College Writing (Campbell)
Portfolio Requirements 2014-15 – Poetry (Qtr 1)
Turn in all three sheets—
two yellow and one white
with your portfolio.
A. Turn in your portfolio in a manila folder
B. Be sure “your first & last name-Poetry” is printed near the top edge of tab
C. All pieces must be typed: one side of page, 12 Pt.Times New Roman, single-space default, 1” margins*
The purpose of a portfolio is to demonstrate what you can do. What you know can be assessed
through a test or a discussion, but what you can do can only be assessed through a product. It is a
collection of your best work.
Your portfolio must include the following:
_____
A table of contents – 2 copies (see requirements). These will be the top 2 sheets.
_____
7 – 10 finished pieces (you may only submit the number of poems that have been
checked in as a first draft by class time Wednesday, October 16 ).
Each finished piece needs an original title and a complete heading.
Remove purpose statements and poem numbers from finished pieces.
Name
Headings go in upper right corner.
Class, hour, teacher
Date
Please format each piece so that it fits on one page
Description of piece—no #s
when possible. (*may adjust margins to fit)
Portfolio draft
_____
All copies of all drafts will be turned in. INCLUDE your scribbled up drafts with clean
ones—we need the scribbles. More than one copy of draft 2, Poem 1? Staple all draft 2, Poem 1 copies
together. Paper clip all drafts for Poem 1 into a packet. 7 poems? 7 packets. Be SURE the draft
numbers are clear and correct. Put the draft packets in the same order as the poems appear in the table
of contents. For the portfolio, the earliest/first draft goes on top and the most recent on the bottom.
_____
Portfolio rubric with your name on it. (Don’t give yourself a grade)
_____
Code of Academic Integrity with your signature
Portfolios are due Thursday, October 23th at the beginning of class
Reminder: Portfolio = 40% of first quarter grade AND 25% of Semester 1 exam
Late portfolios will go down one letter grade per day (including weekends). Portfolios will be
considered late if not presented at the beginning of the hour in class, whether you’re here or not.
Poetry Portfolio Table of Contents (TOC): Create a table of contents for your portfolio with a
complete heading. Include two copies of the TOC. The poems must appear in the order in which they are listed
in the TOC. Space the titles out over the whole page to allow room for my comments between the titles.
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The table of contents must give the title of the piece and a description of poem if written to a specific
assignment, such as extended metaphor poem or place poem or stolen poem. (Include a copy of the original
“stolen” poem that prompted your poem on top of the draft packet. When you cite the poem, include title,
author, and book/website title where you found the poem. It does not have to be in MLA.)
All pieces will be considered for submission, which may include any of the following: publication in the
literary magazine, use as a model, distribution to a wider audience, or research I may do. If you do not want
a piece considered for submission, you must indicate that in the table of contents.
Remember that your own titles do not go in quotation marks (and are NOT underlined) in the Table of Contents
or on the top of each piece.
Attributing your sources in poetry
Sometimes the idea or the style or some of the words in your poem come from someone else’s work. As
writers, one of the ways we learn is to read others’ work, analyze it, and learn from imitating it. That doesn’t
mean the resultant work is not ours, not original, but it does mean that we need to give credit where credit is
due. It’s only when we don’t acknowledge our sources that we damage our credibility. You can credit (attribute,
cite) your sources in a number of ways.
For our purposes, put the attribution at the end of the poem. Just skip a line or two, indent an inch or more, and
add one of the following phrases. Sometimes in published work you’ll notice that such attributions are italicized
or in a different font. You may italicize if you wish. Do remember that the titles of poems in this case would be
enclosed in quotation marks.
If you write a poem that imitates the style of a particular poet:
—after e. e. cummings
—after the style of Marianne Moore
If you write a poem that “borrows” a first line or a phrase from another’s work:
—first line borrowed from “Attack of the Killer Mutant Coat Tree” by Pen Campbell
—“the seen caresses the unseen” from “Fire Starter” by Tess Gallagher
If you write a poem that imitates a particular poem by another poet:
—after “This is just to say” by William Carlos Williams
If you are responding to a specific class prompt, we’d like you to note that on your pieces:
—to the class prompt Hands
—to the class prompt “At last the juggler is led out under the stars…”
Sometimes one poem is written as a response to another poem:
—in response to “The Passionate Shepherd to His Love” by Christopher Marlowe
Sometimes you will see a short excerpt quoted under the title of a poem. Usually this means the quoted piece is somehow
connected to the poem; perhaps the poem is written in response to the poem or to an idea or phrase in the excerpt.
Sometimes words in the excerpt may be used in the new poem and rather than use quotation marks to acknowledge that, the
“borrower” cites the source by presenting the excerpt.
