2011 Fall Semester Journals Assignment

Greetings Rhetors! And welcome to the world of blogging! Instead of continuously turning in journals in class every week, we are going to save paper AND prepare you for college in one swoop! Below I am giving you twenty journal prompts. Please label them clearly and post blog responses. This will be an ongoing project for you to work on all semester, but let me warn you: DO NOT PROCRASTINATE THIS UNTIL THE END OF THE SEMESTER OR YOU WILL BE UNHAPPY!

The 20 blog posts/journal responses are due by 11:59:59 on December 4th, 2011!

Many of the prompts that you are given here come from various university applications. Here are your twenty journal prompts:

1. Pretend that you are talking to a blind man and have to describe for him what "red" is. You should use narrative and descriptive writing techniques, and try to appeal to his other senses!

2. How does competition function in our society? To what extent is it healthy/unhealthy? Offer some real world examples taken from your life, community, culture, state, nation, or world.

3. How have you taken something that you have learned in the classroom and integrated it into your nonacademic life?

4. If you could go back in time and be someone in history, who would you choose to be? Why?

5. If you had the responsibility to decide where $1 million should be spent to improve conditions somewhere in the world, what project(s) would you choose? Why?

6. How have you tried to effect change in relation to an issue of personal, local, or national significance?

7. If you could introduce one new idea or material thing to a primitive culture, what would it be?

8. If you were to describe yourself using a quotation, what would that quotation be? After you have chosen a quote, then write a bit about how it relates to you and reveals what kind of person you are.

9. Given the authority to establish a holiday, what would you choose to commemorate? Why? What would the celebration look like?

10. What is the best advice you've ever received? Explain.

11. Ask and answer the one important question that a university won't ask you, but you wish they would.

12. Your life is a movie. Describe the first 15 minutes.

13. Write a letter to your future college roommate introducing yourself and your background.

14. Please describe your reactions/ideas to the following quote: "He does not possess wealth, it possesses him."

15. What is the most valuable contribution you could make to a college campus? Explain.

16. Explain a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dillema you have faced and its impact on you.

17. Discuss some issue of personal, local, national, or international concern and its importance to you.

18. If you could choose two things to change about our high school campus, what would they be and why?

19. Should school attendance be mandatory? In your answer, be sure to explore what the function of education is, and what our nation would look like if the masses were less educated.

20. If you had the ability to talk to one species of animal, which animal would you choose to communicate with? Why?

Semester 2 Blog Assignment

The Internet is saturated with a variety of persuasive arguments, and it is now your turn to be sucked into this rhetorical vortex! Follow the steps below to complete the blog assignment for Quarter 3:

1. You will publish 4 separate blog posts (Please label them: Q3 Blog 1, Q3 Blog 2, etc.)

2. For each of your blog posts, write a 400-1000 word argument. The topics are your choice, although as you read the third step, you will understand that each entry will need to have a specific focus. To earn credit, each post must follow the requirements below and each must be about a different topic.

3. In the content of each post's argument, please do the following:

Q3 Blog 1: In your argument, use at least one inductive example

Q3 Blog 2: In your argument, use at least one deductive example

Q3 Blog 3: Construct an argument from character

Q3 Blog 4: Construct an argument that challenges normative ideology

If you aren't sure what there is to argue about, start surfing news sites and blogs and READ!!! If you have nothing to say, you aren't paying attention!!!

QUARTER 3 BLOGS ARE DUE BY 11:59PM ON SUNDAY, 3/6!

Blog #7: Compare and Contrast

The last mode of writing development that we've studied in the second quarter of our course deals with how to write a compare and contrast essay. It is important that you know how to analyze rhetorical texts and organize them---and texts can come in all forms. Use blog #6 to explore this concept. Here's what to do:

1) Choose two images, symbols, pictures, etc. that have similarities and differences.
2) Embed the images onto your blog.
3) Answer the following questions and do the following tasks:
a. If you were to write a compare and contrast essay on these two images, what would your purpose be?
b. Write a sample thesis which reflects that purpose.
c. What would your key points be?
d. Would you organize subject by subject, or point by point?

