Instructor apologizes for the delay in grading papers due to personal illness.
Offers brief comments on the papers instead of complete grades.
Acknowledges gratitude for students' patience during this time.
Purpose of comments: Help students understand the status of their papers and identify any issues or "red flags."
Grading Scale Explanation
Thumbs Up:
Indicates satisfactory to exceeds expectations (A and B range).
No revision requests or suggestions for improvement.
Detailed Comments:
Suggests potential issues, likely reflecting a C grade or below.
Comments may include explicit requests for resubmission or corrections.
Invitation to Resubmit:
If students received detailed comments, they are invited to revise their work based on feedback and resubmit for potentially improved grades.
Addressing Students' Concerns
Expresses sympathy for academic anxieties regarding grading accuracy.
Assures students that final paper grades will significantly influence overall course grades.
Clarifies that it’s normal for students to feel concerned about grades, especially when they are heavily weighted in calculations.
Overview of Writing Skills Workshop
Today's session serves as a writing skills workshop and overflow time.
Reflects on previous class activities, highlighting the success of in-class "speedrun" papers as beneficial for practice and confidence.
Structured Activity: Creating a Hero's Journey
Activity focus: Selecting the best examples from various texts to form a cohesive "Hero's Journey".
Students required to gather texts covered in the course for this activity.
Hero's Journey Discussion
Reintroduces the concept of the Hero's Journey as discussed in previous classes, specifically in reference to Odysseus in "The Odyssey."
Characteristics of the Hero's Journey: Episodic nature reflecting Odysseus' adventures through various islands.
Each episode represents a significant adventure or challenge in the journey.
Episodic Literature:
Describes how some literature, like works by Charles Dickens, was published in installments, similar to television series.
Relates this publication style to oral storytelling traditions where stories were told in parts over time.
Examples Discussed in Class
Various texts examined in class that relate to the Hero's Journey include:
Odysseus & The Odyssey: Represents the classic Hero’s Journey.
Cupid and Psyche: References the power of three tasks.
Beauty and the Beast: Explored in the context of the Hero's Journey.
Romeo and Juliet and Pyramus and Thisbe: Additional comparisons.
Kissing the Witch Stories
Mosaic Hero's Journey Activity
Students are split into two groups (odds and evens) to create their unique interpretation of a Hero's Journey using texts discussed.
Each group will create a “mosaic” of the Hero's Journey using examples from various stories.
Facilitates collaboration across both halves of the class, ensuring all aspects of the Hero's Journey are examined.
Selecting Evidence
Emphasis on choosing the strongest evidence/quotes to support examples of different stages of the Hero's Journey.
Encourages students to recall significant moments from the stories, illustrating various components such as the Ordinary World and Call to Adventure.
Example provided:
Ordinary World Examples:
Cinderella cleaning the hearth.
Belle’s life in the village before entering the castle in Beauty and the Beast.
Students are reminded to discuss and collaborate effectively, enhancing their understanding of narrative stages.
Collaboration Encouraged
Students are invited to work together during the activity to foster teamwork and peer learning.
Encouragement from the instructor to actively consult each other and share insights about text selections and narrative stages.
Classroom Dynamics
Open dialogue encouraged: The instructor invites questions during the session and allows for direct communication regarding paper feedback, ensuring clarity.
Establishes a supportive environment for student interactions and discussion on narrative structures.