Poetry Portfolio Rubric (14-15)
Name _____________________________________
College Writing – Campbell
Grade _______(leave blank)
In an A portfolio
The pieces (7-10 poems) are polished, finished works that capture the writer’s versatility and show
evidence of effective revision and demonstration of the writing process. More specifically:
 Ideas: The pieces are engaging, original and fully developed. The purpose of each piece is clear. An
element of surprise captures the reader, taking the reader beyond the expected. Details—the right ones—
effectively show the experience and convey a meaning.
 Organization: The parts of the poems—titles, beginnings, middles, ends, etc—are carefully crafted and
placed to serve the effectiveness of each poem.
 Voice: The voice of the author is compelling and contains an intentional meaning. Personality and passion
for the subject of the pieces shine through.
 Word Choice: The writer shows rather than tells by being concrete rather than abstract. Words are
precise, vivid, and accurate. The writer avoids ineffective abstracts/generalities. Imagery, figurative language,
and sound devices enhance meaning and effect.
 Sentence Fluency: The flow and rhythm of each piece are effective and fit the subject matter. Pauses
and line breaks make sense and enhance meaning and effect.
 Conventions: Skillful use of conventions enhances each piece.
 Presentation: The portfolio is typed. It follows all required criteria for formatting, use of headings, table of
contents, and draft packets.
In a B portfolio
The pieces (7-10 poems) show evidence of thoughtful revision and demonstration of the writing
process. At least one piece is a polished, finished piece. More specifically:
 Ideas: The pieces are original and developed, but may be uneven in quality. The purpose of each piece is
clear, and most include an element of surprise that takes the reader beyond the expected. Details—the right
ones—effectively show the experience and help conveys a meaning.
 Organization: The parts of the poems—titles, beginnings, middles, ends, etc.—usually serve the
effectiveness of each poem.
 Voice: The voice of the author is usually compelling. The reader senses personality behind the pieces.
 Word Choice: The writer usually shows, but occasionally the work becomes too abstract or telling, though
most words are precise and vivid. Imagery, figurative language, and sound devices often enhance meaning and
effect.
 Sentence Fluency: Pieces usually flow smoothly and rhythmically according to the subject matter, though
they may be a little too wordy in places. Pauses and line breaks generally make sense, and sentence structure
is usually accurate.
 Conventions: Conventions are almost always clean and correct.
 Presentation: The portfolio is typed. It follows most of the required criteria for formatting, use of headings,
table of contents, and draft packets.
In a C portfolio
The pieces (7-10 poems) show evidence of revision and demonstration of the writing process but are
not polished, finished pieces. More specifically:
 Ideas: The pieces show promise and are clearly meaningful to the writer, but many may not yet create a
meaningful impact on the reader. Pieces may be underdeveloped or still contain too many ineffective general or
abstract words and phrases that needed further shaping, revising, cutting, or developing. Quality may be
uneven.
 Voice: The voice of the author is usually present, but may be weak at times. Personality and passion for
the subject are not as strong as they could have been.
 Word Choice and Fluency: The writer sometimes shows, but too often the work becomes too abstract
and telling and/or wordy. Word choice and images too often lack precision. Some pieces may be awkward.
 Conventions: Conventions are often clean and correct, but sentence structure may still be inaccurate or
awkward at times.
 Presentation: The portfolio is typed. It follows some or all of the required criteria for formatting, use of
headings, table of contents, and draft packets.
In a D portfolio
The pieces (5 or more poems) show some evidence of revision and some demonstration of the writing
process. More specifically:
Ideas are underdeveloped and/or voice is largely absent and/or word choice is generally abstract and
general and/or fluency is awkward and difficult to follow and/or conventions interfere with understanding.
The portfolio is typed, but it follows few of the required criteria for formatting, use of headings, table of contents,
and draft packets.
In an F portfolio
The pieces (at least 3 poems) show little or no evidence of revision or demonstration of the writing
process. More specifically:
Ideas are underdeveloped and/or voice is largely absent and/or word choice is generally abstract and
general and/or fluency is awkward and difficult to follow and/or conventions interfere with understanding.
The portfolio is typed, but it follows few of the required criteria for formatting, use of headings, table of contents,
and draft packets.
0 = No portfolio or a portfolio that has been plagiarized
Plagiarism is the act of presenting someone else’s ideas as your own (Writers Inc) and includes any of the
following: copying a classmate’s work, submitting another person’s work as your own, taking phrases,
sentences, or larger sections of work from another source and putting it into your own work without
quotations and citations, rephrasing or repurposing someone else’s work without crediting the source
from which you took it.