I've mentioned this site a number of times in class. You should
be able to find answers to all of your questions here regarding
MLA format.
MLA Formating and Style Guide - The OWL at Purdue
Huck Gutman was my poetry professor at University of Vermont in
1995. Okay I feel really old now. This is a remarkable site
where he introduces a number of poems and includes some of his
own commentary.
The Power of Poems
For those of you interested in Japanese language study, here is
my favorite kanji site. This site uses video which is helpful
for learning stroke order. Check it out.
Kanji Practice Tool
This year we are working with The Elements of Style by Strunk and
White. This is an excellent book that will answer many of your
questions,regarding usage. Ready to get down to business and
wipe out run-on sentences forever? Semicolons got you down? Ready
to jazz up your syntax? Strunk and White will help turn that
frown upside down.
Elements of Style
Okay maybe one of you can figure out why this site is called
virtual salt. Lots of interesting resources on this site
pertaining to literature, writing,research, etc. Juniors, mostly
I put this up for you. When you are ready take a deep breath and
click on the Handbook of Rhetorical Devices. This is an
impressive list and the definitions and examples are very
helpful.
Virtual Salt
I am a huge Amon Tobin fan. He's the real deal and I recommend
checking out anything he's been involved in. Website is very
cool.
Amon Tobin
I mentioned this in class and I highly recommend listening to the
entire radio series. Here's a short description from the main
site: From 1957 to 1965 legendary photographer W. Eugene Smith
made approximately 4,000 hours of recordings on 1,741 reel-to-
reel tapes and nearly 40,000 photographs in a loft building in
Manhattan's wholesale flower district where major jazz musicians
of the day gathered and played their music. Smith's work has
remained in archives until now. The Jazz Loft Project is
dedicated to uncovering the stories behind this legendary moment
in American cultural history.
Jazz Loft Project
Suffering from allergies? Maybe you need some hookworms! This
episode of Radiolab will totally gross you out. Everyone should
have a listen.
Radiolab program on parasites
Graff and Birkenstein have written an extraordinary book on
writing called They Say I Say, which I am currently using. Here
they are talking about their book. This lecture will liven up
any party and without a doubt lead to some lively discussions on
academic argumentation. Who says I'm out touch with pop
culture? No, in all seriousness, I think this book is pure
genius.
Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein Lecture
Juniors! Here's the paper I've been talking about. Read this
carefully before beginning your Jungle Paper. This will be
helpful and we will discuss it in class next week. You may want
to print this out but you don't have to.
Sex Sells: A Marxist Criticism of Sex and the City
Every year the my Junior classes read a collection of This I
Believe essays and then write their own original pieces. Often
this is a daunting task. Where to begin? It's a fine question
to ask ourselves and I'm always impressed with the quality of the
writing that comes in. It's the type of writing that we can't
help but feel invested in. Adelaide Agyemang wrote a remarkable
essay last year. Have a look. While it is not required, I
encourage students to submit their work to the National Public
Radio online essay database.
Adelaide's "This I Believe" Essay
I read papers all the time that are loaded with run-on
sentences. I think they are particularly prevalent due to the
fact that many of us do not carefully go back over our writing.
We are simply writing our thoughts down on paper, without
considering the reader's perspective. Think of the reader as an
old lady who you are helping to cross the street. She doesn't
see very well and she's carrying a large bag of groceries. She
needs your help. With that being said I'd like you to take
the Run-On Sentence Quiz. After answering question to the best
of your ability, read the explanation provided. Spending just 10
minutes on this I am sure will dramatically improve your
understanding of run-ons and how to fix them.
Run-On Sentence Quiz
Anyone interested in wildlife biology might want to check this
out. My friend John is studying fish owls in Eastern Russia.
Fish owls are one of the largest owls in the world and they are
very rare.
Blakiston's Fish Owl Project
Up towards the top I've included Huck Gutman's introduction to
poetry. This part of the site is dedicated to a collection of
modern poets from all over the world. I particularly recommend
checking out Anna Akhmatova.
Modern Poetry Site
This is an excellent site for discovering new poets and finding
old favorites. Whatever type of poetry you're interested in, you
can probably find it somewhere. You can search by title or
author or theme.
Enormous Database of Poetry
I've used this site for years and it's become quite popular.
This is all poetry written by young people. Some of it is quite
extraordinary. Check out the most discussed section or the most
recently added poems. If you sign up (which is free) you can
contribute your own original poetry and join in the discussion
groups.
Teen Ink
This is an interesting site on developing thesis statements.
While there are
of course an infinite number of approaches, this is a broad
template that many
of you may find useful. I particularly like the suggestions they
give for
opening with a qualification. (Although schools of over a
thousand students
have flourished in America. . .) Starting off with a thought
that stands in
contrast to your own view or acknowledges that there are multiple
perspectives, keeps us from sounding too simplistic.
Thesis Creator
Okay. This year I'm trying something new. I'd like everyone to
set up a
Quizlet account. It's free and easy. Once you have done this,
in the upper
right hand corner there's a search bar. Type in either QuinbyAP
or QuinbyCP,
depending on which class you are in. Now, to prevent outsiders
from entering
into our secret society of vocabulary study, I have created
passwords. This I
am sure will prove to be a great disappointment to the countless
roaming bands
of crazed semanticists who I'm sure would love to join us. Too
bad for them.
The password for QuinbyAP is Huck and the password for QuinbyCP
is Holden.
Once you're in, click on Vocabulary and you'll find our words and
definitions.
I'll be adding words to this periodically. Now I know this
probably sounds
like a royal pain in the neck, a real onion in the ointment, Mr,
Quinby.
However I think that you'll find this to be convenient. There's
no paper
involved. Also there are games (Space Race and Scatter) to help
you study and
then you can test yourself on the words.
Quizlet
Just incase anyone was wondering, yes, my grandmother does hold
the world record for the dead lift
in the 85 and older age bracket. We're all very proud of her.
Here's a photo and a radio interview for
anyone who's interested.
Andora Quinby
This is a must read for all of my students. I think many of us
struggle as writers because we are lacking a clear sense of
purpose in our writing. Without a clear sense of purpose and a
specific focus, your experience writing will be frustrating and
you won't be able to reach that high level of specificity that I
talk about in class. Would you try and write your autobiography
in a page? Probably not. How about a history of the world
religions? You would get nowhere. There would be no room for
specifics. Okay you get the point. Take a look at this
excellent website. If you read it carefully and put these ideas
into practice you'll most definately meet with success.
Developing a Thesis Statement