Assignments

Assignments

(scroll down to see each week)

Week One: Metaphor Exercise: Poem Due 2/2

Think of a person, a concept/condition (e.g., poverty, love, weakness, etc.), or any single subject (e.g., election year, your favorite pair of jeans, etc.) and answer at least 20 of the following questions about whatever you’ve chosen. Answer the questions on another sheet of paper avoiding the use of simile (“X is like a…”), utilizing metaphor instead (“X is a pacing wolf,” or “it’s a grand piano in an 8 x 8 room”).

If your subject were a(n):

… time of year, which season would it be?
… time of day, what hour would it be?
… form of water, what form would it be (lake, spring, ocean, rain, tap water, etc?)
… animal, what kind would it be (tiger, dog? Tame, wild? Etc.)
… bird, what kind would it be?
… flower, would it be black-eyed susan or rose? Burgundy lily or snapdragon?
… form of shelter, would it be a tent, a mansion, cabin in the woods?
… superhero, what would it’s super power/costume be?
… tree or fruit?
… form of transportation?
… piece of furniture?
… kind of weather or climate?
… article of clothing?
… language?
… color?
… historical period?
… US state?
… foreign country?
… food?
… drink?
… body part?
… musical instrument?
… art or sport?
… geographical feature?
… astronomical feature?
… room in the house?
... kind of work?
… book or movie genre?
… kitchen appliance?
... board or video game?
… city?
… (come up with your own)?

Be careful to avoid familiar or overused phrases like “raging river” or “torrential rain;” don’t let your words congeal into dead metaphors. Your responses—all of them concrete, specific nouns and adjectives—will provide the metaphors for you to work with. The longer your list, the more aspects of the subject your poem will reveal.

Week Two: Concrete, Significant Details: Portrait Poem Due 2/6

In-Class Exercise:

Think of someone you know; it could be you, a parent/grandparent, sibling, friend, significant other, child, rival, etc. Just somebody you know pretty well.
Make five lists (one for each of the senses: sight, sound, touch, smell, taste) of things you associate with them (clothing, their favorite objects, food, things they always say/do, whatever). This can be in the form of a linear list, or in the form of a mind-map.

Sight: What do they look like, wear? What stuff do they have? What’s their walk look like? Etc.
Sound: What’s their voice sound like? What kinds of things do they always say? Do they have audible habits (foot-tapping, whistling, throat-clearing, etc.?)
Touch: What do they, or the objects they love, feel like to the touch? (note: this can also be what you THINK they feel like, based on the other senses)
Smell: What do they smell like? And what smells do you associate with them?
Taste: What tastes do you associate with them? Or, what do you imagine (or know) they taste like?

BE SPECIFIC!! If she always wears a green coat, describe that green coat: it’s fabric, texture, how it fits her, whether it looks good and what that means. Go back through your lists and make notes (if you haven’t already) on why these things are, or could be significant. If you don’t know, make it up! Base it on the details you do know.

The poem for Friday:

When you get home, continue the exercise if you want to, and/or use the material you generated in class to write a poem. Write a portrait of the person you were thinking of based on the concrete, significant details you came up with; rely heavily on images. And don’t forget about metaphors and similes! Sometimes the best descriptions are comparisons—she’s not this, but that; he’s like this or that, etc.

Be sure to go beyond the surface. This isn’t just any person. Try to write toward what makes that person stand out to you. What’s memorable and telling about them? Show us this person through your poem.

Week Three: Voice Assignment Due Wednesday, Feb. 18

Poem # 3: Voice Poem

Your options:

Write a poem about yourself; an “identity poem”—who are you and what DETAILS make you you?
Write a memory poem; pick a specific moment from your life and write a poem that encapsulates that moment and who you were within it
Write a persona poem: a poem from someone else’s perspective. This can be a fictitious person or someone you know; it can be entirely made up, or perhaps you want to write the memory poem but from someone else’s point of view.
Write an “influenced” poem: use one of the poems we read for this week and try to imitate the voice or structure or rhythm to get at something new. (Note: please don’t use all of “I Sing the Body Electric”!)

Whatever option you choose, remember this assignment is about tapping into the idea of voice. Consider diction (word choice, phrasing) and concrete details that tell us something about the point of view of the poem. Who’s speaking? To whom? Why?

