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Spring 2014 Assignment Syllabus: Wagner Engl 1302
Research Paper and Process, Details, and Due Dates
1. Choose something to research.
Focus on something you would like to do in the future. It can be a career, a program in college, or a personal
goal. You can also look at something that insterests you.
EX: I might like to become an interior designer. I want to redo my room. I want to take an interior design course
in college for fun.
2. Start with a research question. What do you want to know?
EX: How do I go about designing a room? What materials do designers use when presenting projects to clients?
What studies in college would I need to include to start an interior design firm? What is the best college in Texas
to go to if that is my goal? What is the best course of action for me to achieve my goal? (This is the
ARGUMENTATIVE part of the research paper and must be contained in the thesis along with the restated and
refined research question.)
REQUIRED RESEARCH:
One part of your research must include the literacy required for the career or goal. What type of reading and
writing is involved and how much reading and writing is involved in the daily routine of the career or goal? This
could also be argumentative if you find disagreeing sources.
3. Write a proposal (200 words) which describes what you will try to find out about and why it is important to you.
(Due: 7 January 2014)
4. RESEARCH: You will use only non-fiction, reliable sources to research your topics. (Reliable Primary Sources are
preferred.) Wikipedia is not reliable. Any source which merely copies wikipedia’s information on to their
website is not reliable. Look for scholarly sources. (Academic websites [.edu] or non-profit organizations [.org])
Google scholar is pretty good. You should interview a person in the field or one achieving or working to achieve
the goal you have set for yourself.
5. You will record each source you read or person you interview (10 minimum). MLA style. Plus a description of
what you learned from each source you found. Two or three sentences. (Working Bibliography Due: 15 January
2014)
Example entries:
Smith, Shelby. History of Interior Design. New York: Penguin, 1985.
Slanted lines create movement in a room. They are used in an active environment. Lazy
horizontal lines create a sense of calm. Stiff vertical lines are more for formal settings, like law offices
and banks.
Wagner, Shelley. Personal Interview. 25 December 2013.
I should learn MLA format so that I can be successful in college. She is a really smart lady. I
think I will learn it so that I can be successful in college and Mrs. Wagner’s class.
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6. Once you discover the answer to your research question, you will plan (outline: due 24 January 2014) and write
an essay (5 sources must be included) which describes your research process and findings. (MLA format. 2000
word minimum, 2100 word maximum. Works Cited page must be accurate (5 sources used = 5 sources listed).
Due 30 January 2014)
You will include a new research question at the end of your paper of something that someone else needs to find
out about your topic or something you might like to find out later. Include some discussion about why this new
question is important and how you might be able to discover the new answer in the future. You should also
include how the research helped you discover something about yourself.
EX: How do industrial companies choose their décor, and why do they pick the materials they do? If I am going
to be an interior designer, I will have to design all types of interiors, not just bedrooms. I could look at the OSHA
requirements for a particular industry to see what types of materials are safe in an industrial environment. I
learned that I may really be able to do what I want to do with my life and be successful at it.
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Culminating project (Due: 28 February 2014)
Your papers will be returned to you by Friday, 7 February 2014 in order for you to work on revisions and final
culminating projects.
Culminating project: You must create something which presents the knowledge that you gained from your
research and which incorporates your ideas. No class time will be provided for this assignment. This is individual.
NO GROUP projects. (Due: 28 February 2014)
EX: Interior designer must create a design for an interior based on the theories discovered.
Presentations will be 28 February - 7 March 2014. If you have a game or event that week which prevents you
from completing the assignment on the day assigned to you. Inform Mrs. Wagner immediately so that she may
adjust the schedule. If you do not inform her, your presentation will be counted as late. If you are “sick” the
Friday before spring break you should make sure you present BEFORE that Friday. Culminating projects will not
be accepted for full credit after Friday, 7 March 2014.
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Synopsis (Due: 28 February 2014)
You will condense your research paper to a 26 line synopsis. Explain to your audience what we will learn from
reading your paper. This will be harder than it seems. Don’t wait until the last minute to try it.
Scarlet Letter Teaching Assignments, Details, and Due Dates DUE 1/31/2014-2/27/2014
Teaching Presentations: see attached sheets for details. Each person in the group is responsible for individual
assignments. We are working in groups to help each other, not one person doing all the work. Each person is responsible
for teaching both completed chapters assigned. This time, if you do not teach, your grade is a zero. Bring your
vocabulary game to class every day for a chance to play it after Scarlet Letter Lessons. Electronic devices may be used if
you create a game on your phone (apps are awesome). If you don’t bring your game, you will just have to study vocab
the old fashioned way with a list.
