More Than Just the Persuasive Appeals

After chatting about purpose in texts, you were given a list of rhetorical strategies to define and exemplify. After reviewing these in class, you selected a brief essay and will compose a rhetorical analysis - via question and answer on a handout - for your essay. If absent, you should stop by tomorrow to pick up an essay and be prepared for Friday's class.

The Triangle

Vocab is completed! For some of you, this is a glorious day of ceasing to improve your vocabulary. By the way, your vocabulary will keep growing whether you try to or not. For others, this is a lugubrious day signifying our transition into more upper-level writing types of rhetorical analysis and argumentation. I hope you still manage to vocab-drop words into your essays and have a thesaurus with you to improve your diction.

Tomorrow, we will review/learn (depending on your own ethos) other rhetorical strategies that create logos, ethos, and pathos.

Compare & Contrast Prompt

The whole hour was dedicated to composing the compare and contrast essay in class. Any absentees will need to sign up for a make-up time.

Tuesday will start with your Vocab Quest -- all 72 words will be involved in some way, shape, or form. Afterwards, we will start our next unit: rhetorical analysis. For those of you in the know, the three persuasive appeals will be in play and additional rhetorical terms will be introduced to help you further analyze a text.

Prepping for Assessments

1. We had our final round of vocab review for your Vocab Quest on Tuesday. Yes, all the words will be on there in some fashion.
2. You were given 25 minutes to construct an outline for you in-class writing prompt on Monday.

Still Comparing and Contrasting

During today's class, you completed a partner essay on your compare and contrast topics to practice the skills and writing necessary for your eventual place comparison & contrast essay. Absentees, you will need to write out an essay on your two topics. In class, our essays were 4 paragraphs, so do not feel the need to write more and consider this to be a first draft to practice the skill.

Partner Basis

For today's compare and contrast work, you worked with a partner (or two in one instance) to construct a basis, a thesis, an organizational pattern for your examples, and a concluding statement. Then, we moved onto vocab and reading a Mark Twain sample of how comparison and contrast works - and how the author manipulated the writing to get his point across. Tomorrow will bring more compare and contrast work - we will utilize your list and look at another sample reading.

Quest Review

Although I was not planning on reviewing the Grammar Quest for the majority of the hour, I think it helped going over all the little intricacies of grammar, punctuation, and mechanical concerns. For our little remaining time, you received your exemplification essays back, and we commenced our last round of vocabulary.

Don't forget to have your notes for your two places tomorrow. I will be making copies for your group, and you will definitely need these notes for your eventual essay.

Sadie & Maud

Using "Sadie and Maud," we looked at the five stages of compare and contrast writing: basis, thesis, organization (block or point by point), transitions, and conclusion.

For homework, make sure to research and take notes on your 2 locations. Notes are due the Tuesday we return.

Enjoy your break -- whether you will be in Colorado, Florida, or somewhere else!

Questing

1. You received the compare and contrast group research essay assignment today, which means by Tuesday, March 21, you will need to have your assigned notes completed on your locations. You will be sharing this with a group, so be thorough and do not forget to cite your sources.

2. We completed the Mechanics Quest, which means our grammar instruction has ceased.

Exemplification Revision Day

The entire hour - minus the last five minutes to chat about the Works Cited page - was dedicated to group peer revision. Don't forget that the final draft - hard copy as always - has a deadline of Wednesday. In the meanwhile, we have your verbal vocab quiz tomorrow and the third review for the Grammar Quest.

Writing Day

To start class, we finished up the last of this round's vocab words and played on the buzzers for review. Then, you were given time to work on your exemplification essay -- the first draft will be needed for Monday's class for peer review.

Grammar Part II

1. Vocab -- three words more.
2. Grammar Review Part II - the whole thing.
3. Work time on exemplification essay -- briefly.

Our Schedule (vocab will continue each day as well):
March 3 = Writing Day
March 6 = Peer Revision Day
March 7 = Grammar Review Part III
March 8 = Grammar Quest
March 9 = Compare & Contrast Preview

You will have a note-taking project over spring break. Hence, one day next week, preferably when all of you are present, we will go over the assignment.