Some in-class exercise questions and extra ideas to help you move forward:

For each of these, try to stay focused on the five senses…what are the DETAILS of these things? Stay away from generalizations.

Lists of all kinds of things:

What’s in your fridge?
What do you know that nobody else knows?
What have you lost?
Things people say to you…
Things you can’t live without…

Lists of sights, sounds, smells, tastes, feels as they relate to you or your persona
Write about an early memory—before age 5: capture everything you can remember about that moment—what happened, what are the colors, sounds, smells, textures you associate with that memory? Don’t worry about grammar or spelling; just write.
Write about a grade school age memory (see above); then a jr. high age memory; high school; last week.
Describe something you love without naming it; a thing or a feeling. What’s it like? Why do you love it?
List five things you want to do before you die.
List five things you wish you’d never done.
Write about an experience you’ve had with death, grief or loss.
List everywhere you’ve ever lived, then list five things you associate with each place (sights, smells, etc.)
List why you left each place.
What’s the strangest thing you know about your mom, dad, or whoever raised you?
What do you wish you knew about them? What are you glad you don’t know?
What does your childhood home smell like?
Write about an instance of betrayal in your life.
Write about an instance of total, unabashed joy in your life.
Fill in the blanks…

When I’m hungry, I….
When I’m angry, I…
When I’m ecstatic, I…
When I’m sleepy, I…
When I’m around kids, I…
When I’m around animals, I…
First thing in the morning, I…
Just before bed, I…
When there’s nothing else to do, I…
I always wish I had more time to…
I avoid….
I’m afraid of…
I always laugh when…
I can’t stand…
It makes me so angry when…
I have a…
I admire….
I detest…
I surprised myself when…
I’ve never been so embarrassed as when…
I’ve never been so proud as when…
I can’t get enough…
Etc…..

Week Four: Poetic Terms and Form Assignment

Poetic Terms Study Guide

Syllable – The unit of speech that can be uttered in a single expulsion of breath.

Poetic Line – A unit of verse ending in a typographical break; the basic unit of poetry.

Poetic Foot – A unit of measurement within a poetic line, measuring both the syllables and stresses within it.

Caesura – A pause that occurs within a poetic line, often indicated by a comma or a period.

Enjambment – A continuation of the sentence and its meaning from one line to the next.

End-stopped – The phrase, clause or sentence punctuation occurs at the end of a poetic line.

Stress/Accent – The vocal emphasis given to a particular syllable, word or phrase.

Iamb – A poetic foot consisting of one unaccented (unstressed) syllable followed by one accented (stressed) syllable (they GREW/their TOES/and FING/ers WELL/en-NOUGH).

Trochee – A poetic foot consisting of one accented (stressed) syllable, followed by one unaccented (unstressed) syllable (TIG-er/TIG-er/BURN-ing/BRIGT).

Anapest – A poetic foot consisting of two unstressed syllable, followed by a stressed syllable (from the DARK/to the DARK/is a SLIV/er of GRAY)

Dactyl – A poetic foot consisting of a stressed syllable, followed by two unstressed syllables (GO and ask/SAL-ly to/BRING the boys/OV-er now)

Meter – An objective way of measuring time in poetry according to the number of feet and syllables in a line.

Stanza – A group of lines within a poem, usually offset by white space.

Couplet – A two line stanza, often consecutively rhymed.

Please also be prepared to map the structure of rhyme for a short poem (see page 324). Example:

I cannot wait (a)

To see my fate (a)

On this annoying quiz (b)

I’ve studied hard (c)

To be a bard (c)

So this should be a whiz (b)

Form Assignment DUE Monday, Feb. 23rd

You will either write:

ONE sonnet (see choices below)
FOUR haikus
ONE villanelle
ONE sestina

Option 1: The Sonnet (14 lines, “x” syllables per line, rhyme scheme)

Shakespearean: 14 lines, 10 syllables per line, rhyme scheme = abab cdcd efef gg
Fixed syllables with rhyme scheme: 14 lines, 8-12 syllables (i.e., your first line must be between 8-12 syllables, all subsequent lines must match the syllable count in the first line), fixed rhyme scheme (abba cddc effe aa; OR aabb ccdd eeff gg; OR abc abc abc abc; or some other discernable pattern of your creation)
Fixed syllables with NO rhyme scheme: 14 lines, 8-12 syllables (i.e., your first line must be between 8-12 syllables, all subsequent lines must match the syllable count in the first line), no discernable rhyme scheme.

