Welcome to English 28
To Do List for Today:
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Go over syllabus
Introduce class resources
Discuss turnitin accounts and course website
Prepare for success in Eng 28
Discuss the question “Why do we write?”
The Writing Process
Branstorming and Freewriting Practice
Diagnostic writing
Syllabus Highlights
• The best way to reach me is my email or faculty
mailbox.
• Assignments are due on the date they are listed
under on the syllabus.
• Please note policies on cell phones, absences,
and rough drafts.
• The syllabus is available on the class website.
• You are responsible for knowing and
understanding the content of the syllabus.
Course Resources
• We have a class website that is accessible by going
to my LAMC faculty page and clicking on our
course link on the left hand side of my page.
• I will be posting copies of assignment sheets and
handouts that I pass out on the website. If you
lose a handout or your syllabus, it is probably
posted there. (Note: This does not apply to copies
of readings.)
• You will be using our course turnitin.com site to
upload all paper drafts and do peer review.
What can I do to be successful?
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Come to class
Do the work
Strive for excellence
In order to help you meet these goals…
– Have a partner in the class who will take notes/get
copies of assignment sheets for you (assignment
sheets will also be posted on the course website)
– Come to see me during my office hours.
– Come to class prepared to participate.
– Indulge in curiosity. Question your assumptions.
What should I bring to each class
meeting?
• Yourself. Show up ready to engage with the
material we are learning every class meeting.
• Your text book. Even if there is no assigned
reading, I may ask you to refer to the book
during a lecture or activity.
• The most current draft of the current essay.
Paper and pens/pencils. We will be doing
frequent in class assignments.
What will our class meetings look
like? A regular day might include…
• Discussion of readings that are listed as due on the syllabus
for that day. This means that if it’s listed on the syllabus,
you should come to class prepared to offer your ideas
about it.
• Lecture on a new writing technique and time to practice it.
• Lecture on a writing technique and time to incorporate it
into an essay draft. (If I tell you to bring a draft, this is why.
If you don’t bring a draft, you won’t get the time to work on
it in class using what you learned.)
• An in-class writing addressing a question about a reading or
a set of readings we have already done.
• A quiz on the reading that is listed as due on the syllabus
for that day.
Student Data Sheet
• On the back of your student data sheet, answer
the following question:
• “Why are you here at LA Mission College?” What
experiences have led you to this place? What are
the goals you hope this college will help you to
accomplish?
• I have two rules for in class writing, and they are:
– Write the whole time. At no point during an in class
writing situation should you be finished. There is
always something you can do to improve your work.
– Don’t talk while other people are trying to write.
Two Truths and a Lie
• This game is intended to help us get to know each
other as a class.
• One a scrap piece of paper, write down two
interesting true things about yourself that you
want to share with yourself.
• Next, write down a plausible (believable) lie
about yourself.
• When it’s your turn, read your two truths and a
lie, and the rest of the class will try to guess
which one is not true.
Preparing for Diagnostic In-Class
Essay
• Why do we (as a species) write? What is the
purpose of writing? If you can think of more
than one, write them all down.
We write…
• To remember.
• To communicate with readers.
• To express ourselves.
“When once the itch of literature comes over
a man, nothing can cure it but the scratching
of a pen.” – Samuel Lover (1797-1868)
• And finally, we write to be remembered.
The Writing Process
• Prewrite – Choose a topic, brainstorm, freewrite, outline.
If you are writing a research paper, then this is where
you being to find sources.
• Draft – Put your ideas together in a first draft. It doesn’t
have to be perfect, but this is a first try.
• Revise – It’s time to see your writing from a new
perspective. Seek advice from peers, tutors, and
instructors. Put revision strategies we learn in class to
work.
• Edit – Check for grammar, spelling, word choice, and
clarity. Read your essay aloud to yourself.
• Publish – Check your format, make sure your paper looks
the way you want it to on the screen, then print/upload.
Brainstorming
• Brainstorming is a writing activity that asks
you to write down ideas quickly, in short
bursts without worrying about correctness.
– You might use an idea web
– You might make lists of phrases/ideas as they
come to you.
• We are going to brainstorm as a class about
the idea of “talent,” and later you will
brainstorm on your own about a different
topic.
What to do with brainstorming
once you have it…
• Identify words/concepts that are related. Do
you notice any patterns? Record what you
notice on your brainstorming sheet.
• Does one set of ideas stand out to you? Mark
it. Why does it stand out?
• Which of the ideas you brainstormed seems
like the “box” with the most in it? (Remember
the metaphor of writing as unpacking a box?)
That is the one you probably want to write
about, as long as it fits your topic.
Freewriting
• Freewriting is “stream of consciousness” writing
about a topic. While you freewrite, keep your pen
or pencil moving and do not worry about unity,
coherence, or correctness.
• Having identified your favorite ideas from the
brainstorming, I am going to ask you to freewrite
about the topic for a specified period of time.
• If you get stuck, choose a phrase like “I don’t
know what to write,” and write that over and
over again. Your brain will eventually get bored
and give you something else to say.
Individual
Brainstorming/Freewriting
• Brainstorm, using an idea web or some other
brainstorming technique, about the following
sentence:
•“I am a writer.”
• When I call time, you should stop
brainstorming and identify groups of related
ideas in your brainstorming.
Characteristics of an Essay
• Has a thesis statement – a claim the entire essay
works to support
• Has paragraphs that support the thesis.
– Each paragraph covers one point of support for the
thesis.
– Each point of support (these are your reasons that the
thesis is correct) is logical and explained thoroughly.
• Uses an appropriate tone and style for the
intended audience.
• Uses the tools of writing to convey the author’s
message clearly and memorably.
Using Brainstorming to Draft a
Short In-Class Essay
• Look back at your freewriting and write a brief inclass essay draft where you agree or disagree
with the statement we discussed earlier: “I am a
writer.”
• Your thesis will be your agreement or
disagreement with this sentence, and your
support will require you to think about questions
like this: Why do you answer this question the
way that you do? What events and circumstances
have led you to this conclusion?