Blog #6: Working Definitions

Our unit about Definition as a rhetorical mode of development has taught us that there are four general ways in which a writer or a speaker can approach a definition:

Definition by Negation
Definition by History
Definition by Example
Definition by Compare and Contrast

When we define, we explain a term through well-crafted examples and analysis. This is the project you will be tackling for Blog #6. Here are the following steps:

Step 1: Create a New Post with the Title "Blog #6: Working Definitions"
Step 2: Choose a term that you would like to define. Think about words we use in our society that have multiple meanings and contexts. It is fine for you to use a word that is NOT in English, just so that you define it in English! :)
Step 3: Embed an image that exemplifies how your term is defined
Step 4: Publish your post!

Blog #5: Art Narrative

Here is the first of the four blog assignments you'll be given this quarter---

Before we left for break, you chose an image in which a narrative took place. Here is where you will display that writing!



Step 1: Create a New Post with the Title of: "Blog #5 Narrative & Description Response"
Step 2: Type your narrative
Step 3: Embed the image you used

Tip:
Make sure that your blog entries are visually appealing! Your text should be easy to read and the context of your blog requires that you write for an academic audience.

Blog #4

For your final blog assignment for this nine week period, I would like for you to practice vocabulary for the SAT. Follow the steps below:

1) Click on freerice.com under my links

2) Fill up five bowls of rice

3) On your blog, record three new terms that you learned and their definitions

YOU WILL BE ASSIGNED FOUR BLOG ENTRIES EVERY 9 WEEKS. YOUR FOUR ENTRIES FOR QUARTER 1 ARE DUE BY 11:59:59 ON 9/19/2010.

Blog #3: Open House

For your third blog assignment for the semester, you will be getting a parent/guardian involved. Here's what to do:

Please have your parent/guardian read the following message from me, then have them post a response on your blog. Please feel free to have your parent/guardian respond in Spanish or any other language, and I can use Google Translate to read it and respond.

Dear Parent/Guardian,

I am really looking forward to working with both you and your child this year. The AP and IB programs are rigorous courses, but if your child puts in the hard work and extra time to commit fully, there will be payoffs in terms of what colleges they apply to and what kind of financial assistance they can find. Your child's success is important to me, and if you have any questions or concerns regarding grades, college, or financial aid information, please feel free to contact me anytime and I will be glad to help you. It is truly exciting to be a part CPHS students' academic journeys and to watch them grow up into successful, happy, and healthy young people. Please feel free to contact me anytime at nikkieddy@yahoo.com and thank you for participating in this blog entry!

Sincerely,

Nikki Eddy

CPHS English Department

Estimado Padre o Tutor,

Estoy deseando trabajar con usted y su niño este año. La AP y los programas de IB son cursos rigurosos, pero si su niño se pone en el trabajo duro y tiempo extra para comprometerse plenamente, no habrá ganancias en términos de lo que las universidades se aplican y qué tipo de ayuda que pueden encontrar. El éxito de su niño es importante para mí, y si usted tiene alguna pregunta o inquietud con respecto a las calificaciones, la universidad, o información sobre ayuda financiera, por favor no dude en ponerse en contacto conmigo en cualquier momento y estaré encantada de ayudarle. Es verdaderamente emocionante ser parte CPHS viajes académicos de los estudiantes y verlos crecer y convertirse en éxito, felices y sanos a los jóvenes. Por favor, no dude en ponerse en contacto conmigo en cualquier momento en nikkieddy@yahoo.com y gracias por participar en esta entrada del blog!

Atentamente,

Nikki Eddy

CPHS Departamento de Inglés

YOU WILL BE ASSIGNED FOUR BLOG ENTRIES EVERY 9 WEEKS. YOUR FOUR ENTRIES FOR QUARTER 1 ARE DUE BY 11:59:59 ON 9/19/2010.

Read the short story "Araby" by James Joyce by clicking on the link below. Then, respond to the three questions below on your blog. Also, embed a picture that you think enhances the argument that Joyce is making in his text.

http://www.readprint.com/work-875/Araby-James-Joyce

Questions for "Araby":

1) Write a thesis statement in response to the sample AP Timed Write prompt given below:

Read "Araby" by James Joyce. Then write a well-organized essay in which you analyze the narrative elements Joyce uses to convey his attitude about poverty.