Option 2: Four Haikus (5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables)

Write four separate Haiku poems. Each poem should stand on its own (though may be on the same piece of paper), follow the 5-7-5 rule, and illuminate a single moment or image. If you want to follow the Japanese rule of incorporating a season, you may certainly do so, but it isn’t necessary. The key to a good haiku is that it’s an IMAGE (concrete, crystallized, condensed) that stands in for an emotion or abstraction. Avoid writing the abstraction!

Option 3: One Sestina (39 lines following a prescribed repetitive scheme)

The Sestina is a very complex, but often fun form to follow. It consists of 39 lines, divided into 6 six-line stanzas followed by 1 three-line stanza, in which the last word of each line from the first stanza is repeated in a specific order throughout the rest of the poem. The order looks like this (remember, these letters represent the last WORD in each line):

Line 1: ABCDEF

Line 2: FAEBDC

Line 3: CFDABE

Line 4: ECBFAD

Line 5: DEACFB

Line 6: BDFECA

Line 7: ECA (or) ACE

The key to a good sestina is choosing those ending words well. Make sure they’re words that have more than one meaning or connotation.

Option 4: One Villanelle

There are two forms of the villanelle, the first deals with both rhyme scheme and a repeated refrain; the second drops the rhyme scheme and worries only about the repeated refrains.

Either way, a villanelle is always 19 lines with two repeating refrains. The form is made up of five tercets (3 line stanzas) followed by a quatrain (4 line stanza). The first and third line of the FIRST stanza are repeated alternately throughout the poem in the last lines of the succeeding stanzas, then act as the final two lines in the last stanza. Which looks like—without worrying about the rhyme scheme—this:

LINE 1

Line 2

LINE 3

Line 4

Line 5

LINE 1

Line 7

Line 8

LINE 3

Line 10

Line 11

LINE 1

Line 12

Line 13

LINE 3

Line 15

Line 16

LINE 1

LINE 3

If you decide to go whole hog, as it were, and want to also try the rhyme scheme, it’s: aba/aba/aba/aba/aba/abaa.

The key to a good villanelle, is to choose those first and third lines well; try to come up with lines that can take on different or varying meanings based on what comes before and after them. They’re a refrain, but their continued presence in the poem should surprise you, delight you, even.

PLEASE DO NOT HAND IN ONE OF EACH OF THESE!! CHOOSE ONE FORM AND PLAY WITH IT. IF IT DOESN’T WORK, CHOOSE ANOTHER ONE.

Week Five: Revision Assignment: DUE Fri. 2/27

Revision and editing are not the same things. Revision means just what it says: Re-vision. It’s a re-imagining of what you have already written. It’s more than just replacing a word here or there or adjusting a tense. It can be as small as a combination of those things or as large as taking a single image or line from the poem and starting over; you may decide to try another voice for the poem or rely more on dialogue. You might start your poem over with the last line or scrap everything but the third stanza. The point of revision is twofold: to work toward a better piece of creative writing, and to be open to more possibilities for your work. You can always change it back to what it was, but you’ll never know what else it might be without really looking at what you have, seeing what’s there and what’s not, and being willing to stretch yourself away from your first ideas.

In Class:

All of these questions are to lead you to ways to open up your poem for potential revisions. You need not use any of the answers in your revision, but that may help you gain entry to your poem in a new way. Try not to answer them with things from your current poem (e.g., try not to use an image from the poem as your image for the poem in question 3; see if you can’t come up with another one).

Making sure you know what your poem is about:

State your poem’s central subject or idea in a single sentence. What’s it about? What’s the poem aim to do?
Reduce your sentence to a single word.
Now express it in a single concrete image.
Now as a single line of dialogue that a character of the poem might say.

Grounding your poem; Is it clear?:

Where does the poem take place?
When does it take place (year, time of day, season, etc.)?
How do things look?
What’s the weather like?
What’s happening?
Who’s in the poem?
Who’s poem is it? Who’s is it to tell? Is the poem in the right voice?
Consider Mary Oliver’s essay: Does your poem have everything it needs to sustain itself on its own?

