A Reader’s MemoirAP Lit & Comp (Gately)
Essay Assignment
In a brief, well-developed essay, reflect on your experiences as a reader. You may focus on a particularly meaningful reading experience—either in school or out—or you can provide a general overview. As such, essays can range in focus and scope, depth and breadth. Your essay should, however, address significant works you’ve read and give me a better idea, overall, of the kind of reader you are. After reading your essay, your attitudes and experiences about reading should be clear to your audience. Your essay should not be a list of works you’ve read, but rather a reflection on those works that have played a significant role in your development as a reader. In particular, please focus on one or more positive experiences you have had as a reader. “Zoom in” to a particular work or experience that helped to shape you as a reader.
This is a personal essay; your voice emerges through thoughtful choices of language and syntax. Use a variety of rhetorical strategies to write your reader’s memoir: tell a story, give a well-chosen example, compare and contrast, provide a definition, etc. At least half of the time you spend working on this essay should be focused on reflection.
Be prepared to share (read aloud) your essay with the class on the due date. 1 ½ to 2 pages, double-spaced. Bring two copies.
Consider addressing the following questions in your essay. The best essays will touch on most of the questions below while focusing/developing one or two of the questions in more detail.
- What kind of reader are you?
- What types of books do you like to read? Why?
- Why do you read? For what purpose or goal?
- What experiences have shaped your attitudes towards reading?
- What is your earliest memory of reading?
- What does “reading” mean to you?
- Favorite books?
A Reader’s MemoirAP Lit & Comp (Gately)
Essay Assignment
In a brief, well-developed essay, reflect on your experiences as a reader. You may focus on a particularly meaningful reading experience—either in school or out—or you can provide a general overview. As such, essays can range in focus and scope, depth and breadth. Your essay should, however, address significant works you’ve read and give me a better idea, overall, of the kind of reader you are. After reading your essay, your attitudes and experiences about reading should be clear to your audience. Your essay should not be a list of works you’ve read, but rather a reflection on those works that have played a significant role in your development as a reader. In particular, please focus on one or more positive experiences you have had as a reader. “Zoom in” to a particular work or experience that helped to shape you as a reader.
This is a personal essay; your voice emerges through thoughtful choices of language and syntax. Use a variety of rhetorical strategies to write your reader’s memoir: tell a story, give a well-chosen example, compare and contrast, provide a definition, etc. At least half of the time you spend working on this essay should be focused on reflection.
Be prepared to share (read aloud) your essay with the class on the due date. 1 ½ to 2 pages, double-spaced. Bring two copies.
Consider addressing the following questions in your essay. The best essays will touch on most of the questions below while focusing/developing one or two of the questions in more detail.
- What kind of reader are you?
- What types of books do you like to read? Why?
- Why do you read? For what purpose or goal?
- What experiences have shaped your attitudes towards reading?
- What is your earliest memory of reading?
- What does “reading” mean to you?
- Favorite books?
A Reader’s MemoirName ______
Essay RubricAP Lit & Comp (Gately)
The essay... / Needs work / Satisfactory / Very Good / Exemplary- has a unifying theme or central idea that is developed throughout the essay (coherence)
- provides a clear picture of the author as a type of reader
- develops examples and anecdotes effectively to support main ideas
- demonstrates thoughtful and interesting use of diction and syntax as it relates to rhetorical purpose
- possesses a consistent and effective tone
Comments:
Grade: ______/ 20
A Reader’s MemoirName ______
Essay Rubric AP Lit & Comp (Gately)
The essay... / Needs work / Satisfactory / Very Good / Exemplary- has a unifying theme or central idea that is developed throughout the essay (coherence)
- provides a clear picture of the author as a type of reader
- develops examples and anecdotes effectively to support main ideas
- demonstrates thoughtful and interesting use of diction and syntax as it relates to rhetorical purpose
- possesses a consistent and effective tone
Comments:
Grade: ______/ 20