Introduction to Composition
Journal 1 Unit 1: Introduction to Composition, Entries 1–6
Journal Entry Criteria Your journal will be evaluated according to the
following requirements: Ideas and Content: How accurately and effectively you
responded to the entry; your writing focused on the topic of the entry and is
based on the correct reading assignments in your texts; you effectively engaged
with the content of the reading assignments and composed thoughtful original
responses to each entry; when required, you cited and documented secondary
source material appropriately and correctly. Organization: How well prewriting
or organizing entries are developed; all paragraphs begin with an appropriate
topic sentence and are developed fully by using examples, illustration, and/or
evidence; each entry meets the required minimum length. General Correctness:
How well entries meet the expectations of college-level academic writing in the
areas of sentence structure, grammar, word choice and spelling, and
punctuation. Format: How accurately you followed the prescribed format for the
journal by including the required header, entry title and date, and used
correct margins, font, and line spacing.
Entry 1: Me, A Writer? Attitude: After reading Chapters 1–4
in your textbook, describe your attitude toward completing this course. As part
of the description, explore how your feelings about being required to take a
composition course may affect your performance in accomplishing the course
objectives. (1 paragraph, 6 sentences) Inventory: Take the learning inventory
quiz starting on page 35 in your textbook. Explain what you learned about
yourself as a writer working through the inventory exercise. Discuss two ways
you want to improve as a writer and why. (1 paragraph, 6 sentences)
Entry 2: The Role of Correctness in Writing As you complete
the Parts of Speech, Sentence Skills, and Word Usage online study units,
consider the importance of correctness in writing. How do errors in grammar,
spelling, and punctuation affect the relationship between the writer and the
reader of an essay? What are your strengths and weaknesses as a writer? (2
paragraphs, 5–7 sentences for each question)
Entry 3: Prewriting and Thesis Statement Brainstorm: Review
the description of brainstorming in your textbook on pages 112–113. Then write
a list of all the social media and social networking websites and apps you
might use to connect with friends and family and to meet people. Respond: What
are some differences among the sites you listed? How would you categorize them?
(1 paragraph, 5 sentences) Write a thesis statement: Review “Writing
Assertions” on page 115 in your textbook. Then follow the guidelines on pages
126–127 in your textbook to write an effective thesis statement based on one of
the topics you listed previously. Reflect: Explain the position you’ve taken in
your thesis statement and identify the items from your brainstorming list or
categories that you believe will best support your position. (1 paragraph, 5
sentences)
Entry4: Organizing and Drafting Using your thesis statement
and evidence from Journal Entry 3, select a method of organization from your
textbook on pages 141–150. Choose one of the graphic organizers or formal
outlines to organize your evidence so that it supports the position you take in
your thesis statement in the most effective way possible. Reflect: Explain why
you chose this particular method of organization over the other possibilities.
Why do you believe it’s the most effective way to present your topic to your
audience? (1 paragraph, 6 sentences)
Entry 5: Revising This journal entry requires you to review
the rough draft of the essay that follows. As you analyze the draft according
to each of the areas listed, identify what needs revision. For each area,
explain why and how you would change the draft. (4 paragraphs, 5 sentences
each) Analyze the essay’s • Purpose and audience—Can you clearly identify the
audience and the purpose of the essay? • Thesis statement, topic sentences, and
paragraphs—Is there a clear thesis statement? Are there paragraphs with topic
sentences? • Evidence—Has the author provided enough evidence to support the
main idea of the essay? • Organization—Are the author’s points organized well
enough for a reader to follow easily? Rough Draft: Email vs. Letters Instead of
using emails, mail a letter to your grandparents, an aunt or uncle, or another
role model who’s older than you are. We live in a fast-paced world. We use
computers to send emails and instant messages. Some, though, don’t live in that
time zone. Forget all the fonts, emoticons, and abbreviations like LOL. You
point and click, but some people want to hold something, unwrap a letter, and
smell it. A crayoned picture smells and feels special; no scanner can do that.
People’s senses want to be used. We live in a physical world, not an invisible
one. People can touch something that’s mailed. Sometimes it’s as if touching
the ink or pencil on paper helps them touch the writer. A picture can be held
and used in so many ways. For example, I get to see how my grandkids’
handwriting is changing as they grow. I know how they feel just from the way
they write the words. A letter gives someone the real thing. A letter exists in
time and space. Even if someone emails you regularly, the surprise of a mailed
letter provides something to cherish rather than to be deleted. Of course, they
may like getting through the Internet a photograph of you on the day of a
special event. However, a printed photograph can be put into an album or used
for a bookmark or posted on the refrigerator for regular review. They don’t
have to worry about color cartridges or paper because you’ve given them what
they need in the mail. Though they may have a hard time reading your
handwriting, a letter is a tangible way to remind them that you care enough to
take the time and effort to communicate with them and them alone. The
convenience and efficiency of computers can’t be matched by regular postal
service. However, they sometimes bleep and blurp in a frustrating conversation,
one that older persons can’t always hear or understand. One wrong click here
and another there can mean mass destruction. They may get a paper cut from your
letter, but even sucking on a finger while reading makes their experience more
memorable and satisfying. The cut heals; the letter remains alive. To evaluate
your essay in progress complete the following exercises: “Essay in Progress 1”
on page 185, “Essay in Progress 2” on page 187, and both “Essay in Progress” 3
and 4 on page 188
Entry 6: Evaluation of Unit 1 Briefly summarize each stage
of the writing process that you learned about in Unit 1 of your Successful
College Writing textbook. Identify three elements you learned that you think
will be the most helpful to you as you continue in this course. Explain why. (3
paragraphs, 6 sentences each) Once you’ve completed this entry, you can submit
it according to the submission instructions on page 65.
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