Aoyama Gakuin - IE3 Writing - Elvin

Dear students, If you wish to discover your level for task 2 writing, here is a copy of the bandscale descriptors: IELTS task 2 bandscale descriptors When you receive your practice essay next week, please take compare your score with the descriptors. Kind regards, Chris Elvin

Dear students, Today you will have a practice IELTS test. This time, you have time to think and plan your essay in advance. However, for your final test, you will not know the question in advance. Kind regards, Chris Elvin Test question: You should spend about 40 minutes on this task. Tests and examinations are a central feature of school systems in many countries. Do you think the educational benefits of testing outweigh any disadvantages? Give reasons for your answer, and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. You should write at least 250 words.

Dear students, Today you will read your pair persuasion essay homework (three paragraphs each) to another pair. Let me read it, too. If it is good, you may work on your homework assignment essays in class (your twenty-point classification and twenty-point persuasion essays). These essays should be between 400 and 500 words, and they should both have at least three in-text citation markers and three mathcing references in the Works Cited. If you show me your drafts, I will offer advice. Kind regards, Chris Elvin

Dear students, Today you will read your group persuasion essays that you were working on last week. After that, please start a new persuasion essay in pairs. This time, please follow the outline closely. Show me the outline first, and then write your essay. Kind regards. Chris Elvin Persuasive Essay Outline Introduction: A. Get the readers attention by using a "hook." B. Give some background information if necessary. C. Thesis or focus statement. I. First argument or reason to support your position: A. Topic sentence explaining your point and reason B. Possible concession toward opposing argument C. Elaboration to back your point. D. Clincher II. Second argument or reason to support your position: A. Topic sentence explaining your point and reason B. Possible concession toward opposing argument C. Elaboration to back your point. D. Clincher III. Third argument or reason to support your position: A. Topic sentence explaining your point and reason B. Possible concession to

Dear students, Today you will look at the downloads that I posted to the blog last week, one of which is an exercise (MLA citation). After that you will write a persuasion essay in groups, and at the same time I will go over your classification essays from last week with you individually. If your score is not at least 17 points, you will have to edit it and hand it in again. Kind regards, Chris Elvin

Dear students, Today you will take the mid-term test again in small groups. As a group you should classify either books, magazines, movies, or music. You should; 1) draw a map 2) write a title 3) write a thesis statement in your introduction 4) write in paragraphs 5) write three intext citation markers 6) write three references in your `Works Cited` which match your intext citation markers. (This was worth ten points last week.) Finally, you should: A) write about and complet the task (a classification essay of over 250 words). B) write with good grammar C) write with good words D) write with good cohesion and coherence (This was also worth ten points in your mid-term test.) There are also two worksheets that you should download, print, and bring to class: MLA works cited exercise:  http://www.eflclub.com/aogaku/ie3/MLA.pdf MLA in-text citation exercise: http://www.eflclub.com/aogaku/ie3/MLA_citation_exercise.pdf Kind regards, Chris Elvin

Dear students, Today is your mid-term test which is worth 20 points. You will be asked to classify something chosen by the teacher on the day. You should write more than 250 words. Ten points will be awarded for the following: map, title, paragraph shape, thesis statement, and three MLA in-text citations (3) with their corresponding MLA references in the Works Cited (3). The other ten points will be awarded for your writing ability; task completion, cohesion and coherence, grammar range and accuracy, and vocabulary (2.5 points each). In order to complete this test, you will need to have access to the Internet. Good luck! Chris Elvin

Dear students, Today you will start learning about persuasive writing. There are three model essays in the textbook that we will look at. If you don't have a book download here: http://www.eflclub.com/aogaku/ie3/modelpersuasion.pdf Please also download a guide to help you write your persuasion essay: http://www.eflclub.com/aogaku/ie3/persuasionessay.pdf Kind regards, Chris Elvin

Dear students, This week you should have started work on Assignment 1, the classification of an author`s works. You should first draw your outline and then write your essay. It should be between 400 and 500 words, and it should contain at least one summary, one paraphrase, and one quotation. All of these should be accompanied by intext citation markers in MLA format. At the end of your essay,  you should include a `Works Cited` which lists the source of your citations. Your `Works Cited` should also by formatted in MLA. Finally, please count your words and write this on your paper. Today, you will do some exercises in the textbook before you begin learning about persuasive writing. Kind regards, Chris Elvin

Dear students, Today you should come to class with your group homework finished. Your book classification essay should include a title, correctly formatted paragraphs, a map or outline, thesis statement, and have at least one summary, one paraphrase, and one quotation. Each of these intext citations should be MLA formatted (author only, or author and page number) and be referenced in your Works Cited. This should also be MLA formatted (family name, first name. title. publishing city: publisher. year.). You should also include a word count for each person (150-250 words each). After reading your essay to other groups, your teacher will check it. Remember to keep all classwork and homework in a folder for submission in July. In today`s lesson, you will classify an author`s works, so please come to class prepared. Kind regards, Chris Elvin

Dear students, For homework, please write definitions of the following words or phrases: a) paraphrase; b) summary; c) in-text citation; What is the purpose of in-text citations? If you forget to use in-text citations in your essay, how might that cause a problem? d) works cited; Give an example in MLA style. On April 28th you will work in groups to classify books, or a genre or sub-genre of books. You will need to give examples in your essay. Kind regards, Chris Elvin

Dear students, Today you will read your classification essays in class. You will also paraphrase and summarise, so please bring an English book to class that you would like to use. Kind regards, Chris Elvin

IEIII – Integrated English – Writing Spring 2015 Instructor:               Chris Elvin Blog:                      www.ie3elvin.blogspot.jp Course Description Welcome to Integrated English III. This class is designed to accomplish the following: i) Write classification essays. ii) Write persuasion essays. iii) Use direct and indirect quotations. iv) Paraphrase and summarize. v) Use MLA style to cite sources and compile bibliographies. Your topics are i) relationships, ii) cross-cultural values, iii) the environment, and iv) media. Course Assessment and Grading Criteria a)         10%      Attendance b)         10%      Participation c)         20%      Mid-term assessment d)         20%      Classification essay e)         20%      Persuasion essay f)          20%      Final in-class essay Attendance : You are expected to attend ALL classes. Your first two absences will be penalized by one drop in grade. Your third and fourth absenc