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Advanced Writing: Social Sciences

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Week 07: Comparison / Contrast
Writing to Inform
(Newsletter)

Assignments for the Week
 

Day 13 -- Tuesday 05 March 2002
WORD OF THE DAY:
BIBLIOGRAPHY


Old Business / Announcements:
  • Return Project #2: Interview with a Social Science Professional

  • Discussion of Handout: "What Business People Think about Grammar and Usage" -- Maxine C. Hairston

  • Discussion of Project #03 (below)

  • Review as Time Allows:

    • Ch. 06 "Constructing Paragraphs"
      • Overview of Chapter
      • Editing Tips: "Editing the paragraphs in your writing" (p. 103)
      • Useful Lists and Guidelines: "Commonly used transitions" (pp. 114-115)

    • Ch. 43 "Writing a Research Essay"
      • Overview of Chapter
      • Useful Lists and Guidelines: "A list of signal verbs" (pp. 508-509)

    • Review of Ch. 4, "Revising and Editing: Useful Lists and Guidelines"
      • Editing Tips: "Editing the paragraphs in your writing"
      • Useful Lists and Guidelines: "Reviwing a Draft" (pp. 52 - 53)
      • "An editing inventory" (p. 65 in text)
        • Continue making your own personal inventory

    • Ch. 19 "Effective Sentences"
      • Overview of Chapter
      • Editing Tips: "Editing for emphasis and conciseness" (p. 250)
      • Exercises: "Emphasizing main ideas"

    • Ch. 20 "Coordination, Subordination"
      • Overview of Chapter
      • Editing Tips: "Editing for coordination and subordination" (p. 256)

    • Ch. 21 "Parallelism"
      • Overview of Chapter
      • Editing Tips: "Editing for parallelism" (p. 264)
      • Exercises: "Parallelism"
      • Common errors:
        • Missing commas in a series

    • Ch. 22 "Varied Sentences"
      • Overview of Chapter
      • Editing Tips: "Editing to vary sentence length" (p. 270)
      • Useful Lists and Guidelines: "Commonly used transitions" (pp. 114 - 115)
      • Common errors:
        • Missing comma after an introductory element

TOPICS FOR DAY:

 

  1. Return Project #2: Interview with a Social Science Professional

  2. Discussion of Handout: "What Business People Think about Grammar and Usage" -- Maxine C. Hairston

  3. Paper #3 comprises a comparison / contrast informativen newsletter article. This should be something like a piece written for a newsletter in your anticipated field. The content of this piece must be related to your major.

    • For Project #3 you will prepare a newsletter article.
    • How could you do a story for a newsletter about your interview, or about some other personal experience, or about readings from the semester?
    • Who is the audience? Review what audience knows / does not know, and techniques to reach them.
    • What is the main purpose of your newsletter article?
      • The "rhetorical purpose" is to inform.
    • What is the main idea of your newsletter article? Write that down in one sentence.
    • You may not write a letter-to-the-editor type piece, or something like a description of an athletic event.
    • Remember, for a newsletter piece your writing must be interesting.
    • Then begin freewriting / drafting your newsletter piece.
  1. Brief re-view of observing, note taking, data sorting, interpreting, outlining (planning), and revising.

  2. Review Handbook Section 3a. In-class "prewriting" about your newsletter article for 15-30 minutes.
    • The rhetorical purpose is to inform
    • Make a list of the things you might refer to in your article
    • Brainstorm.

  3. For Paper #3, the newsletter article, prepare a preliminary bibliography of 3-5 sources (books, articles, films/videotapes, people to interview) which you expect to use for Paper #3. Use correct bibliography format. Follow The New St. Martin's Handbook, Chs. 44-47.

    • However, note that in your final newsletter piece you may need to incorporate the attribution within the text rather than in a separate "bibilography" at the end of the piece.

  4. Come to the next regular class prepared to discuss ways and places to find information on the topic and questions.

  5. Prepare bibliography and note cards on your researches. Make (1) a bibliography card, and (2) several note cards on 4 x 6 or 3 x 5 cards [or recycled paper of the same size].

