are really disappointing and frankly, very frustrating. I spent nearly 30 minutes on most of your essays the first time they were submitted. Now the revision is really up to you. I expect you to spend TIME and thought on a revision. This includes the FIRST STEP, which is to review all my comments and suggestions. It is not my job to edit EVERYTHING. How would you possibly improve your editing, proofreading, development and critical thinking skills if I did that?!

No other instructor in any of your other classes, this semester or any upcoming semesters, will give you the feedback that I provide you on your work.

Some of you will be receiving your revision back with no revision grade. I am not going to spend my time writing THE SAME THING on your revision that I noted the first time.

See you tomorrow!

November 2--2nd posting--ONLY FOR SECTION 16 STUDENTS

Greetings to English 1A, section 16 students only. The note below is from your student mentor, Divya.
(She has also asked me to remind you that she would be more than happy to take a look at your rough draft of essay 3.)

Hello! I hope all of you had an AWESOME Halloween!

I have been putting this off for a long time because I have not found time to work on notecards. Take my advice, NEVER take seven classes (plus mentoring) in the same semester…it’s a heavy load! Anyway, I finally found time to address this one! (I apologize in advance for the long response)

1) What is your name and number on the syllabus?

My name is Divya Golconda, and you can catch me by my email: ddance2@hotmail.com. All of you can contact me anytime if you have questions about dorm life, classes, resources…anything!! I’m here for your benefit!

2) How do I take good notes in a long-lecture class?

Oh, geez, a loaded question. It really depends on how long you actually consider a long class…I have had classes that are 50 minutes long, and classes that are three hours long!

Honestly, a lot of it is figuring out what works best for you. Some people find that it works the best to read the material before you come to class and some people find that it is easier to read the material after you come to class (for me it is after). As far as notes go, some people find that hand-to-hand note taking helps them retain their information better. For me, if I am allowed to use a laptop, I tend to keep it on hand and use it, just because I generally type faster, and because my word document also has a feature that allows you to record professors lectures (which you can transfer onto mp3 and download them into your ipod). However, sometimes, I do write my notes up (which I have to do because I cannot read my own writing sometimes), because then going and typing them up on the computer helps me retain the information as well. Sometimes, the professor also posts slides online for the lectures. Also, if you have a question for the professor, I would ask it! In this way, you can understand the material fully, and the professor will also notice that you are paying attention. I would show up to class with the slides already printed out, and add on to these slides (because the professors always go a little more in depth). There are also some exams that have material from both the lecture and the book, so I do recommend not skipping.

Also (generically), don’t write what the professor says word for word, because you will find it is slowing you down. Don’t take full sentences as well, but take notes on whatever is put on the board, because chances are that will be on the exam.

Hope this helped!! If you have any further questions, please email me at ddance2@hotmail.com.

Friday, November 2, 2012--4:30 pm

Greetings,

Below you will find two documents:

1. Out of class essay assignment #2, assigned and explained in class today.

2. A revised syllabus for the remaining weeks of the semester. You are responsible for knowing about the adjustments on this revised syllabus.  The biggest change is that I have changed the in-class essay 2 into a take home assignment. 

I truly apologize, again, to those students who DID attend class today AND came prepared, having completed reading The Unwanted.  As you will note, we will be discussing the memoir on Monday in detail. Those students who have not completed reading might consider having it read by Monday. As I mentioned in class, I was really taken aback on Wednesday when there was such an outcry of students requesting that they be given longer to read the memoir. This has never happened before and indicates that some of you are not doing well with the time management challenges of college.


English 1A—Sections 88, 89 and 16

Fall, 2012—C. Fraga

Course Theme: THE SIGNIFICANCE OF HOME

OUT OF CLASS ESSAY ASSIGNMENT #3—100 POINTS POSSIBLE

Assigned: Friday, November 2

Optional Rough Draft due no later than: Wednesday, November 14

Final Draft Due: Wednesday, November 28

Basic Requirements: 

·      Times New Roman Font

·      MLA format

·      typed, double spaced

·      a Works Cited page with, at a minimum, the citation for the book you are using—The Unwanted or Made for You and Me.

There is NO outside research required for this assignment. However, you MAY use outside sources if you wish (book reviews; blogs; author interviews; etc.) Just keep in mind that I have read everything on the Internet available about both of these books.

For this assignment, you have a selection of several prompts. You will select only ONE and respond in a thoughtful, well-developed essay.