Replacing weak language with fresh language:

Go through your piece and underline every generalization (e.g., “I was lonely”; “The house felt eerie”; “I felt trapped”).
Circle every abstraction (e.g., peace, love, happiness, anger).
Put a box around every cliché (e.g., life is like a river; path of life; tough as nails; solid as a rock; eyes like pools)
For each generalization, abstraction and cliché, brainstorm words and images that they remind you of; make a list of similes or metaphors for each; don’t get bogged down with what’s in the poem now, just think about the idea you’re trying to get across in that single moment and brainstorm from there.
Replace each generalization, abstraction and cliché with something specific, precise, concrete. Show these ideas in a fresh way. Play with the absurd, wild, inappropriate. Push yourself outside of the poem.
Now look at each image and metaphor in your original poem. Is it clear, specific, fresh? If some of them feel flat, play with them. Is there a better image? A better metaphor or simile? Should you use a simile where you have an image or vice versa?

Does it end?:

Go back to your answer to what the poem is about; write a poetic line that is the direct opposite of the meaning or effect you want. Try that as a final line.
Try repeating the first line or sentiment.
Does your poem “take a turn”? Does something happen or change from the beginning to the end? Is something revealed? What? Is it clear in the last few lines?

At Home:

Is it too long/too short?:

Read it out loud. Note where it sounds strange—where the rhythm seems off or places where you stumble; where the words sound wrong; where there’s unintended repetition. Address these as best you can.
Where is it too long? If there are places that feel/sound wordy, see if you can’t pare back the language—remember, you’re striving in poetry for an economy of language.
Where is it underdeveloped? These may be the same places that seemed unclear. Add what you need to. Free write to fill in what’s missing.
Experiment with cutting and replacing. Make up your own rules. Maybe you cut all the adjectives or adverbs or articles. Maybe you replace every inactive verb. Maybe you remove one line from each verse. Be sure you’ve saved your original and are working in a different file if you do this electronically. Compare the two drafts at the end. Consider whether to keep some of those cuts/changes.

Is the structure right?

Try moving stanzas and lines around within the poem. What happens if you start with the end? What about the middle? Pick out the stanza or line/poetic thought that feels the strongest to you and try that as the start if it isn’t already. Try it at the end.

Now revise! Have fun with it. Remember, nothing is lost. Your original still exists and always will. Be proud of yourself. You’re really writing now.

By Friday at 7pm, you must post ONE of your poems to the class website for workshop. In order for your group to retrieve your poem, please name it thusly: “Group (insert your number) First Name 1.” In other words, if I were in group #1, I would name my post: Group 1 Kris 1.

Week Six: Parts I, II & III

Part I: Classmate Critiques

1st Poetry Workshop Groups:

Morgan, Kyle, Sadip, Sam, Cheick
Joe, Jean, Bryan, Mike, Anya
Rebecca C., Erik, Mariam, Eli, Jaimie
Clyde, Marisa, Amy, Christine, Kevin
Rebecca A., Victoria, Jason, Kimberly, Jose

Classmate Critiques:

You are responsible for PRINTING OFF all 5 poems of your group-mates (see groups above), reading each carefully at least twice.

You will be writing TWO CLASSMATE CRITIQUES (explained below), as well as jotting some notes for the other three poems you read.

TWO CLASSMATE CRITIQUES*:

You will write a classmate critique for the two people listed after you in your group; if you are the last person listed, you will do the first two (E.g.: Group 1: Morgan will write critiques for Kyle and Sadip; Kyle for Sadip and Sam; Sadip for Sam and Cheick; Sam for Cheick and Morgan; Cheick for Morgan and Kyle).

The Classmate Critique must be on a TYPED PAGE and include the following (either in a bulleted list or letter form):

What you think the poem is about. Just a sentence.

At least two detailed things you thought were particularly effective. Be specific about the craft element (voice, image, metaphor, etc.) and where in the poem you are referring to (either quote the phrase or line, or point them to the stanza, etc.).

At least two “interrogations” of the poem (as explained by Burroway in the Introduction to the writer section). E.g.: I’m wondering about the word choice in line three, or This reminds me of…, or Could this be expanded to…?, or I wonder what would happen if…?

