Week Five

1. Week Five Narrative Essays, Peer Review Workshop, and Revision “In writing, you must kill all your darlings.” ~William Faulkner

2. Agenda • Mini-lesson on Revision and Peer Review Process • Complete Journal #3/Workshop #4—the two-part peer review and revision of your Narrative Essay Draft • Submit a revised copy of your Narrative Essay Draft to the instructor (part two of the workshop) • Once both parts are done, complete Workshop #3—model Narrative Essays for inspiration and style • Final hour dedicated to the Critical Thinking Assignment began last week • Remember: Final revisions due next week and student conferences held (sign-up for a specific time)

3. Peer Review • What is a “peer review”? • Why take part in this sort of practice? Objective feedback: • Seeing your work from another’s perspective • Having them explain to you how they “see” it (writer’s blindness) • Kind, informed feedback prior to scoring

4. Who is a “peer”? • Classmates… because they probably think like you do and have been privy to all of the instructional materials that you’ve encountered. They are your “average readers,” as well. • Instructors… because they know what they hope to teach you and can help guide you to see what classmates might have missed. • Friends… because they can catch mistakes you do not see and are reading your work from a truly “general” standpoint.

5. Eyes on your paper! • Multiple readers make for better papers • Kind yet critical (serious) approach (e.g., avoid “it’s great” or “it’s bad” assessments; be specific) • What to use/what not to use (revision questions) • Don’t fear the red pen  • Begin your revision with a PLAN

6. Reasons Peer Reviews Fail • Writers give the impression that they don't want any advice (incomplete drafts or polished drafts). • Peers don't want to disagree or criticize, are afraid of conflict. • A writer lacks an understanding of peer/reader's questions about the essay. • Responses are too general. Specific suggestions aren't given to a writer. • A writer doesn't understand how to revise or doesn't care enough about the paper to revise. **But this won’t happen here! 

7. How to make Peer Reviews Work • Don't equate revision with being WRONG - you are here to improve. • Don't assume that writing is to be equated with inspiration - you can change what the writer has written for the better. • Do assume that you have something to offer - have a high opinion of yourself as a growing writer and intellectual! • Don't assume that you don't know what should be included in the essay or that you don’t know good writing when you read it. • Your perspective matters!

8. Revision: what it is and what it isn’t Think of revision as broken into two parts: "vision" and "re" (to see again) what has been produced. It is "re-seeing."

9. Revise with a Plan Consider the four elements of revision – • addition, • deletion, • substitution, • and rearrangement “When you write […] you spend day after day scanning and identifying the trees. When you’re done, you have to step back and look at the forest.” ― Stephen King, On Writing

10. Journal #3/Workshop #4—Peer Review • Follow the directions on the Peer Review form closely • By the end of class, you should submit a peer review/rough draft and a revised draft for instructor feedback (rubric) • Make sure to take your revised draft (with feedback) home with you; final drafts due next week • Complete Workshop #3. Go to http://coursematerials2012.wordpress.com if you do not have the print-out • Final hour: Wrap-up of the Critical Thinking Exercise See board for all that’s due by next week! (mid-point)