    • See The New St. Martin's Handbook, §42a.1 for information on and samples of bibliography cards.
    • On the note cards briefly summarize / paraphrase topics (100 to 150 words). Do this as if you were taking notes for a 5000-level term paper. On your note cards you should also include your personal reaction / evaluation as a separate section on each card. See §42c. for examples of note cards, and information on how to prepare the note cards.
    • You do not have to hand these cards in, but the information on your bibliography card should be included somewhere in your newletter piece.

  6. Review Handbook assignments

      • Ch. 23 "Memorable Prose"
        • Overview of Chapter
        • Editing Tips: "Editing verbs and nouns" (p. 280)

      • Review Ch. 51 "Designing Documents"
        • Overview of Chapter
        • Useful Lists and Guidelines: "Guidelines for using visuals" (p. 660)

       


Day 14 -- Thursday 07 March 2002
WORD OF THE DAY:
COMPARISON / CONTRAST


Old Business / Announcements:
  • Finish Revising "American Indians: Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow"
  • Review as Time Allows:

    • Ch. 06 "Constructing Paragraphs"
      • Overview of Chapter
      • Editing Tips: "Editing the paragraphs in your writing" (p. 103)
      • Useful Lists and Guidelines: "Commonly used transitions" (pp. 114-115)

    • Ch. 43 "Writing a Research Essay"
      • Overview of Chapter
      • Useful Lists and Guidelines: "A list of signal verbs" (pp. 508-509)

    • Review of Ch. 4, "Revising and Editing: Useful Lists and Guidelines"
      • Editing Tips: "Editing the paragraphs in your writing"
      • Useful Lists and Guidelines: "Reviwing a Draft" (pp. 52 - 53)
      • "An editing inventory" (p. 65 in text)
        • Continue making your own personal inventory

    • Ch. 19 "Effective Sentences"
      • Overview of Chapter
      • Editing Tips: "Editing for emphasis and conciseness" (p. 250)
      • Exercises: "Emphasizing main ideas"

    • Ch. 20 "Coordination, Subordination"
      • Overview of Chapter
      • Editing Tips: "Editing for coordination and subordination" (p. 256)

    • Ch. 21 "Parallelism"
      • Overview of Chapter
      • Editing Tips: "Editing for parallelism" (p. 264)
      • Exercises: "Parallelism"
      • Common errors:
        • Missing commas in a series

    • Ch. 22 "Varied Sentences"
      • Overview of Chapter
      • Editing Tips: "Editing to vary sentence length" (p. 270)
      • Useful Lists and Guidelines: "Commonly used transitions" (pp. 114 - 115)
      • Common errors:
        • Missing comma after an introductory element

TOPICS FOR DAY:

  1. Revising (practice exercise for the final exam) -- continued:
  2. In-class work on removing "to be" verbs and editing, following Lanham's Parametric Method

  3. In-class "freewriting" of newsletter article, with emphasis on developing a preliminary thesis. Review Handbook Section 3b. What is the relationship of the preliminary thesis to observing, describing, and evaluating?

  4. Discuss ways to present new material.

  5. Review Handbook Section 3d-e. Develop an outline or plan for your newsletter article. Remember, the content of this piece should directly related to your major.

    An outline is like a road map in that it lets you see both where you're headed and what progress you're making at getting where you're going with the time and energy at hand. (The difference between an outline and a road map is that when lost with an outline men have occasionally been known to stop and ask for directions.) Remember, a good outline helps you get where you are going more efficiently, it lessens the chances that you will wander off the desired road, and, most importantly, it gives you some sense of where you are at. In the writing process you need to be able to judge your progress. An outline helps you do that. If you can not judge your progress (even if that sometimes is s--l--o--w) you will likely wander about frustrated. A simple outline can prevent that frustration; it also usually improves your writing.

  1. Continue research, note taking, and working on paper drafts. Always bring these to class.

  2. Freewrite the remainder of your newsletter article.

Next Week


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