And one kind, thoughtful suggestion about how the poem might be improved (e.g., expand this metaphor, think about ways to connect these two images more succinctly, consider changing this to past tense, etc.).

Bring the poems and TWO copies of your critical responses to class (one for the author and one for me).

You are responsible for leading the discussion of the person how directly follows you on the list (e.g., Morgan will lead discussion of Rebecca, Rebecca of Kyle, etc.).

These critique letters are the jumping off point for your discussion…don’t just read them to each other! Get talking about the poems!

*Classmate Critiques will be graded. If you follow the directions above, you will get an A; if you don’t you will get something else.

FOR the 3 poems you are not doing a Classmate Critique for, print one copy and do the following directly on the poem:

Underline or check lines, images, or moments that struck you as strong.

Write at least one thing you thought was effective;

Write at least one question or interrogation into the poem

Write at least one helpful, kind suggestion.

Bring the poems with your comments to class to discuss and give to the author.

You should be ready to talk about EVERY poem in your group.

Part II: Workshop Rules

Workshop Rules:

We will work hard to maintain a respectful, safe, kind, and constructive workshop environment. To do that, some rules need to be set up, understood, and followed by EVERYONE.

The piece is under discussion. The author is not. Make sure your comments relate to the nature of the writing and not (even by implication) to the character of the writer. Separate the writer from the voice or character.
Continue to interrogate the piece respectfully: What kind of piece is it? What does it suggest? What is its apparent aim? What are its current strengths? Where is it unclear? REMEMBER: This is an early draft. There’s no need for harsh criticism at this stage.
The goal of the workshop is to make THIS piece the best that it can be. There’s no place for dismissal or disregard. On the contrary, the obligation of the workshop is to identify and foster the promise in every poem or story.
As the writer, your obligation is to LISTEN attentively, take everything in, and keep your natural defensiveness in check. You may not speak while your piece is being discussed. Be still and be greedy for suggestions. Write down everything you can. Remember, your cohorts are trying to help you make your piece the best that it can be. But this is the least important part of the workshop process for you. The most important part comes later, when you get back to work. Then (and only then) will you begin to sort out what’s useful to you. When your group has finished discussing your piece, you are free to comment, but remember: they are here to help you!

How the workshop will run:

You groups have already been determined and the order is of importance. Each group will start with the first person listed leading the discussion for the first poem (the second person is the first up). There are six of you in each group and there’ll be about 40 minutes total; each poem should get at least five minutes, but no more than seven.

Each discussion will start one of two ways (which is up to the author): the author will read the poem out loud OR the discussion leader will read the poem out loud. It’s important to hear it read out loud!
Once the poem has been heard, the discussion leader will begin by discussing the strengths he or she found in the poem. This is to be a discussion: each person in the group should have something to say, even if it is to echo what someone else has said. It’s important for the writer to know if everybody loved a certain image or line…so say it!
Once the strengths have been discussed, the discussion leader will move the group toward the interrogations of the poem. Again: this is a discussion!
Finally, discuss suggestions. Here’s where you can just go around the circle. If a discussion ensues, fantastic!

Useful questions for the workshop to ask of a piece:

What other works does this piece remind you of and how/why?
How is this piece structured?
What is it about?
What does it say about what it’s about?
What degree of identification does it invite to the reader?
How does its imagery relate to its theme?
How is persona or point of view employed?
What effect on the reader does it seem to want to produce?
Where is it succeeding?
Is the language fresh?
Is the action clear?
Is there a clear point of view?
Is the rhythm interesting?
Are the images concrete, specific, and interesting?

Part III: Poetry Craft Response Essays Grading Criteria: DUE at conference

Craft Response Essays Grading Criteria:

You will be responsible for writing 2 brief Craft Response Essays (1 - 2 double-spaced pages) over the course of the semester (the first in response to a single poem, the second in response to a single piece of fiction). You may choose any poem or story that has been assigned (from the text book, e-reserve, or the hand-outs/emailed packets); you may not choose a poem outside of the required reading for the course.

Response essays should focus on one of three things: 1) the way a particular craft element discussed in class (e.g., image, metaphor, voice, character, setting, etc.) is being put to use; 2) why and how a particular image, phrase, line, etc., really struck you, and why/how it’s effective; or 3) any craft-based question the poem or story raised for you. Please don’t try to tackle every craft element in the piece. Focus in on one element and really explore it.