2) In terms of the prompt above, what narrative elements would you choose to focus on? Why?

3) Identify what you believe is Joyce's most compelling argument in "Araby," then relate that argument to a real-world example. Explain the connection.

YOU WILL BE ASSIGNED FOUR BLOG ENTRIES EVERY 9 WEEKS. YOUR FOUR ENTRIES FOR QUARTER 1 ARE DUE BY 11:59:59 ON 9/19/2010.

Blog Assignment #1

Welcome to your first blog assignment!

For your first entry, please do the following:

1) Google biographical information about your pseudonym's background

2) Write a short biography about who your alter ego was/is (copying and pasting is cool, just as long as you cite the site where you are taking the information from...link it please)

3) Copy and paste a picture of your alter ego into the same post and play with it until it looks good

4) Publish your first blog post! YAY!

YOU WILL BE ASSIGNED FOUR BLOG ENTRIES EVERY 9 WEEKS. YOUR FOUR ENTRIES FOR QUARTER 1 ARE DUE BY 11:59:59 ON 9/19/2010.

March Blog

Spring is in the air!

Choose one of the three statements below, then write an argument in which you support, refute, or qualify.

1.) To decrease the risk of cervical cancer, teenage girls should be required to get the HPV Vaccine.

2.) If Iran doesn't stop developing nuclear weapons, Israel has the right to attack them.

3.) To right a wrong, the American government should pay reparations to the descendents of African Americans who were enslaved.

Your argument should be well-developed and should employ some of the strategies that we have discussed in class (i.e., anecdotes, counterarguments, rounding out your position, etc.)

February Blog

Greetings my young prodigies!

For February's blog, I would like you to do the following:

1. Find an online news source that has an interesting article or editorial

2. Embed a link onto your blog that will take me to that article if I click on it

3. Write a thorough argument in which you defend, refute, or qualify the argument within the article.

Make sure you consider counterclaims and avoid fallacious lines of argument!

January Blog

Welcome back rhetors! I hope you are well-rested...I'm about to give you a Jane Fonda workout, rhetoric style! :)

Since you will be VERY busy with Article Archives, you will only be given four blog assignments this semester; however, remember how important these are to your grade and make sure you do them to the best of your ability!

Here's January's blog assignment:

The first rhetorical mode of development that we will tackle this month is Compare and Contrast. To practice, here's what I would like for you to do:

1. Choose two images that are similar, but different (two black and white photos, two car advertisements, two slogans, etc.).

2. Post AND LABEL the images on your blog (you can call them Image 1 and Image 2, or whatever you'd like).

3. Type up a list of the similarities and differences of the images, then tell me whether you would use a subject by subject or a point by point organization in order to analyze the images. Explain WHY you would choose that organization.

DECEMBER BLOG #1

Alright AP Blog-meisters...

Just one last blog before the gig is up for the first semester!

Here's what to do:

Consider the following statement:

"We are largely defined by those who surround us"

Choose two or three people who shape and define who you are as a person. Describe (using imagery, similies, and metaphors) each person and articulate how he/she defines who you are.

DECEMBER BLOG #1 IS DUE ON TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8TH BY 11:59:59 PM!

November Blog #3

Alright y'all! We are getting close to the end of the semester...for this reason, I'd like you to do a really simple blog. For this week, simply write a paragraph or two in which you talk to me about how you feel like you're doing in the class. What do you really understand well? What are you really struggling with? Is there anything you would like for us to review again? I just want to check in with you and see how you are doing! Easy blog, eh?!



NOVEMBER BLOG #3 is due Tuesday, December 1st by 11:59:59!

November Blog #2

For this week's blog, you will practice what you know about definition, and explore the world of politics a little bit. Consider the following terms:

Liberal

Conservative


On your blog, please respond to the following tasks:

1) Define the concepts of liberalism and conservatism.

2) Find a quote from an article from cnn.com, foxnews.com, or msnbc.com that exemplifies a liberal point of view and one quote that exemplifies a conservative point of view. (Hint: It might help to find a newstory about Obama, Healthcare, or gay marriage and juxtapose how msnbc.com presents the news versus how foxnews.com portrays the story.)

