Hi everyone,
I can't believe we're half way through the semester! Revising and Editing: In today's class, we learned about revising and editing. When you revise, you correct the content and structure of your research paper. When you edit, you correct grammar and style mistakes. You then have some time to work on your peer editing task. For this task, you will revise/edit your partner's concluding paragraph. You need to complete the following for this task:
Conferences: For our lesson on June 5, we will be having conferences. You will be able to discuss your first drafts with me in an individual meeting during class while other students revise/edit their drafts. Make sure you prepare your list of questions for me before our conferences. Computer Room for June 5 (1st period): For our conferences, we'll be in the computer room 15402, so remember to bring a USB and your Aogaku ID card to access the computers. Homework: 1. Discussions 2. Blog Comment #5 3. Journal Topic #5: an achievement (達成) 4. Peer Editing Task 5. Prepare for conferences 6. Bring to class next week:
Blog Question #5: What did you think of the peer editing task? *Write 8-10 sentences. *Use capitalization, punctuation & spelling correctly. *Submit by Tuesday, June 4 by 6:00pm.
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Hi everyone, Finally! The projector was fixed!! What a relief! Paraphrasing: In today's class, we learned about paraphrasing. This is another way we can include information into our research papers from our sources. When you paraphrase, you put the author’s ideas into your own words. Even if you want to use general facts from your source, you still have to paraphrase this information. Remember that some paraphrases need in-text citation and some paraphrases do not require it.
Before you paraphrase, you have to identify shared language (= words that you cannot change) and find synonyms for words that you can change. This is the most important step in writing a good paraphrase. This is a difficult skill to master and it often takes a long time to paraphrase information. I even have trouble paraphrasing when I have to prepare research papers, too. Be patient and don’t give up! Concluding Paragraph: We also looked at the different parts of a concluding paragraph: thesis restatement, body paragraph summaries and a final thought. The most important sentence will be your final thought; you want to leave the reader with a strong impression so that he/she remembers your essay. For your final thought, you can use the following types of sentences: a. prediction b. recommendation c. question d. quotation Homework: 1. Discussion preparation 2. First draft
NO blog comment and journal writing this week! Hi everyone, What another busy class! I'm glad the projector caused less trouble in today's lesson! Discussions: Good work with your discussions in today's class. There's ben a big improvement in the explanation of your summaries and participation in your discussions. In today's class, you got feedback on these discussion strategies: 1. Showing Interest When you are listening, you need to show the speaker that you are paying attention. To show interest, you can use these expressions: a. Uh-huh b. Yeah. c. I see. 2. Encourage Comments In your discussions, you need to encourage your group members to ask questions about and/or give comments on the opinion's of other group members. You can use these expressions to increase participation: a. Do you have anything to add to (Natsumi)'s opinion? b. Any questions for (Natsumi)? In-text Citation: In today's lesson, we learned to use in-text citation. There are three types of in-text citation that you can use when you write an essay: a. quotations b. paraphrases c. summaries We need to use in-text citation to support our own ideas. If we use the opinions of others and statistical information, this improves the credibility of your essay. In other words, the reader will trust your opinions. Also, we need to use in-text citation to avoid plagiarism (= copy somebody’s idea and claim it as your own). If you use another person’s idea, you must tell the reader where you got that information. Quotations: We looked at different styles of using in-text citation and focused on how to cite direct and second-hand quotes. Pay careful attention to difference between direct and second-hand quotes. 1. Direct Quote When you use a direct quote, you are quoting the information directly from your source. For example: James says that “Less than half of all internet users use English as their native language, and this figure continues to decrease” (3). This tells us that James said this information and you can find the quote on page 3 of James’ source. 2. Second-hand Quote When you use a second-hand quote, you are quoting a quote from your source. For example, President of the Council of Ministers for the European Union, Anna Lindh, says that “Russian, Mandarin, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Japanese have all been guilty of extinguishing other languages” (qtd. in James 3). This tells us that Lindh said the quote, but Lindh did NOT write the source. James uses this quote in his source and you can find it on page 3. Homework: 1. Body Paragraphs #1 and #2
NO blog comment and journal writing this week! Hi everyone, It was another busy three hours! Unfortunately, there was still problems with the projector, so I am trying to change our room so that our lesson will go more smoothly next week. Body Paragraphs: We learned about the structure of the body paragraphs. In BP#1 and BP#2, you give your reasons for your position and support your reasons with supporting ideas and details. There are four types of details you can use in your essay: (1) facts; (2) descriptions; (3) statistics; and (4) expert opinions. Remember that BP#3 is very different from your other body paragraphs. In BP#3, you need to include counter-arguments and rebuttals. If you would like to review the slide presentation from our lesson, you can find it at this link: Persuasion Essay Body Paragraphs Introductions: First drafts I returned the first drafts of your introductions in class. We went through the different types of comments on your drafts: blue comments for structure/content and red comments for grammar. You also received Correction Symbols. I will use correction symbols to give you hints about the errors you make in your writing. Outlines: For next week, you need to complete an outline for your body paragraphs. Make sure you download the outline template. You can find it at the end of this summary. Group Discussions: Before our discussion, we reviewed Anglo-Saxon Conversational Style. The handout from our lesson at in a file at the end of this summary. Remember that you can "jump into" a discussion and that you don't have to wait to give comments. I was very impressed with your discussions, especially with your conversational style; most members gave their opinions and commented on each other’s opinions. In addition, you’ve done a good job pre-teaching your vocabulary before the start of your discussion. For next week's lesson, remember these points to help you improve your discussions:
