Period 5 English 11 H

Mr. Heffernan

18 August 2015

Memoir Project

A memoir is a biography written from either personal experience or special sources (e.g. a collection of letters left behind by a relative).

Individual stories within the text are personal anecdotes, which are short and amusing or interesting stories about real incidents or people.

Now, much as it would awesome to learn everything about each new student in this class, we'll stick to one personal anecdote per person based on any of the following idiomatic expressions inspired by the three essays I asked you to pay particular attention to in Sedaris' collection:

Rebel without a cause ("The Change in Me")

It's the principle of the thing ("The Girl Next Door")

Fly on the wall ("A Can of Worms")

Once you decide the story you want to tell, get ready to share it in two different mediums - print and audio.

SELECT one of the prompts and use it as the basis for a personal anecdote of 500-750 words that is similar in style and approach to that seen in Sedaris' work (tense, voice, tone).

TYPE the anecdote using accepted MLA format including:

proper heading
original title (that is not underlined and is in the same font as the rest of the work).
12 pt. font (Arial or Times New Roman)
double spaced

RECORD the anecdote in any format that is easily transferable (no super big Pro Tools or Final Cut files, please).

LABEL the file as follows: "Your Name" - Memoir (There is no need to include a title, just the word "memoir: is fine.

CHECK the audio file to make sure it is clear and complete.

EMAIL the audio file to

Follow these directions and you'll wind up with a solid project grade to start the year off, especially helpful for those who just maybe didn't complete the reading but still have a story to tell in the way they're being asked to tell it...

PROJECT DUE: Thursday, AUGUST 27th

GRADING GUIDELINES ON THE BACK OF THIS SHEET - Please turn in this handout with your completed word.

Grading Guidelines for Memoir Project

NAME: ______

1. Typed using described M.L.A. formatting.0 - 2 points: ______

2. Work is between 500-750 words and has clearly been proofread.0 - 2 points: ______

3. Effectively captures the style and approach seen in D.Y.F.I.C.A.D.0 - 2 points: ______

4. Audio file is a recorded version of the text provided. 0 - 2 points: ______

5. Audio is clear, easy to understand, and runs without error. 0 - 2 points: ______

6. Audio file is correctly labeled and emailed on time0 - 2 points: ______

If you do not know how to record and export in the way that's been assigned, see me or ask your peers for advice with the technical side of things

______/12 project points