3)Optional: Since we live in a country that allows us to keep our political views private, I will respect that and not require you to tell us your political views; however, if you feel open to sharing, please answer the following question:

When you consider what it means to be liberal or conservative, what do you most closely identify as? Why? Can you give a couple of examples of political and/or social issues that influence your political persuasions?

BLOG #2 IS DUE BY 11:59:59 ON THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 19TH!

NOVEMBER BLOG #1

Phew! We've worked hard...but we're not even CLOSE to being there yet! Keep your chin up kid! We have six hard-core weeks to make significant rhetorical progress!

There are two parts to Blog #1 this month:

PART I:
Read "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson. (I know that some of you have read it before in Mains' class. Read it again! You should be awesome at this!) You can access the story in your Bedford Reader, or by clicking on the following link:
http://www.duluth.umn.edu/~csigler/PDF%20files/jackson_lottery.pdf

PART II:
Respond to the following:

1) What is Jackson's argument?

2) Connect a central theme from the story to another text that you have read.

3) Connect a central theme from the story to a real-world example(s).

4) Discuss how the impact of Jackson's argument would differ if she had approached the topic as an expository piece of rhetoric, rather than a fictional short story.

NOVEMBER BLOG #1 IS DUE BY 11:59:59 ON TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 10TH!

October Blog #1

Welcome Back Rhetors!

Blog assignment #1 for October is straightforward. Here are the instructions:

1) Choose an object, person, or place that is important to you.

2) In 100-300 words, describe your topic as an extended metaphor. For example, I might say that my mother is the sun, rising early to greet me and bring about life, etc. Or I might metaphorically compare something to my refrigerator. Just remember, to use metaphors well when you write, the comparison must be of two DIFFERENT concepts, but there should be a clever connection embedded between them!

OCTOBER BLOG #1 IS DUE ON TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20TH BY 11:59:59!

September Blog #2

Since our break is coming up soon, I thought you all would appreciate it if I posted the last blog for September early...this way you can be done with it and RELAX for 14 days! :) Blog #2 for September is fairly simple.

Here's what to do:

1.) Click on my Advanced English 9 blog link

2.) Surf around and check out the freshmen blogs.

3.) Choose ONE that you find appealing, and write the following words as a comment under their most recent post:"I wrote a review for your blog. Check it out! "Be sure to use your pseudonym!

4.) Write a review for the blog that you chose. In your critique, please cover the following:

a.) Why you chose their blog to review

b.) What strengths you think their blog possesses

c. ) Share something that you have liked and learned about from their blog

d.) Ask them a question that relates to their writing/widgets/images

e.) Offer them one suggestion on how they can improve their blog

SEPTEMBER BLOG #2 IS DUE BY SEPTEMBER 30TH, 11:59:59!

September Blog #1

Sorry for the delay rhetors! I was busy saving the world!

Now that I'm back, I have a special challenge for you! It is in three parts: here goes!

PART I:

1) Post an image (into the text of your post, not as a widget). The image should be artistic,
thought-provoking, and something that you really like.

2) Create a narrative that takes place in the image. If your image does not have an explicit character, create one! Your writing should contain the narrative elements that we have discussed in class. Also, use imagery, similes, and metaphors, and make sure that your narrative has a larger argument and purpose. Having a purpose will be the most difficult part for you to develop, so try to begin thinking first about what themes appear in the image, then your story will start to take shape!

3) Publish a rough draft of this assignment by Thursday, September 17th!!!

PART II:

1) You will be assigned a gross error blog partner for this assignment. Go to his/her blog, check out the image, and read his/her September Blog #1 narrative. Then, analyze the narrative and answer the following questions. POST YOUR ANSWERS AS A COMMENT UNDER THEIR SEPTEMBER BLOG #1 POST!

Q1: What is the author's purpose?
Q2: Identify the narrative elements in the writing. Are tone, chronological order, and point of view clear? Explain your answer in at least three sentences.
Q3: What gross errors are there? Be specific! Tell them what to fix! This will be how we do the writing workshop for the narrative essay, so make sure that you edit well, as both of your grades hinge on your ability to do first aid on each others' writing!

You must post a comment in which you respond to the above questions by TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22ND @ 11:59:59 pm!

PART III:

Publish your final draft.

