Either way, it is your responsibility to come and see me to remedy this.
I was impressed by the following:
1. The concise way some of you approached the welcome post. Many of you were able to complete this statement of purpose very thoroughly in less than 150 words.
Being concise does not always just mean saying what you need to say in as few words as possible. Concise writing is about selecting the best words, combining sentences and ideas, and getting to the point of the piece of writing in a unified manner (unity= all details relate closely back to the claim or purpose). Essentially concise writing is writing that gets to the point by taking the path of least resistance.
For some examples see Tom F. or Claire A.'s blog.
2. The thought that went in to your statement of purpose. As I read I became aware of the thinking and the questioning surrounding your goal for the novel you selected. You were not just looking to me to provide you with a purpose, you were thinking deeply about what would motivate you to continue with this study (beyond the mark at the end I would hope...).
For a great sample of this see Jasmine Q.'s blog.
3. The variety in your links lists. Almost everyone included biographies - appropriately so. Some included videos, interviews and critical essays on the novel. I hope you will find these useful as you continue to read and question the novel and its place in the canon of classic literature. Feel free as you go through this study to add to and expand your links list.
For those of you who used sites that sell or provide essays for students who choose not to do their own work, reconsider the source. Many of these essays are poorly written and frankly whoever writes them cheats on their citations (instead of reading, and understanding the novel they are using quotation sites to put together a poorly written essay). You are smarter than this.
4. The design of your blogs. Many of you selected design elements that effectively presented the time period, subject, theme or mood of the novels you selected.
See Stephanie S's for an example of this.
For another version of this see Connor H.'s blog.
Make sure that you have thought of your reader as you chose colours and fonts (always ask yourself - can this be easily read by others?) . Some of you have added gadgets that really are for more personal blogging than for this educational blog. No worries - you can always remove them....
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Your next task to be completed by the end of October is to write four reading responses. Use the questions I provided you at the beginning of the ISP, and the link 'How to Judge a Classic' found in the sidebar under Useful Resources. These reading responses should not be plot summaries.
