Deadlines
The reading journal may be completed during either or both of the first two project-collection periods. Completing the journal during both periods will result in the journal counting for 200 points, rather than the 100 points you would receive for completing the journal during only one of the periods.
To receive credit for the journal, you must submit entries for each week (roughly three per week) on the Friday of that week. This will permit me to respond to your journal entries over the weekend. This also prevents you from procrastinating and submitting all nine entries at the last minute.
Assignment
This project involves keeping a reading journal in which you will respond in a thorough and thoughtful, yet informal manner to the works we will read this term. The reading journal provides you with an opportunity to think out your responses to the readings on paper, and it provides me with a chance to respond to your thoughts about the reading on a different level than is possible with in-class discussions.
Individual entries must be at least one page (one side of a sheet of paper is a page), single-spaced (handwritten) or double-spaced (typed). Entries may be longer than a page (in fact, the better entries tend to be several pages in length). Each week, you will need to write three pages of entries (so you may have from one to three entries per week, depending on the length of each entry. Generally, I will collect journal entries each Friday, read them, and offer you responses.
You will need to complete a total of nine entries during either or both of the project collection periods. Note that this means you will need to write between two and three pages per week in the second collection period (which is four weeks long).
Hints
Here are some helpful hints for good journal writing:
- Longer, more developed entries of at least a page or more (maybe several more) are better than skimpy, undeveloped ones.
- Your initial reactions to a work are sometimes a good place to start in considering it, but don’t limit yourself to “Yuck, I don’t like it” or “Yeah, that was real good.” Try to consider why you liked or disliked a piece, what it was about the piece that affected you.
- Your entries should be extended investigations of ideas or questions that you find interesting. If you feel that you are pushing yourself to actually think in writing your journal, there is a good chance that you are on the right track.
- Important Point: Be sure to use quotations and other references to the texts you are working with. Such specific examples show that you have carefully considered your ideas and provide you with good practice in working with literary texts.
Your journal will be evaluated on: 1) completion of all nine entries (pages), 2) quality of thought expressed, 3) elaboration and development of ideas, 4) use of text for examples and quotations.
Academic Projects (You must choose at least one project from this category.)
Academic Seminar Paper (300 points)Oral Projects (You must choose at least one project from this category.)
Standard Academic Paper (200 points)
Biographical Context Essay (100 points)
Annotated Bibliography of Scholarly Sources (100 points)
Annotated Bibliography of Web Sites (100 points)
Historical Presentation (100 points)Examinations
Dramatic Interpretation (100 points)
Class Discussion (100 points)
Midterm Examination (100 points)Interpretive Projects
Final Examination (200 points)
Reading Journal (100 points, repeatable)
Electronic Discussion (100 points, repeatable)
Paper (100 points, repeatable)
Creative Interpretation (100 points, repeatable)
Multiperspective (200 points, may count as academic)
Copyright 2001 by David Kimmel. This page was created using Netscape Composer, Microsoft Paint, and Microsoft Photo Editor. Last updated January 5, 2002.