Literary Letter Due Dates and Instructions

In case you have forgotten, here are the due dates for all literary letters due in the first semester:

September 28, 2009
October 13, 2009
November 3, 2009
December 8, 2009
January 12, 2010
February 9, 2010

As well, here are the instructions that were given on your literary letter handout:
Your “Literary Letters” blog provides a place for you, me, and your friends to talk about authors, poets, books, poems, reading, etc. You’ll be chatting about literature to your friends and me; we’ll write comments back to you. They should be arranged chronologically as an orderly record of the thinking, reading, and learning we do together.

In order to give you some ideas of what to talk about, you can tell us about what you’ve read, what you’ve noticed, and what you’ve thought, and felt and explain why. Tell how you read and why. Tell what these books and poems said and meant to you. Ask questions or ask for help and write back about ideas, feelings, experiences, and questions. Find a different focus for each response. If you write about a character in a blog entry, write about something else in you next entry. Write on a variety of impressions and concerns. Initial entries and responses must be at least one 200-250 words in length.

Date your entries in the beginning of each post. Mention the title of the book you’re talking about, and since the proper way to indicate the title of a book is to capitalize and underline it (e.g. The Hobbit or Cold Sassy Tree), pleases capitalize and underline titles of the books you reference.

When you have finished reading a novel be sure to rate the book you’ve just read in a blog post. The grade should be A, B, C, D, or F depending on your enjoyment of the novel. This should help other students who are searching for a book to read.

Your collection of blog entries will provide one major grade. Following the procedures outlined above, write often and correspond about your thoughts on literature with involvement and care, and you’ll do well. Do not write plot summaries; go beyond that.

I look forward to reading and commenting on your posts. I can’t wait to learn with you, to learn from you, and to help you learn more.

Ms. Duester

Literary Letter #1

Welcome Grade 10’s. This year we’ll be doing our literary letters as blog posts. Make sure to read what other people are writing. Who knows! You might learn about a book you’d love to read. Remember, your literary letters are an interaction with the book you are reading. Don’t retell the story, and don’t tell us the ending! Your first blog is due September 15th. Let the journey begin!

p.s. your blog post should be at least 250 words.