It’s week 7 of the English writing class. That means it’s time to have a quiz and prepare for the midterm exam.
Hour 1
Quiz #1
Let’s have the quiz in the first hour. Take 10 minutes to review your notes. Then we will have a quiz.
Hour 2
Let’s look at the syllabus. The midterm exam is worth 25%.
Quiz Review (10)
Let’s look at the quiz question and check the answers.
Half-Semester Review (5)
Three main pieces of writing:
- #1 Creative story (based on a picture): idea, voice, word choice, organisation
- #2 Add Details (coffee shop) show me, don;t tell me
- #3 Hero’s Journey – long form, creative writing
We also learned some specific writing skills:
- organised text so that it reads well
- create paragraphs
- strong first sentence
- analyze a story – think about organisation and structure
- use the correct verb tense
- editing skills (wordy sentences and unnecessary there is/there are)
- paragraph editing (punctuation, spelling and articles)
Midterm Exam Review
The midterm is a 50-minute exam. You have the questions before the test, so your written answers should be wonderful.
Here are the test times:
- EGL 116-04: Monday 11 am –regular classroom
- EGL 116-05: Tuesday 11 am –regular classroom
During the exam week, there are no classes on Wednesday or Thursday.
Part 1. Rewrite your creative story (#1) or coffee shop (#2). My choice.
The purpose of this question is to show me that you can write a story with great organisation and no errors.
It will be graded as follows:
- 1-2 pages (max) in length
- show me the skills we learned so far: strong first sentence, great paragraphs, nice flow, good ending
- proper presentation and organisation (paragraphs and margins)
- no major grammar or spelling errors
- no major missing details (all main questions should be discussed in the text like who, what, where, when, why and how)
Part 2. Write about a topic you know well. You choose one.
The purpose of this question is to show me that you have learned the skills taught in class and can write a couple of paragraphs well without feedback from the teacher.
Let’s take the skills your learned when doing creative writing and move to them into descriptions of people, places or things.
You choose one topic. Write 1 to 3 paragraphs. Not more than 3.
Your writing will be graded by these factors:
- you have an idea with a strong first sentence (interesting)
- good grammar (e.g. verb tense) and punctuation (e.g. periods)
- good organisation – there are logical sections or steps
- use words that give the reader a good picture of the people, places and things – descriptive
- sentence variety (long and short)
- nice conclusion that connects with the beginning
Topics (you choose one)
- Talk about an experience that you have had in the past, either good or bad, that you think others could learn from. Be specific with your examples and message.
- Describe in detail something you know a great deal about. This can be a hobby, something you have been interested in for some time, or something that you have studied in the past.
- Talk about someone who you think is important from history. Discuss what they did and why you feel they should be remembered. Don’t forget to include examples to support your claim and finish with a logical conclusion. Please do not choose Lee Sun-shin.
Part 3. Error Correction
The purpose of this question is to show me your ability to find and fix text errors.
You will be given a short text to read. Rewrite the text and fix the mistakes. All or some of the following errors might be included:
- spelling
- grammar (including articles)
- capitalization
- punctuation
Good luck