Grade 11 Journals

Journal Guidelines

2009-08-31T12:55:00.001-07:00

Given that you will be taking the HSPA this year, it is necessary to familiarize yourself with the types of assignments that will be included on the exam. Thus, for your journal you will complete writing tasks similar to those on the HSPA. These will be collected and graded as a major test once per marking period.

Persuasive Essay Tips

2009-08-31T12:54:00.000-07:00

The writing assignment provides you with a situation and the task you are being asked to complete. A persuasive essay is written to make the reader agree with your point of view.

Make sure to utilize letter format if asked to.

Decide which side of the issue you are on and use that statemtent as your thesis statement.

DO NOT show both sides of the argument - stick to the one you can prove easiest.

Use 3 pieces of general support which can be further developed with specific examples.

Make sure you PROOF READ!!!

To get a good score on the HSPA, your essay must follow the format below:

PARAGRAPH # 1 = Introduction
This sets up the situation as provided and includes your THESIS STATEMENT which clearly defines which side you are on.

PARAGRAPH # 2 = Body Paragraph 1
INCLUDES: Transitional words (To begin with, First, The first reason) as part of the topic sentence of the paragraph that highlights REASON #1 for supporting your point of view
At least 2 supporting details* for reason #1

PARAGRAPH # 3 = Body Paragraph 2
INCLUDES: Transitional words (Next, In addition, Furthermore, Another Reason) as part of the topic sentence of the paragraph that highlights REASON #2 for supporting your point of view
At least 2 supporting details* for reason #2

PARAGRAPH # 4 = Body Paragraph 3
INCLUDES: Transitional words (Next, In addition, Furthermore, Another Reason) as part of the topic sentence of the paragraph that highlights REASON #3 for supporting your point of view
At least 2 supporting details* for reason #3

PARAGRAPH # 5 = Conclusion
INCLUDES: REITERATION OF POINT OF VIEW (restate thesis) Brief summary of the three reasons listed in the body paragraphs CALL TO ACTION (tell reader to do something to support your view)

* SUPPORTING DETAILS may include: facts, personal observations, expert’s opinion, and statistics. They should NOT include EMOTIONAL APPEALS or the opinion of someone who is not an expert.

Journal #1

2009-08-31T12:53:00.001-07:00

WRITING SITUATION

A good friend of yours’ father has recently lost his job due to the current economic cutbacks. Your friend has a mediocre school record and feels that his time would be better served getting a job than finishing high school. He has written a post on Facebook reflecting his plan to drop out of high school.

WRITING TASK

Write a response to your friend’s post that argues either for or against your his plan to drop out of high school as an upper classman.

Expository Essay Tips

2009-08-31T12:52:00.000-07:00

The expository essay aims at explaining and issue to the audience. You will be given 30 minutes to complete this section.

Consider both the quote and the assignment question in your prewriting.

Include a topic sentence in your introduction that focuses the thesis of your essay.

Use more examples from literature, film, science and history studies than personal examples.

Make sure that each paragraph is focused on a single example and that the example supports your thesis.

Include a closing even if made of only a few sentences that restates the thesis. Whole essay should be about 400 words.

Utilize the following format:

Paragraph 1: Introduction

Include a thesis statement based on the assignment and frame your argument.

Paragraph 2-4: Body Paragraphs

Include a topic sentence that introduces the example being used and how it relates to the thesis. Thoroughly develop your example to prove how it supports your position. You may use examples from literature, film, history, science or personal experience.

Paragraph 5: Conclusion

Restates the thesis and closes out the topic.

Journal #2

2009-08-31T12:51:00.001-07:00

Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below.

Many persons believe that to move up the ladder of success and achievement, they must forget the past, repress it, and relinquish it. But others have just the opposite view. They see old memories as a chance to reckon with the past and integrate past and present.
—Adapted from Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot, I've Known Rivers: Lives of Loss and Liberation

Assignment: Do memories hinder or help people in their effort to learn from the past and succeed in the present? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.

Journal #3

2009-08-31T12:50:00.002-07:00

WRITING SITUATION
This year, the New Jersey DMV imposed another requirement for young drivers, putting a sticker on cars driven by under-21's with probationary licenses so cops can identify them easier. The red removable reflective sticker is to be affixed to the license plate at the upper left corner and can be taken off and affixed to other plates as needed.

WRITING TASK
Write a letter to the local newspaper in either support or opposition to the new law. Support your position with reasons, examples, facts, and/or other evidence. Convince your readers to take your position seriously.

Journal #4

2009-08-31T12:50:00.001-07:00

Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below.

It is wrong to think of ourselves as indispensable. We would love to think that our contributions are essential, but we are mistaken if we think that any one person has made the world what it is today. The contributions of individual people are seldom as important or as necessary as we think they are.

Assignment:
Do we put too much value on the ideas or actions of individual people? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.

