End-of-the-Year Journal Guidelines

It's almost that time!  Seniors...you're counting down.  Juniors...you're not too far behind them.  Now that you're all done with your reading for the class AND your portfolio, you should also be able to do your final reflection for the year and give up your journals for grading purposes.

Here's what I need from each of you as your last journal entry of the year

This should be a long journal entry.  Now that we're nearing the end of our course together, it's time for you to reflect on a number of aspects of the course.  You're doing this in your journal and therefore this is casual, informal, not graded on mechanics, and reflective in nature.  While I am part of your audience, I also hope that you will consider YOURSELF as your main audience.  I would like you to consider and write about the following aspects of the course and your learning in it:

1. What have you learned in AP Language this year?  What do you think will be the most valuable skills moving forward? What surprised you about what you learned or how you improved?
2. What are your strengths in critical reading and writing at this point?  What do you know are still weaknesses? What strategies can you use to either work on those weaknesses or make up for them?
3. Your portfolio should demonstrate your ability in each of the following areas.  Spend some time in your journal discussing your skill levels in each category and pointed to places in your portfolio that demonstrate that.  You may reference your first semester portfolio pieces for some of these requirements.

1. Successful understanding and use of claims, reasons, and qualifiers
2. Various modes to include research, persuasion, cause/effect, and rhetorical analysis
3. Use of evidence to convince, including well-used and documented secondary AND primary research
4. Variety of purpose and audience throughout the year
5. Correct MLA works cited page—at 100%
6. Multiple drafts with revision based on feedback
7. Stylistic maturity
8. Growth as a writer over the course of the year
9. Growth as a reader over the course of the year

To help you address the last bullet, you can consider items in your portfolio that show your growth as a reader but you may also compare your critical reading/understanding/depth of study with The Sound and the Fury and Beloved to where you were as a reader at the beginning of the year.  In what ways did you improve and how do you know?  Is there evidence in your journal that shows it?

Due Date:

Seniors:  I need your journal by class time on Thursday.  In other words, get it done now before work on your film project begins.

Juniors:  I need your journal by May 10.  We will only have 1st period that day (blocked day).  If you are in 2nd or 8th hour, you can turn it in early or drop it off sometime that day before 3:15.