A little reprieve

The semester ended on Wednesday night--after grammar finals were turned in. I graded and graded all week (finished last night), then posted grades this afternoon. A sigh of relief! Yes, I am on break (from SWIC, for a few weeks until summer classes begin).

But my summer mini-vacation is not a true vacation. Projects abound and I begin teaching an online class on Monday. I am looking forward to the break from the regular routine and seeing the family more.

I will take time this weekend to enjoy the break...to not think about assignments and readings...and NOT grading any work!! We are going to see "Jersey Boys" tomorrow night at the Fox. On Sunday, I will go to Carlyle Lake to watch my husband and some friends in a triathlon.

I hope I can pick strawberries at Eckerts next week. I also will start cleaning and organizing all my books and files as well as the basement. In addition, I will be tending to our small garden.

Finish Strong

We have only a few classes left in the semester, then our final day, which will be our presentations. Note the time and place of our final meeting.

Reminder of due dates:
T May 3 (by end of day) revision of research paper due (google docs or e-mail attachment)
Th May 5  (in class) post your group's agenda/outline/plan for the presentation (google docs or e-mail); in class we will write up our participation evaluation
T May 10 bring hard copy of Blog Essay draft to class for peer reivew; also final presentation planning

Th  May 12 9:30 class has final meeting (9:30-11:20 a.m.)
Fri., May 13 I will start grading blogs; make sure ALL blogs are posted by end of day on Thursday!!
T May 17 8 a.m. class has final meeting (7:30-9:20 a.m.)
                by end of day on Tuesday, revised blog essay must be posted on Google docs (and shared w/ me).

Quote to Ponder

"Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself."
--Leo Tolstoy

Please note: Library Instruction

On Tuesday, March 1, our class will meet in the Library Instruction Classroom. The library is in the Information Sciences building (if you didn't know).

The librarian will be helping us learn about researching strategies for our research projects. Even if you have done one of these "classes" before, you are required to attend.  You will get tips specific to our topics and the assignment.

Remember to add this to your calendar so you are in the right place on March 1!

Snow Day Assignments

Eng 102 Work for Week 3

Try to get the following 3 assignments done by class on Thursday, so we can stay on track. Write up all 3 of these in the class writing document you created for the “my experience” writing. Just keep adding to the document.

(This info is also posted in a document shared with you in Google Docs.)

1.The Plagiarism Tutorial: Go to the following link, read the information, and take the quizzes.
http://www.lib.usm.edu/legacy/plag/plagiarismtutorial.php

When you have completed the quizzes, open your class writing doc and summarize what you learned. What is considered plagiarism. Based on our syllabus, what are the consequences for a student in our class who plagiarizes? What unanswered questions to do have on this topic?

2. Have you done two blog entries (one intro, one open topic)? Have you commented on at least 4 classmates blogs? What have you learned about blogging so far? What questions do you have?

3. Look for a print ad you find interesting, unusual, controversial, etc. What is the ad for? Where did you find it? Do you think you could analyze the ad in a writing assignment? What do you know about logical fallacies? Look at the following link for info on logical fallacies: http://www.nizkor.org/features/fallacies/

Catching Up on Work

By now, you should have set up your Google Account, provided me with your e-mail address, created a folder for class work in Google Docs (include your name in the folder title and share folder with me), and created a document, putting the document in your folder. In the document, write up a response to "my experience" (I shared this with you).

You should also have done the introduction blog entry. Some of you have done more than one entry already(thanks). Your goal is to do a blog entry nearly every week of the semester. You should also comment on at least 2 students blogs each week (vary who you respond to).

For Tuesday, Feb. 1., please have read all assignments up to that day (see calendar below). We will discuss the writing process, avoiding plagiarism, and the persuasive letter assignment.

Snow Day & Reminder

I hope everyone enjoyed  our snow day today. It was wonderful not having to drive on the roads this morning (I drove home from night class last night on snow-covered roads).

Have you set up your Google Account? When you have the e-mail address you will use for class, please e-mail me. I am building the class e-mail list. Also, once you've created your blog, let me know the URL (name.blogspot.com) and the name of the blog. If you have questions about the blog, call or e-mail me. I would like everyone to stay on schedule and get the first blog entry done by Tuesday's class.

If you make your blog private, make sure to invite me to view it. I am "following" everyone's blogs as you send me the URL. On Monday, I will e-mail the blog and e-mail list to everyone who has sent me his/her e-mail address.