JOURNALS DUE!!!!

2009-08-31T12:49:00.001-07:00

OCTOBER 11TH JOURNALS 1-4 ARE DUE!!!

Journal #5

2009-08-31T12:49:00.000-07:00

WRITING SITUATION
A frequently debated issue is whether or not violence in the media including video games, movies, songs, etc. has negative effects on young adults. Some people believe that there is a need for censorship and the elimination of many products while others believe it is unnecessary to ban potentially violent media and media products. Your school newspaper decided to devote an upcoming issue to this controversial topic.
You decide to write a letter to the editor of your school newspaper expressing your views about the effects of violence in the media.

WRITING TASK
Write a letter to the editor of your school newspaper supporting or opposing whether violence in the media has negative effects on young adults. Support your position with reasons, examples, facts, and/or other evidence. Convince your readers to take your position seriously.

Journal #6

2009-08-31T12:48:00.003-07:00

Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below.

Many people deny that stories about characters and events that are not real can teach us about ourselves or about the world around us. They claim that literature does not offer us worthwhile information about the real world. These people argue that the feelings and ideas we gain from books and stories obstruct, rather than contribute to, clear thought.
-Adapted from Jennifer L. McMahon, "The Function of Fiction"

Assignment:
Can books and stories about characters and events that are not real teach us anything useful? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.

Journal #7

2009-08-31T12:48:00.001-07:00

WRITING SITUATION
The state department of education has provided funding for an experimental online high school. All the classes will take place on the Internet, using email, online chat/video conferencing, and the world wide web. The students taking classes at this new online school will never meet each other face-to-face. They will only interact online with each other and with their teachers.

WRITING TASK

Consider the advantages and/or disadvantages of an online school. What is your position on this issue? Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper stating your position and supporting it with convincing reasons.

Journal #8

2009-08-31T12:47:00.000-07:00

Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below.

Everybody has some choice. People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don't believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want and, if they can't find them, make them.
Adapted from George Bernard Shaw, Mrs. Warren's Profession

Assignment:
Do success and happiness depend on the choices people make rather than on factors beyond their control? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.

JOURNALS DUE!!!

2009-08-31T12:46:00.003-07:00

ON DECEMBER *** JOURNALS 5-8 ARE DUE!!!
***REMEMBER, YOU SHOULD HAVE IMPROVED SINCE THE LAST ENTRIES, SO DON'T RUSH THROUGH... ALSO, SOME OF YOU MUST HAVE AN OUTLINE FOR CERTAIN ENTRIES.

Journal #9

2009-08-31T12:46:00.001-07:00

WRITING SITUATION
Due to potential problems, many school systems have adopted a policy that bans cell phones on school grounds. However, some parents have provided these items out of concern for safety.

WRITING TASK
Write a letter to your principal in support or opposition to the proposed policy. Support your position with reasons, examples, facts, and/or other evidence. Convince the student council to take your position seriously.

Journal #10

2009-08-31T12:45:00.001-07:00

Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below.

To change is to risk something, making us feel insecure. Not to change is a bigger risk, though we seldom feel that way. There is no choice but to change. People, however, cannot be motivated to change from the outside. All of our motivation comes from within.
Adapted from Ward Sybouts, Planning in School Administration: A Handbook

Assignment: What motivates people to change? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.

Journal #11

2009-08-31T12:39:00.000-07:00

WRITING SITUATION
Your local public library has come under criticism for allowing patrons under the age of 18 to check out books considered unacceptable. The books are either explicit, describe graphic violence, or use questionable language. The library has proposed the creation of a list of this material and checking identification of people who want to take the books out of the library to ensure they are over 18.
You decide to write a letter to the local newspaper expressing your views on this issue.

WRITING TASK
Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper supporting or opposing the library’s proposal. Support your position with reasons, examples, facts, and/or other evidence. Convince your readers to take your position seriously.

Journal #12

2009-08-31T12:38:00.002-07:00

Think carefully about the issue presented in the following quotations and the assignment below.

1. While secrecy can be destructive, some of it is indispensable in human lives. Some control over secrecy and openness is needed in order to protect identity. Such control may be needed to guard privacy, intimacy, and friendship.
Adapted from Sissela Bok, "The Need for Secrecy"

2. Secrecy and a free, democratic government, President Harry Truman once said, don't mix. An open exchange of information is vital to the kind of informed dtizenry essential to healthy democracy.Editorial "Overzealous Secrecy Threatens Democracy"

Assignment: Do people need to keep secrets or is secrecy harmful? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations

JOURNALS DUE!!!

2009-08-31T12:36:00.003-07:00

ON ***** JOURNALS 9-12 ARE DUE!!!
***REMEMBER, YOU SHOULD HAVE IMPROVED SINCE THE LAST ENTRIES, SO DON'T RUSH THROUGH