Your Response essays should not be summaries of what the story or poem was about, nor should they attempt to uncover the themes/meanings within it, nor should they be litanies of what the poem or story reminded you of from your own life. Rather these essays should engage critically with something we have read, asking the question “how/why did the author do that?” In other words, this isn’t a standard English paper! I assume you know what you read; I want to know if you can unpack how the author wrote it knowing what you know now about the process of writing.

Response essays will be graded.

An ‘A’ paper will fully engage—in other words, both ask and concretely answer—one of the above-mentioned questions, keeping in mind that authors choose each word deliberately. It will use examples from the text to underscore your point or points.

A ‘B’ paper will ask a good critical question and attempt to answer it, perhaps vaguely or with little support.

A ‘C’ paper will simply ask the question without answering it.

A ‘D’ paper will fail to focus on one of the questions above.

An ‘F’ is reserved for work that is either not turned in at all, or has no relevance whatsoever to the assignment.

Week 6: NO ASSIGNMENTS (Conferences)

Week 7: NO ASSIGNMENTS due to snow day

Week 8: SPRING BREAK

Week 9: 3-5 Pages of Fiction

Due: 3-5 pages of fiction focusing on setting or character or both; getting started

Week 10: NO ASSIGNMENTS

Week 11: Fiction Workshops

Fiction Workshop Groups:

Cheick/Jose and Kyle/Kevin and Joe/Sam
Rebecca C./Jaimie and Morgan/Christine and Erik/Mike
Victoria/Amy and Bryan/Marisa and Rebecca A./Sadip
Kimberly/Jason and Clyde/Mariam and Eli/Anya and Jean

Some differences in schedule and how this workshop will work:

Because you will each be reading 5 -10 pages from each of your classmates (20-50 pages total), and because these pieces are longer, this workshop WILL go over two class sessions—do not rush through them! Each story should get AT LEAST fifteen minutes. For Wednesday’s class come ready to talk about the first four stories, but know you might not get to them all. For Friday, the remaining stories.

So, for Wednesday, be ready to discuss the following stories in your group:

Group 1: Cheick, Jose, Kyle, and Kevin
Group 2: Rebecca C., Jaimie, Morgan, and Christine
Group 3: Victoria, Amy, Bryan, and Marisa
Group 4: Kimberly, Jason, Clyde and Mariam

For Friday, be ready to discuss:

Group 1: Kevin, Joe, Sam
Group 2: Christine, Erik, Mike
Group 3: Marisa, Rebecca A, Sadip
Group 4: Eli, Anya, Jean

Reminders on Posting:

You are posting 5-10 pages of 12 point, double-spaced text!!! Please do not go over this. If your story is longer than this, only include the first 10 pages. You’ll be in the same groups for your second fiction workshop and can pick up where you left off.

If you decide not to post, please bring enough full copies of your story to share with your group on Monday.
Classmate Critiques:

You are each responsible for PRINTING off, reading and responding (in some capacity) to ALL five stories, but you are responsible for writing only ONE in-depth classmate critique. I’ve paired you with someone I think will be helpful to you in terms of the story you’ve to me. The person you’re paired with (e.g. Cheick/Jose; Kyle/Kevin, etc.) is the one you will write the Classmate Critique for (see instructions below). PLEASE NOTE: THIS WILL ONLY WORK IF EACH OF YOU PARTICIPATE! If you have no intention of posting your work or participating in the workshop, please see me after class so I can take you off the list and discuss dropping the course with you.

You will write a Classmate Critique for the person you are paired with (e.g., Cheick for Jose; Jose for Cheick).

The Classmate Critique must be on a TYPED PAGE and include the following (either in a bulleted list or letter form):

What you think the story is about in a sentence or two. By this, I mean, what are the stakes? What’s the source of tension? For example, “This is a story about a guy recovering from a terrible break-up and coming to terms with mistakes he’s made.” If you can’t figure out what it’s about, say so, but nicely…you could say “it seems like it’s about x, but I’m not really sure.”

2-3 things you thought were particularly effective. Be specific (voice, image, dialogue, setting, etc.).