Homework: 1. Discussion preparation 2. Journal Topic #4: an interesting place 3. Blog Post #4 4. Outline: due May 13 before 12 noon
Blog Question #4: Read through the comments on the first draft of your introduction. What are three grammar points you need to remember when you write the rest of your essay? (For students who missed last week's lesson, you will have to submit your blog post after this week's lesson). * Write 8-10 sentences. * Use capitalization & spelling correctly. * Submit by Tuesday, May 14 by 6:00pm
Hi everyone, As usual, we had another busy class. However, you get a short break because of the Golden Week vacation next week. Group Discussions: Once again, good work with your discussions. I was also impressed that some of the leaders used gestures effectively (we'll have a lesson on this in May). However, remember these points to improve your discussions next week:
Bibliography We learned how to make a bibliography for a research paper. A bibliography is an alphabetical list of all the sources you use for your research paper. When you organize your source information in your bibliography, you need to arrange it using the MLA style (MLA=Modern Language Association). MLA Referencing: MLA referencing is one of the ways you can document your sources in your research paper. This style is used in the humanities, especially for writing about language and literature. Below, you can find the handout from class with the most common MLA entries. MLA Referencing Guide Introduction Structure: We also learned about the different parts of an introduction: a. hook b. general statements c. thesis statement You can choose from five different hooks: a. quotes b. questions c. statistics d. interesting facts Late Submissions: Please be aware that your writing must be submitted on time if you would like to receive my comments. If you submit your writing after a deadline, it will not be checked. Enjoy the Golden Week vacation! Homework:
If you missed our lesson on Wednesday, make sure you review the Introduction and Bibliography Guidelines before you submit your tasks. Don't forget our lesson is cancelled on May 1. Remember to come back on May 8. Blog Question #3:
*Write 8-10 sentences. *Use capitalization, punctuation & spelling correctly. *Submit by Wednesday, May 7 by 6:00pm.
Hi everyone, Wow! There was so much to do in yesterday's class. I can't believe how quickly three hours passed! Opinion Giving and Discussion Leading: We had a short review activity about the expressions for giving your opinion and for agreeing and disagreeing with opinions. Make sure to support your opinion with a reason and/or example. When you want to ask for somebody's opinion, you can use these expressions: 1. What are your feelings on this? 2. What do you think about this? Group Discussions: I was very impressed with your discussions yesterday, especially your preparation. Most of you were able to give your summary without your notes! Great work! However, remember these points to improve your discussions next week:
Persuasion Essay: For the writing section of our lesson, we learned about the purpose and structure of a persuasion essay. A persuasion essay gives the writer's opinion on a topic and the writer wants to convince the reader to support his/her position (either for or against something). We read a sample persuasion essay and identified the different parts. Remember that we'll be learning about each part in more detail over the next few weeks. All of the materials are in the Writing-->Persuasion Essay section on the website. Finally, we also brainstormed a variety of topics that you can choose from for your topic. Journal: You exchanged journals with your writing partner. You will keep your partner's journal this week and write 3 pages in your partner's journal: a. one page of comments on your partner's writing b. two pages on this week's new topic Homework: 1. Discussion preparation (see schedule)
3. Essay Structure Activity 4. Choose essay topic 5. Blog posting #2 Enjoy your week! Blog Question #2: Tell me about one of your childhood experience in your hometown (include the name of your hometown in your post). * Write 8-10 sentences. * Use capital letters, punctuation and spelling correctly. * Submit by Tuesday, April 23 by 6:00pm.
Hi everyone,
It was really great to meet all of you yesterday. I'm really looking forward to our lessons this year. Syllabus and Schedule: In the first period, we had a short introduction activity in which you got to meet your classmates. We then went through the syllabus and our course schedule. All of this information is in the IE 3 Course Information section. We have a lot of work to do this semester, so if you have any difficulties with our course, make sure you let me know so that I can help you. Discussion Worksheet: We learned how to complete a discussion worksheet. You will have to download the worksheet and complete it before your discussion. The discussion sheets are in the Discussion Skills section. You can either type or write your worksheet. There are also links to different English language newspaper sites in the Useful Links section. The power point presentation on How to Complete your Discussion worksheet is also in the Discussion Skills section if you need to review it while completing your worksheet. Opinion Giving: We had a short activity to help you learn some expressions for giving your opinion and for agreeing and disagreeing with opinions. Make sure to support your opinion with a reason and/or example. When you want to ask for somebody's opinion, you can use these expressions: 1. What are your feelings on this? 2. What do you think about this? Homework: 1. Journal entry #1 / Topic: self-introduction 2. Discussion Preparation 3. Blog Posting #1 Have a great weekend! Blog Question #1: What has been one of the most memorable experiences in your life? * Write 8-10 sentences. * Use capital letters, punctuation and spelling correctly. * Submit by Tuesday, April 16 by 6:00pm. |
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