THE FINAL DRAFT FOR SEPTEMBER BLOG #1 IS DUE ON FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25TH!

August Blog #4: Parent/Guardian Blog

It's time to get la familia involved! To complete the final blog assignment for August, please do the following things:

• Show your parent/guardian the blog that you have been working on.
• Show your parent/guardian how to publish a post on your blog.
• Please ask your parent/guardian to post their thoughts/feelings/questions about the blog, your junior year, college, or anything else that they would like to post.

NOTA: ESTA BIEN ESCRIBIRLO EN ESPANOL
AUGUST BLOG #4 IS DUE BY 11:59:59 ON MONDAY, SEPT. 1ST!
REMINDER: ALL OF YOUR BLOGS SHOULD BE REVISED AND EDITED BY THE 1ST OF SEPTEMBER IN ORDER TO GET A GREAT SCORE ON YOUR FIRST MONTH OF POST RESPONSES!

The Dangers of Being a Radical Blogger

Check out this awesome story y'all!

http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/08/21/outing.anonymous.bloggers/index.html

Bonus Point Bonanza!

For 25 Bonus Points:

Post a video clip from teachertube.com or a news station (please don't use youtube because the school blocks it and I can't see it at school...I know, it's a bummer for me too) that clearly exemplifies one of our vocabulary words. With the video clip, please give a brief description of the vocabulary term and why the clip you chose illustrates the term's concept. For example, you might find a commercial that has an ambiguous meaning, or you may see a news clip from foxnews where the speaker uses anaphora to argue a point.

BONUS POINT OFFER GOOD THROUGH AUGUST ONLY! ACT NOW!

August Blog #3---Blog Review

Ok AP Blogsters!

The blog is a revolutionary phenomena on the Internet, because it allows millions of people to publish opinions, reviews, post photos, and comment on issues in a very public, and sometimes controversial way. Blogs are the nails in the newspaper industry's coffin.

Your assignment is this:

1) Go to Google and do a search on "Most Important Blogs," "Most Interesting Blogs," and "Coolest Blogs"
2) Start exploring what is out there
3) Choose one blog that is your favorite
4) Write a review for that blog in which you do the following:
a. Link the blog address directly into the post, NOT IN YOUR LINK LIST WIDGET!
To do this, paste the address directly into your post entry, then click on the link icon which is the picture that looks like the earth and a chain. It can be found on the left side of the "left align" icon.

b. Write a review for the blog of your choice, and answer the following questions:

1) What is the purpose of this blog?
2) Who is the speaker? Does the speaker have ethos? Why/Why not? Cite evidence.
3) Who is the audience?
4) Describe what you like/don't like about the blog. Do you see anything that you would try on your own blog? What is unique about it? Do you like the images? What new ideas can you get that you can use on your own blog?

AUGUST BLOG #3 IS DUE TUESDAY, AUGUST 25TH BY 11:59:59 PM!

August Blog #2: Scavenger Hunt!

Ok rhetors! Now we have some fun! Complete the following steps to fulfill the requirements of your second August blog assignment.

1. Click on the "Free Rice Vocabulary" link on my blog links. Then, fill up five bowls of rice. On your blog, post three words and their definitions that you covered during this experience.

2. Go to Google, then do a search for "Google Gadgets." Search around for different widgets and add one to your blog.

3. Create a "Links list" widget and add at least three links to pages that you find helpful, interesting, or cool!

THIS BLOG ASSIGNMENT IS DUE ON TUESDAY, AUGUST 18TH BY 11:59:59!

August Blog #1

Your first assignment is as follows:

After you have created your own blog, watch the political advertisement below. Then, on your blog, publish a posting that responds to the following three questions:

I. Identify at least three different forms of pathos employed by the Romney campaign. Pathos is when a person makes an argument using emotion as a force of persuasion. A few examples of pathos are: appealing to fear, love, sex, humor or patriotism.

II. Analyze the style...that is, how are camera angles, colors, music, and sound bytes used to create Romney's ethos?

III. Symbols are powerful weapons in a rhetor's arsenal. Identify one symbol that you see in the advertisement and argue what that symbol's purpose is.


AUGUST BLOG #1 IS DUE ON FRIDAY, AUGUST 7th, 2009!