Due 2/28/2014: CHOOSE ONE of the following:
1. Design a book jacket (cover) for The Scarlet Letter: Title, Author, art on cover, spine, Book Review on the back.
About the author inside front flap. Your original critique on inside back flap.
2. Design a Marketing Tool: Come up with a commercial or print ad which appeals to the audience to encourage them to
buy your vocabulary game. Present your commercial or print ad to the class.
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Text Book Assignments, Details, Final Panel Discussion, and Due Dates
Students will be assigned one of the remaining chapters in the text book to work through from a perpective (defense, contension, or
qualification). You will alternate perspectives as you work through the chapter. You will do every assignment within the chapter.
Assignments will be checked on a schedule.
Chapter topics: No more than 4 people on the same chapter.
6. Community
7. Gender
8. Sports and Fitness
9. Language
10. Science and Technology
11. Popular Culture
12. Nature
13. Politics
Due date schedule:
Central Essay Reading Strategy (Panel Discussion Cornell Notes: Thesis, Claims, Support, defense, contension, or
qualification) Due 3/17-3/18
Questions for Discussion and Questions on Rhetoric and Style Due 3/18
“Suggestions for Writing” Essay Short Writing Due 3/21
Classic Essay Reading Stategy (Panel Discussion Cornell Notes: Thesis, Claims, Support, defense, contension, or
qualification) 3/21-26
Questions for Discussion and Questions on Rhetoric and Style Due 3/26
Group Discussion and Discussion Log Due 3/27
“Suggestions for Writing” Essay Short Writing Due 3/31
Topical Essay #1 Reading Strategy 3/31 (Panel Discussion NOTES: Thesis, Claims, Support, defense, contension, or
qualification)
Exploring the Text Questions Due 4/1
Topical Essay #2 Reading Strategy 4/2 (Panel Discussion NOTES: Thesis, Claims, Support, defense, contension, or
qualification)
Exploring the Text Due 4/3
Topical Essay #3 Reading Strategy 4/4 (Panel Discussion NOTES: Thesis, Claims, Support, defense, contension, or
qualification)
Exploring the Text Due 4/7
BLOOD IN THE GUTTER Comic Strip assignment 4/8-4/10
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Fiction Piece Reading Strategy (Panel Discussion Notes: How does the fiction piece support your views of the chapter
topic?) 4/11
Exploring the text 4/14
“-On Writing” Author perspective Reading Strategy (Panel Discussion Notes: How does this author’s opinion reveal itself
in his or her work? Does it support your view on the chapter topic?) 4/15
Follow-up question (One page response to be included in panel discussion) Homework due beginning of 4/15
Poetry 4/17 (Panel discussion notes: How does the poem relate to your views on topic?)
Exploring the Text 4/17
Painting/Sculpture/Visual/Graph 4/21 (Panel discussion notes: How does the poem relate to your views on topic?)
Exploring the Text 4/21
Conversation: (In your argument: Defend, Contend, or Qualify. Take notes for the viewpoint you choose.)
Article 1 Reading Strategy 4/22
Questions 4/22
Article 2 Reading Strategy 4/22
Questions 4/22
Article 3 Reading Strategy 4/23
Questions 4/23
Article 4 Reading Strategy 4/23
Questions 4/23
Article 5 Reading Strategy 4/24
Questions 4/24
Article 6 Reading Strategy 4/24
Questions 4/24
“Entering the Conversation” Essay 4/25 TIMED WRITING
Student Writing 4/28
Read and answer questions 4/28
Grammar as Rhetoric and Style:
All Excercises 4/29-4/30
5/1 - 5/2/14 -- AP EXAM REVIEW: Kernel Essays on different prompts, Pick 3 of your essays from this year and compare
to rubric and scoring guide: what would you make if..., AP Literary Terms Test 5/2/2014 (Major Grade)
“Suggestions for Writing” Essay 5/5 1000-1100 words
Panel Discussions 5/5-5/16
Final Exam Writing for essay sometime between 5/19-5/23/14 Final Exam Week 5/27-5/30/14
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Bell ringer- AP Question stems
AP practice, timed writing and multiple choice
Mini Lesson Folder: Tone, Diction, Detail, Point of View, Sentence Structure, Syntax, Organization