Journal Assignments:
Make sure to carefully read the specific instructions regarding your journal in the
section of the syllabus labeled “Journal” before you begin responding to these
assignments.
Journal #1: Perform the writing activity on p. 16 of your Guide. Essentially you’re
being asked to reexamine the different “texts” you read and how you read them.
Journal #2: Chapter 1 of your Guide begins by defining “rhetoric, purpose, and
audience.” Examine a situation/context from the past couple of weeks rhetorically.
When did you use words, spoken or written to achieve a goal? Describe this experience,
analyzing your purpose, tone, and audience.
Journal #3: Choose two Invention Strategies mentioned in Chapter 3 of your Guide and
generate ideas for essay assignment #1.
Journal #4: In Chapter 3 you learned how we can use writing to discover and learn.
Choose to A. “Rewrite Your Class Notes” following the guidelines on pps. 39-40 or B.
perform the “Muddiest Point” strategy from our course content over the past few weeks.
Be sure to focus in on one class period for either option, and identify the class period.
Journal #5: Self Assessment: Choose two bullet questions for Self Assessment under
the 4 Writing Goals on pps. 220-221, and assess the learning process with Essay
Assignment #1 (you will respond to a total of 8 bullet points).
Journal #6: Identify a Campus problem here at Prince George’s Community College.
Identify and describe the problem and discuss evidence of your claim/problem.
Journal #7: Self Assessment: Choose two bullet questions for Self Assessment under
the 4 Writing Goals on pps. 264-5 and assess the learning process with Essay Assignment
#2 (you will respond to a total of 8 bullet questions).
Journal #8: Locate a website and print a copy of the entire website to include with this
journal entry (credit will not be granted for this journal entry without a print out of the
website). Evaluate the credibility of your site based on the questions posed on p. 552 of
our Guide.
Journal #9: Self Assessment: Choose two bullet questions for Self Assessment under
the Writing Goals on pps. 356-7 (you will respond to a total of 8 bullet questions).
Journal #10: Choose 3 possible controversial topics and freewrite for 5 minutes on each
topic. Scan the editorials section of your newspaper, look at the topics listed on the
online database “Opposing Viewpoints,” listen to your local news and consider which
topics might have “two sides” to consider. Be sure to time yourself and write down
anything that comes to mind on each topic. Write an arguable claim/thesis for each topic
(see your chapter on Argument in the Guide).
Journal #11: Perform the Writing Activity on p. 545 of your Guide. This entry may
require you to perform some additional research if you haven’t gotten very far in the
research process.
Journal #12: Choose 2 chunks/paragraphs of research from 2 different sources that you
may use in your Research Essay to support your claim. Photocopy the page that each
appears on with both sources, highlight the chunk/paragraph and include both pages with
this journal entry. Attempt to paraphrase the information (without plagiarizing),
introducing the research and documenting it with an in-text citation.
Journal #13: Self Assessment with the Research Essay: Respond to the following
questions as you reflect on your goals and assess your writing process with the
Argumentative Research Essay:
Rhetorical Knowledge—
 What have you learned about the purposes for writing
argumentatively?
 How did your choice of subject affect the research you conducted?
Critical Thinking, Reading, and Writing—
 What research did you conduct? What additional research might
you have done?
 What skills have you learned while being engaged in this project?
How do you hope to develop them further on future projects?
Writing Processes—
 What one revision did you make that you are most satisfied with?
If you could go back and make an additional revision, what would
it be?
 What “writerly habits” have you developed, modified, or improved
on as you constructed your essay? How will you change your
writing rituals based on your experience with this essay?
Knowledge of Conventions—
 What sentence problems did you struggle with most frequently?
What will you do to help you with these struggles with future
writing?
 What problems did you have regarding documentation and source
integration? What strategies did you employ to deal with these
problems?