College Writing syllabus

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Awesome typo:

FORBIDDEN WORDS

There + ANY form of the verb “to be”
Is, be, am, are, was, were, been, have, has, had, do, does, did, could, should, would, etc.
There are many things I need to get at the store. = I need to get several items at the store.
There is something I need to ask her. = I need to ask her something.
Figure out what the subject is (NOT “There”) and start the sentence (or clause) with it.

Eliminate any form of the verb “to be” when possible.
We were wondering what’s for lunch. = We wonder what’s for lunch.
He is baking a cake. = He bakes a cake.
She is pretty. = Fine as it is. “She looks pretty” if you really want to be awesome.
Search for all of your helping verbs and see what can be changed. You don’t have to eliminate all of them, but strengthen them when you can.

These words are poison to your papers:
Very, many, things, stuff, kind of, nice, good, bad, really, etc.

Do not begin your conclusion with “In conclusion.” Try “Therefore” instead.
Do not begin your intro with “Imagine…”

No 1st or 2nd person pronouns.
I, me, my, mine, you, your, you’re. Rarely use we, us, our.
He, she, it, they are fine because they are 3rd person.
Just because “you” is forbidden does not suddenly mean “one” is the answer.

No contractions
Can't = cannot

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Facebook persuasive essay

Should Facebook be used in determining (pick one) college applications, job applications, or legal matters? It happens all of the time, either formally or informally. Many Facebook users think the Internet is another world where what they say/post/photograph doesn’t matter. In reality, Facebook is a public forum, no matter how “private” you think it is. Your job is to choose a concentration (college, job, or court) and persuade your audience (me, and potential colleges, employers, or prosecutors) three reasons WHY Facebook should or should not be allowed in the application or legal process. You will skip addressing the opposition in this paper.

I know we just finished an argumentative research paper, but my former College Writing students who are actually writing papers in college recommended this class have one more research-based paper for additional practice. This essay will be a smaller version of the last one. You will follow the same steps in planning, researching, writing and editing this essay. This will be a basic 5-paragraph essay. The objective of this assignment is to streamline your planning and researching skills to ensure a more effective college-level researcher.

M 12/7: Assign paper. Preliminary research
HW: Research (follow the criteria for a legitimate source!)

T 12/8: Research
HW: Research

W 12/9: 6 sources due: printed out, read, annotated. Start writing outline in class.
HW: Keep writing outline

Th 12/10: Keep writing outline
HW: Finish writing outline

F 12/11: Outline WITH CITATIONS & works cited list due. Start writing in class.
HW: Write at home

M 12/14: 400 words due at start of class.
HW: Continue writing at home.

T 12/15: Continue writing in class.
HW: Continue writing at home.

W 12/16: 600 words due at start of class.
HW: Continue writing at home.

Th 12/17: Edit in class.
HW: Finish editing and print final draft. Submit to www.turnitin.com

F 12/18: FINAL DRAFT DUE NO MATTER WHAT. If you are absent from class this day, your paper is still expected in my mailbox or inbox AND www.turnitin.com by the time your class period begins.

As usual, I recommend going to the writing lab or having someone who is familiar with MLA research papers look at your paper before it’s due. Do not wait until the last minute!!

Kelliher’s College Writing final study guide (use your notes and book to fill in the blanks)
√ EXPLAIN the usage rules for using each of the punctuation marks or choosing one over the other.
√ EXPLAIN the usage rules of the grammatical elements we used throughout the semester.
√ DEFEND if the grammar/punctuation/usage in a sentence is correct or not.
√ IDENTIFY the part of speech.
√ REVISE a sentence to eliminate a forbidden word, misplaced modifier, dangling participle, redundancy, cliché, etc.
√ MLA style:
√ I give you the bibliographic info, and you write the works cited entry (website or Elibrary)
√ I give you a quote and the attribution, and you correctly incorporate it into a sentence.
√ I give you an original passage with some attempts at paraphrasing and quoting, and you defend whether each is plagiarism or not and why.