You've Been Drafted, Part 1: September 6, 2018

Focus: How do I build a strong first draft?

1. Warming up with literal and metaphorical building (10 min)

• Build a boat. What's the most important part about the structure of a boat?
• Build a tree. What's the most important part about the structure of a tree?
• Build a house. What's the most part about the structure of a house?

• Build an essay. What's the most important part about the structure of an essay? 

2. Workshopping a thesis statement together on the class blog for the following qualities:

Is it clear?

Is it specific?

Is it analytical?

Is it provable?

Which of the criteria above do you need to work on with your own thesis? Take a few minutes to either revise your thesis or to type yourself note with specific criteria to work on.

3. Taking your Lego ideas and applying them concretely to essay-writing (in small groups)

• Read the sample student essay.
• Help each other find structures for building an essay by generating a guideline sheet.

4. Figuring out where you need to go next:

• Reworking your thesis?
• Developing an outline?
• Researching more?
• Writing your introduction?
• Composing a body paragraph?

Note: Please start a new document called "Draft" and save it in your Cultural Hysteria folder.

HW:

1. For TOMORROW (Friday): 

• Review your Puritan Words, List 2 for tomorrow's brief assessment.
• Prepare (and time) your one-minute speech for tomorrow.

2. For MONDAY: Compose one page of your first draft (double-spaced). It can be an intro and part of a body paragraph, or your first body paragraph and part of your second. Think about what writing routine works for you and for this particular assignment.

3. Heads-up: FINAL DRAFT IS DUE TUESDAY, SEP 18 BY 4:00 PM in www.turnitin.com