Two Feet In | Writing and the Institution

Warm-up: Conflicts within the family -- kind, cause, effect (short-term, long-term), resolution Trucker (continued) -- small group work When is Zollo surprised, or when can you tell he is learning new info? How is time represented by Zollo and by the community? Who are the perceived leaders, and who are the real leaders in trucker-dom? How are stories/information exchanged in the truck stop? What are the boundaries of this community? Detailed review of all forms Sample interview (Leah Esparza, Cougar Village) Where from/ family life Why choose Cougar Village? Did look at other locations? Why not off-campus living? What had you heard from others about dorm living Describe routines on the floor -- morning, daytime, evening/night Biggest dis/advantage Describe some rules? What rules are routinely broken? Discuss "official" leadership -- RA, etc. Discuss most annoying person on the floor Boys vs. Girls Surprising thing about living with someone Writing -- con...

Warm-up: Board classwork: Cause and effect of a national trucker's strike "Modern Trucking Village" -- small group work Use of description (first two parts) How does Zollo learn about the "inside" community (parts 2-3) Analyze Zollo's use of questions (parts 2-3) Identify all components of the community When is Zollo surprised, or when can you tell he is learning new info? How is time represented by Zollo, by the community? Personal writing/musing -- cause and effect of recession on personal community

I usually ask students to reflect on their writing as they complete a paper. This was the first time I had assigned a first-person description of a community to a first-semester course. Their reflections are interesting -- confidence (not surprising) but sometimes astute observations on their own process. "I liked that we do another peer-examination with the final paper without turning in. This because sometimes, when you have written your paper, and you have read it for a thousand times, it is difficult to find simple mistakes that others can see easily." True, though sometimes I catch minor errors by reading my own work out loud. Different parts of the brain working, etc. More importantly, though, I get ideas from reading my peers. I can see what works for them, and sometimes I choose to incorporate that same strategy in my writing. "I have learned to not over think about the topic." Definitely. This goes back to pre-writing/invention -- getting all the id...