Portfolio Assignment: Round Two H9
After one run, your portfolios only get better. No longer a novice, your second quarter writing portfolio also consists of a collection of writings that you create outside of class. By the end of this semester, your collective portfolio serves as a comprehensive file of all the creations you have chosen to complete. The majority of the writing in your portfolio will be personal, while a small percentage remains more structured.
When you turn your collection in on January 16th, 2011, your grade will reflect both number of portfolios pieces you write, and the quality of the writing. This is a Google docs turn in, so please plan ahead. All of your entries should be combined into a single file in order to turn it in using Gdocs. Please name your file with your first and last names and the word “portfolio”. I get way too many files called “untitled”.
Listed below are eight portfolio-writing ideas. You have the option of completing seven of the nine portfolios to achieve an A, six for a B, five for a C. Remember, there is no such thing as a D in an Honors class.
Each paper must be at least one and one-half pages in length and no more than two, unless otherwise indicated in the directions or inherent nature of the assignment. Be sure to label your writings.
- Read a critique on any of Shakespeare’s works. Choose the opposite viewpoint and write a letter to the original author. Imitate his or her tone and style, but do not mock the author. Make a one entry Works Cited at the end of your letter. Include citations when you refer to specifics from that text. There is a list of articles at the end of this assignment sheet.
- Thanksgiving- There are 25 days in November leading up to Thanksgiving. First, do a quick search and find out the origins of this uniquely American holiday and explain it in a paragraph with proper documentation. Then, think of 10 things/people/ideas/situations that you are thankful for. For each, write a short paragraph (~4 sentences) explaining what it is that you are thankful for and why.
- Describe in detail the first moment you can remember in which you experienced ridicule or sarcasm. This is narrative writing which also includes feelings and emotions.
- Invent a dialogue between yourself and a politician you dislike. Come to some type of compromise or agreement before parting ways. The dialogue should include why you disagree and should be in correct dialogue format with proper punctuation.
- Want to make some cash money at the same time as you do English work? Write a poem or essay to enter into a writing contest. You need to search for contests and be sure your piece fits the criteria for the contest. I Googled “student writing contests 2011” and found lots. You can do the same. This one in particular has several listed. Make sure that you include the contest info with your portfolio piece.
- Explain an abstraction like justice, intolerance, prejudice, or gratitude to a five-year-old. Remember, in order to explain, you must give examples. The trick is to make it age-appropriate.
- Design the perfect English or World History lesson. Decide on an objective, activities and assessment that could be taught to a class in a normal class period. Start with the objective (what you want the students to learn). Then construct activities that will help the students learn the objective. Next create an assessment that will show the students’ understanding. Lastly, write a short paragraph explaining why this would be a good topic for a lesson.
- Free Choice- Exactly as it says. If you can use any of our Poetry Thursday pieces, that would be cool.
- Describe the scene from your bedroom or place where you study. Use mostly long vowels (“o” as in glow, “ee” as in mean, etc…) and soft consonants (“l,” “m,” “n,” “sh,” etc…). Then describe the same scene using mostly short vowels (“i” as in hit, “a” as in bat, etc…) and hard consonants (“k,” “t,” “gg,” etc…).
Shakespeare Criticism articles