1st/2nd AP LANG/ENG 1101
HW DUE MON. 8/11:
Happy end of a hectic and short "Week" #1, my lovely AP Lang/ENG 1101 students!
Our first week of this "rough start but we're here for it" year is almost behind us, and we're already looking [anxiously!] toward the quickly-approaching end of August. With hopefulness that everything will start settling down soon (as much as they realistically can around UCHS), I've used the past couple evenings to reflect back on what we've reviewed and rehashed in our relatively short time together. The introduction to a WHOLE FLIPPIN' YEAR WITH ME; MORE new traffic patterns, CELL PHONE JAIL anxiety, already more than a dozen games, practices, thunderstorms, 45437594875 schedule changes, etc., and through it all, remembering the importance of STAYING CALM/PATIENT/CHILL, and being PROACTIVE / ADAPTABLE / RESOURCEFUL. :o)
...whew. Seeing it all written down FOR JUST THREE DAYS makes me even more tired. Now that we've made it through some good intro days together, let's backtrack to the beginning of class today. Recall your YHC DE ENG 1101 syllabus did a sneak preview of with you today; remember its reading/writing theme of "Discovering Identity: Who We Are, How We Become".
And with that prior knowledge and everything that sank in today, here's what I have in mind for you to find the time to complete BEFORE CLASS BEGINS ***NEXT MONDAY 8/11:
Over the course of this year we'll spend a lot of time working and writing together, and it will be my job to help you become--and always improve upon becoming--really effective writers and readers who compose with an authentic style and voice. Letters are a great "way in" to this, but also letters are an important, historical part of communication and rhetoric that I hope we never lose sight of in this age of 'instant' and technology-driven everything. Some of the most powerful pieces of literature and persuasion ever written--some we'll read this year--happen to be letters.
So for your first JOURNAL [#1] WRITING ASSIGNMENT *as a graded daily assessment for BOTH AP Lang and ENG 1101, I want you to consider this "letter of introduction" from me to you, and then WRITE ME A LETTER OF INTRODUCTION ABOUT YOURSELF (the assignment EXIGENCE--i.e., the *larger* audience/purpose/context --MUCH more to come on this, trust me).
Sure, I know some of you pretty well from other interactions, past classes, or school-related functions. But I want you to take this opportunity to give me your 'autobiographical spin.' Or wax poetic if you want. Whatever you choose, just be your authentic self. Introduce yourself to me as you would if this were your first few days of class and we've never met. **Because, truth be told, there's always something else to learn about the people you think you know.**
**NEED SOME IDEAS? SURE THING! CONSIDER:
- favorite memory(ies) from childhood
- move here? where from?
- hobbies/interests that really define a part of you
- where is/what is your "happy place"?
- excited about something going on in your life right now and care to share it? Awesome. I'm listening.
- favorite books/movies and/or quotes/song lyrics?
- **And, of course, the proverbial question that you may answer if you want: one thing you'd like for me to know about you personality-wise, academically, or in any context that will help us understand one another better over the next 16+ weeks
...SO, LET'S RECAP:
- DUE MON. 8/11; you have TODAY/TONIGHT/THIS WEEKEND to work on this, so use your time wisely.
- JOURNAL #1 (*in the WRITING SECTION of your AP/1101 BINDER)--gone over today in class.
- ONE HARD COPY--TYPED/WRITTEN--COMPLETED PERSONAL LETTER OF INTRODUCTION FROM YOU TO ME.
- HOW LONG? AS LONG AS IT NEEDS TO BE? You're in a college class--you figure it out.
- **TYPED OR WRITTEN OUT NEATLY.**
- PRINT *BEFORE CLASS, PLEASE or share with me WAYYYYYY AHEAD OF CLASS (#sorrynotsorry: time's of the essence this year--very few minutes to spare!)
And in the meantime, I'm really looking forward to seeing how this theme of DISCOVERING IDENTITY becomes woven together over the semester as we read and write based upon this theme. And, even if English isn't your favorite or best subject, I hope we can use class to talk about things that matter and approach topics and assignments with an open mind. And if you take nothing else from this letter assignment, remember this: I am here to help all of us navigate this semester and upcoming year together. Come to me any time for help--my door is always open.
--Mrs. Krieger
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