Blogging Journal Questions for "The Heyday of the Blood"

Please answer one of the following questions for the story, "The Heyday of the Blood." Make your answer a comment to this post. Write about 125 and 175 words; provide your word count at the bottom of your paragraph(s).

If you have answered one of the questions before, you must choose a different one! Please finish your work by 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, October 28.

1. Write about something you learned from the reading.

2. Write about something that surprised you, angered you, delighted you, or evoked any strong reaction as you were reading. Write about anything that stays on your mind after reading.

3. Write about the most effective things you notice in the writing.

4. What does the work mean and why do you think that?

5. Write about something in this work that reminds you of someone you know or of something that has happened in your life.

Blogging Journal Questions for "The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse"

Please answer one of the following questions for the story, "The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse." Make your answer a comment to this post. Write between 125 and 175 words; provide your word count at the bottom of your paragraph(s). Please finish your work by 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, October 21. If you have answered one of the questions before, you must choose a different one!

1. Write about an idea expressed in the writing (or in class) which you either agree or disagree with.

2. Explore a social or ethical issue raised in the story. Judge the behaviour of the characters or the views of the author. Are they right or wrong in your opinion?

3. Tell about how you feel toward this writing or its author and why.

4. Does this work confront or confirm your personal beliefs? Explain.

5. Describe your feelings as you read the story and what sort of experience you had.

Marking the Biographies: A Teacher's Commentary

Marking your biographies was an interesting and humbling experience. The lives of the varied (diverse is the Ministry of Education term) students made me feel that I'd led a rather boring, provincial life here in Canada.

I appreciated all your work getting the facts and details straight and was struck by the empathy (yes Bray's word) shown to others in the writing. Some of you have a clear "voice" in writing already; others are working on it.

One problem was the number of "corrections" I needed to do. If you are one of the few students who wrote virtually error-free prose I thank you! I know that some errors are unavoidable due to your being unable to see them in the writing but do wish to see fewer in future assignments. I'd much rather spend my time framing a useful comment. The way I look at it is the more correcting I'm doing for you, the less time and energy I have to comment on the more interesting stylistic and organizational aspects of your writing.

A number of you did not present your work as requested (in 12 point font and double spaced) and made my life difficult trying to make corrections and fit in my comments. Next time I've decided to not mark anything that is not presented correctly. You've used your one free pass guys!

Please be aware of the meaning of the marking system I am using so that you can better judge your result. I used the rubric to guide me and often used it to provide a comment. Remember also that the letter grade, "A," should mean that a student exceeds expectations in all areas. Since English is a skill-based course rather than one that tests a certain content, it is more difficult to demonstrate excellence. 

Build on this experience and use it to get better. My final judgements on your overall performance are not made until January of next year. You have plenty of time to improve!

Blogging Journal Questions for "The Possibility of Evil"

Please answer one of the following questions for the story, "The Possibility of Evil." Make your answer as a comment to this post. Write between 100 and 150 words; provide your word count at the bottom of your paragraph(s). Please finish your work by 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, October 14.

1. Tell how you feel toward this work or this author, and why.

2. Write about any difficulties or frustrations involved in reading this work.

3. Write about the way this work confirms or confronts your beliefs.

4. Write about something in this work that reminds you of someone you know or of something that has happened in your life.

5. Write about what is effective in the way the work is written.

Rewritten Answers for "Caught in a teacher's web"

Please post your rewritten answers for any of the four questions provided to you in your October 3 in-class writing. Give your word count and stay under the maximum count allowed in the original topic. Post answers by 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, October 14.

Link to Comments File on Plagiary Assignment

My comments for everyone's writing in one file: Plagiary Comments

Remember to print your biography and bring to class next Wednesday. Thanks!

Resources to Help with using Quotation

Here are a number of good resources to help you better understand the use of quotation in your writing.

Quoting and Paraphrasing Sources

Quoting, Paraphrasing and Summarizing

Using Quotations in Essays

Quote Week: Incorporating Quotes into Your Research Papers

Link to Sir Ken Robinson's Talk on Education

Do Schools Kill Creativity?

From this link, you get a streaming video. If you have Quicktime, you can download a higher resolution talk from the same page.

Enjoy!