Tying up loose ends of a frayed life. - The Remarkable Blog

It’s the last week of the grading period, which means it’s time to tie up loose ends…and some of us have more loose ends to tie up than others. We also have a debate to finish this week (juniors, I’m looking at you), arguably the most important election of our collective lifetimes, the voting holiday on Tuesday and, therefore, a shortened academic week. In recognition of all this, after the end of our junior debates, this week in Lang will be asynchronous, and your assignments are incredibly straightforward. The only thing that’s different? Your deadline for SUBMITTED work will be 10 p.m. Wednesday to give me time to get all the remaining regular grades and the avalanche of your late and missing work in.

Must-do Mustard, May-do Mayonnaise, Catch-up Ketchup, Pick 1 Pickle mini posters

THIS WEEK’S ASSIGNMENT: DUE  10 P.M. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4

FIRST: Juniors, we’re finishing the debate Monday on Zoom. Bring it! (Sophomores, you’re done, and I’ll announce the winners on Wednesday after our holiday.)

SECOND: We’re mixing it up this week and STARTING with the weekly Google self-reflection form, which asks you to revisit our class blog postings since the start of the six weeks, double-check that you’ve submitted all the assignments, make up those you haven’t, report your work back to me, and, generally do as much as you can to improve your grade. If you’ve done everything, this will be a mic drop. If you’re behind, you’ll catch up. And if you’ve turned in only a handful of assignments, you have three days to throw a Hail Mary and pull out a passing grade. I’m here for it, but you really have to do the work.

THIRD: You’ll finish out the grading period by showing me what you’ve learned. You’ll craft a well-written, 700-word essay comprising all parts of the classic Aristotelian argument (including a CLEAR and SPECIFIC line of reasoning) and every one of Townsel’s required writing elements (highlighted and labeled), making an airtight case for the grade you believe you deserve. Remember, you’ll need at least three claims for your partition. If you’re missing assignments, please make sure you address this in your essay — or it there’s something you’re doing particularly well, tell me about it. Argue well,  and it can’t help but improve your grade. Again, you’ll turn this essay in on this grading period’s final self-reflection form.

_________________________________Amazon.com: A MODEST PROPOSAL eBook: Swift, Dr. Jonathan : Kindle Store

FOURTH:  Time to get in the holiday mood! After you’ve finished your essay and filed your self-report form, read and annotate Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal,” and bring your annotated work to class next Monday, November 9, to serve as the springboard for some group work. You’ll find instructions for annotating Swift here and, as always, in the Menu section along the left side of the blog. If it helps, here’s an audio book — and another, so you can pick your preference — that you can listen to as you read Swift’s work. Just MAKE SURE that you read along as you listen to make a connection between the written and spoken period language. Finally, you’ll find an Understanding Satire handout you’ll need to complete your annotation both here and under the menu section of the blog.

And with that…bye-bye, babies!