2-3 “interrogations” of the story (as explained by Burroway in the Introduction to the book). E.g.: I’m not sure why character “X” happens to be in the graveyard; is there a reason he’s there? Or, in the second scene I can’t really tell what happened. I think there was an earthquake…is that right?

And 1-2 kind, thoughtful suggestions about how the story might be improved (e.g., give us more back story for the main character, consider starting your story on page 3 when the police arrive, work on making the dialogue more believable, etc.).

Bring TWO copies (one for the author and one for me) of your full critical response to class, and be prepared to lead the 15 minute discussion for this piece.

You are responsible for leading the discussion of the person you are paired with!

These critique letters are the jumping off point for your discussion…don’t just read them to each other! Get talking about the poems!

*Classmate Critiques will be graded. If you follow the directions above, you will get an A; if you don’t you will get something else.

FOR the 5 stories you are not doing a full critical response for:

Please type or legibly hand write AT LEAST the following:

One/two things you were particularly impressed by
One/two questions you have about the story (e.g., plot, character, setting, etc)
One/two helpful suggestions

Bring these comments to class to discuss and give to the author after their piece has been discussed.

Everyone should be ready to SAY everything on your sheet to the author. And be ready to say something about each story. Remember this is a conversation…if you think of something you didn’t write down, say it!!

Week 12: Poetry Workshop #2

2nd Poetry Workshop Groups:

For Friday, April 17 Workshop (post by Wednesday, April 15)

Kevin, Kyle, Sam, Christine, Morgan
Rebecca C., Jaimie, Erik, Mariam, Cheick
Victoria, Bryan, Anya, Amy, Joe
Clyde, Jose, Sadip, Kimberly, Marisa
Rebecca A., Mike, Eli, Jason, Jean

Classmate Critiques:

You are responsible for PRINTING OFF all 4 poems of your group-mates (see groups above), reading each carefully at least twice.

You will be writing TWO CLASSMATE CRITIQUES (explained below), as well as jotting some notes for the other three poems you read.

TWO CLASSMATE CRITIQUES*:

You will write a classmate critique for the two people listed after you in your group; if you are the last person listed, you will do the first two (E.g.: Group 1: Kevin will write critiques for Kyle and Sam; Kyle for Sam and Christine; Sam for Christine and Morgan; Christine for Morgan and Kevin; and Morgan for Kevin and Kyle).
The Classmate Critique must be on a TYPED PAGE and include the following (either in a bulleted list or letter form): REMEMBER: This is meant to be a helpful guide to the author!

What you think the poem is about. Just a sentence.
At least two detailed things you thought were particularly effective. Be specific about the craft element (voice, image, metaphor, etc.) and where in the poem you are referring to (either quote the phrase or line, or point them to the stanza, etc.).

At least two “interrogations” of the poem (as explained by Burroway in the Introduction to the writer section). E.g.: I’m wondering about the word choice in line three, or This reminds me of…, or Could this be expanded to…?, or I wonder what would happen if…?
And one kind, thoughtful suggestion about how the poem might be improved (e.g., expand this metaphor, think about ways to connect these two images more succinctly, consider changing this to past tense, etc.).
Bring the poems and TWO copies of your critical responses to class (one for the author and one to hand in).
You are responsible for leading the discussion of the person how directly follows you on the list

These critique letters are the jumping off point for your discussion…don’t just read them to each other! Get talking about the poems!

*Classmate Critiques will be graded. If you follow the directions above, you will get an A; if you don’t you will get something else.

FOR the 2 poems you are not doing a Classmate Critique for, print one copy and do the following directly on the poem:

Underline or check lines, images, or moments that struck you as strong.
Write at least one thing you thought was effective;
Write at least one question or interrogation into the poem
Write at least one helpful, kind suggestion.

Bring the poems with your comments to class to discuss and give to the author.

You should be ready to talk about EVERY poem in your group.

Week 13: NO ASSIGNMENTS

Week 14: Fiction Workshop #2

Groups will be the same as the previous workshop. I may make adjustments to the pairings. Stay tuned. All other information (what's due, etc.) is the same as listed above)

Week 15: NO ASSIGNMENTS (Conferences)

Week 16: Final Portfolio Due

Stay tuned for more information