journal entry guidelines

Journal Entry Guidelines

for English 101 Students

Oakton Community College (Fall 2013)

Creative thoughts and actions can positively change the brain’s circuitry. When you do something creative, you expand your sense of possibilities. When you are playful with language, you can transfer that playfulness to other kinds of writing. It also expands one’s versatility with language. You can also combine creative writing with other important kinds of writing (persuasive, expository, etc.) to maximize effects.

Throughout this English 101 class, each student will turn in a number of journal entries. Each journal entry will be two full pages, double spaced, 12 point, standard margins. The writing style for each journal entry can be informal, but you will need to proofread to make sure you catch grammatical errors, etc., and the writing should be arranged with well-thought-out paragraph structure. Each journal entry should have stapled pages, with your name J# and date on the top of the first page.

J1: Expectations and Reflections      (due on August 26)

J2 will focus on your responses to several or all of the following questions:

• What are some expectations that you have of this class?
• What are some expectations that you have of yourself -- in this class?
• What are some expectations that you have of your classmates?
• What are some expectations that you have of your instructor?
• What are some thoughts that you have regarding your writing ability? For instance, what are some of your strengths as a writer? What are some aspects of your writing that you would like to improve?
• How can your creative writing skills be transferred into other areas of your life -- such as other classes you will be taking soon, plans that you have for after you graduate from high school, cover letters, business proposals, etc.?

J2: Faux News Article (due on 8/26)

Directions: Write a faux news article in which you describe some breaking news story that’s set in your city (the city that you and your classmates have invented). Pick a category (sports, business, politics, religion, science, nature, arts & entertainment), and go from there.