Your reading audience for this essay are readers who have read the book.

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The Unwanted: A Memoir of Childhood by Kien Nguyen

CHOICE #1.  SELECT A ‘CHARACTER’ FROM THE MEMOIR, THE UNWANTED. IN YOUR OPINION, WHAT CHARACTERISTICS (at least FOUR) ACCURATELY DESCRIBE THIS PERSON? FOR EVERY ASSERTION YOU MAKE ABOUT THIS PERSON, YOU MUST SUPPORT IT WITH AT LEAST THREE VERY SPECIFIC SUPPORTS FROM THE BOOK. THIS RESPONSE WILL BE EVALUATED CLOSELY ON YOUR ABILITY TO CRITICALLY ANALYZE AND SUPPORT YOUR ASSERTIONS LOGICALLY AND ARTICULATELY AND FULLY.

CHOICE #2: THIS MEMOIR REFLECTS A WEALTH OF VARIOUS THEMES/TOPICS, INCLUDING OUR SEMESTER-LONG THEME OF HOME. SELECT A MINIMUM OF THREE DIFFERENT THEMES THAT THE MEMOIR SUGGESTS TO YOU AND OFFER WELL DEVELOPED SUPPORT FROM THE BOOK TO DEFEND YOUR ASSERTIONS.

Made for You and Me by Caitlin Shetterley

CHOICE #3: “Some will applaud Cait and Dan for the sheer audacity of their move and their fight to make things work.  Others may contend that their troubles, though unfortunate, were largely self-inflicted. Safe to say, few readers will be left unmoved.” This quote is an excerpt from a book review in the Portland Herald Press newspaper by Joan Silverman.

http://www.pressherald.com/life/audience/made-for-you-and-me-sure-to-charm-some-but-not-all_2011-04-24.html

As a reader of Shetterley’s memoir, what is YOUR opinion? Do you lean towards being in awe of Shetterley’s sensibility and courage to go on her journey west? Or do you lean towards the attitude that overall, Caitlin and Dan’s problems were mostly ones they created for themselves? Or do you straddle the fence and “see” the situation from both sides?

Write an essay where you present your opinion and defend it thoughtfully in a balanced and well-supported response.

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Week Eleven:  (Nov. 5-9)

·      Discuss The Unwanted in class (Monday)

·      View film in class (Wednesday and Friday)

·      In Class Essay #2 is now a take home exam. It will be distributed to you on (Friday)

·      

Week Twelve:  (Nov. 12-16)

·      Monday, November 12, campus holiday—no classes.

·      Read Packet #7 (Wednesday)

·      Rough Draft due for out of class #3-OPTIONAL (Wednesday)

·      Take Home Exam (In class essay 2) due today (Wednesday)

·      Group Work #3 (Friday)

Week Thirteen:  (Nov. 19-23)

·      Sign up for Oral Presentations (Monday)

·   Group Work #4 (Monday)

·      (Wednesday) No class today. Have the best holiday.

·      Thanksgiving Holiday, Nov. 22 and 23, no classes held.

Week Fourteen (Nov. 26-30)

·      Read Packet #8 (Monday)

·      Out of class essay #3 due today (Wednesday)

·      Course Evaluation (Friday)

Week Fifteen (Dec. 3-7) LAST WEEK OF CLASSES

 Oral Presentations (Monday and Wednesday)

Grade Worksheet Check and last day of class (Friday)

Week Sixteen (Dec. 1--14) FINALS WEEK

There is no scheduled final exam for this class.

***A NOTE ABOUT REVISIONS***

Since this is a composition course, where the goal is to become a better writer and a more sophisticated thinker, you are invited to revise one of the three out of class essays. If you choose to revise an essay, the revision along with the original, is due no later than one week after you receive the graded essay back. You MUST highlight all changes and additions you make on your revised essay.

Tuesday, October 30th, 2012--9:30 am

Hello,

a couple of things...
below is the link to the Becky Blanton article I mentioned in class on Monday. Please read before class tomorrow.

http://www.salon.com/2011/01/27/living_in_van/print/


Also, just a reminder that if you did not revise out of class essay #1, and you wish to revise out of class essay #2, the first revision is due on Monday, November 5th. Please be sure to follow the instructions on how to submit a revised essay. You can find instructions on the syllabus.

And, one more reminder...please remember to have the handout, "How to Critically Read an Essay" with you until we complete the discussion.

See you Wednesday.