Writing English B: Fall semester final writing assignment・後期末作文

Hello!

How are you? Here is our fall semester final writing assignment.

Tasks
For our final assignment, you can write on anything you like - an opinion paper; comparison and contrast (比較対照) short paper of a topic of your choice - something factual like an issue in the news, or a comparison of some artwork or music; an analysis (分析) of a poem of your choice; or a creative writing effort such as a short story or poem. 

Guidelines
While you have maximum freedom on this assignment, there will be one rule for whatever kind of theme or topic you choose - that is, you cannot simply do the same thing you did before.

For example, if you would like to write an analysis comparing and contrasting two works of art - they cannot be the same works of art you wrote on before. They would have to be two completely different choices of art. Same with music, or an opinion piece - the subjects, or topic, have to be different from what you did before.

Notes on task examples - comparison and contrast

I do not want to give a list of topic suggestions as I have done before, as I would really like you to explore and have the freedom to write on what you really would like. But as an example of a comparison and contrast task, here is a suggestion for a topic: Comparing and contrasting your life in high school to your life in university. 

While many of you might have had similar experiences in your high school life, I would like you to go into details. First, where did you go to high school? What were your favorite classes there? What were the classes you didn’t like? What do you feel were your best subjects? How about your worst subjects? What about the school facilities (施設) – for example, the classrooms, places for sports, or things like the school lunches? What were they like? 

How do any of these things compare (比べる) with your life here at Daito Bunka so far? What do you find about the classes in university that are different (or similar) to your high school education? Once again – go into details about these things. What has been the most difficult thing you have found so far about your university life and education – and what has been the best thing?

Notes about poetry

If you choose to try to write a poem from the notes in the first semester, this may be quite challenging - but one that may also be new, unique, and even fun for you. In this choice, write an original poem in English on any topic of your choice. It could be about yourself, about people around you, about nature, animals, or a place. 

We have seen with the poetry we have read in the first semester how words can be used in ways that are unexpected in everyday writing –  about how they can create images, and how words can be used to show meanings that may be outside the regular way we use them.

This can be very freeform - words do not have to rhyme (韻を踏まない), and you can use words to bring out different feelings - for example, to show how something is like something else, or is as something that is unexpected.  

How much to write

I would like to see you write as much as you can - go for more than what you may have done before if your assignments have been shorter. For the comparison and contrast and opinion choices, I would like you to write around 4-5 paragraphs. But do not limit yourselves - write as much as you can!

I am gathering your writing into the various books I have mentioned before in class. For poetry writing, I would like you to try to write at least three (3) verses in the poem. I am gathering these into a new collection called Ways with Words - a collection of student creative writing. 

So whichever is your choice of writing, try to write to the best you can, because your work may be published (出版した) on both the blog and in these books!

Deadline (締め切り) 

It will be in the new year, on our last day of class, on January 15th, 2020 (1/15/20), and it will be a final version (完成版). This means you should begin writing now – do not wait until the day or night before! 

Good luck! I hope you can enjoy writing on your choices. 

Image: Personal photograph of public artwork along wall, Nakano-ku, Tokyo. All rights on artwork reserved to the artist. 

Writing English B: Fall semester final writing assignment・後期末作文

Hello!

How are you? Here is our fall semester final writing assignment.

Tasks
For our final assignment, you can write on anything you like - an opinion paper; comparison and contrast (比較対照) short paper of a topic of your choice - something factual like an issue in the news, or a comparison of some artwork or music; an analysis (分析) of a poem of your choice; or a creative writing effort such as a short story or poem. 

Guidelines
While you have maximum freedom on this assignment, there will be one rule for whatever kind of theme or topic you choose - that is, you cannot simply do the same thing you did before.

For example, if you would like to write an analysis comparing and contrasting two works of art - they cannot be the same works of art you wrote on before. They would have to be two completely different choices of art. Same with music, or an opinion piece - the subjects, or topic, have to be different from what you did before.

Notes on task examples - comparison and contrast

I do not want to give a list of topic suggestions as I have done before, as I would really like you to explore and have the freedom to write on what you really would like. But as an example of a comparison and contrast task, here is a suggestion for a topic: Comparing and contrasting your life in high school to your life in university. 

While many of you might have had similar experiences in your high school life, I would like you to go into details. First, where did you go to high school? What were your favorite classes there? What were the classes you didn’t like? What do you feel were your best subjects? How about your worst subjects? What about the school facilities (施設) – for example, the classrooms, places for sports, or things like the school lunches? What were they like? 

How do any of these things compare (比べる) with your life here at Daito Bunka so far? What do you find about the classes in university that are different (or similar) to your high school education? Once again – go into details about these things. What has been the most difficult thing you have found so far about your university life and education – and what has been the best thing?

Notes about poetry

If you choose to try to write a poem from the notes in the first semester, this may be quite challenging - but one that may also be new, unique, and even fun for you. In this choice, write an original poem in English on any topic of your choice. It could be about yourself, about people around you, about nature, animals, or a place. 

We have seen with the poetry we have read in the first semester how words can be used in ways that are unexpected in everyday writing –  about how they can create images, and how words can be used to show meanings that may be outside the regular way we use them.

This can be very freeform - words do not have to rhyme (韻を踏まない), and you can use words to bring out different feelings - for example, to show how something is like something else, or is as something that is unexpected.  

How much to write

I would like to see you write as much as you can - go for more than what you may have done before if your assignments have been shorter. For the comparison and contrast and opinion choices, I would like you to write around 4-5 paragraphs. But do not limit yourselves - write as much as you can!

I am gathering your writing into the various books I have mentioned before in class. For poetry writing, I would like you to try to write at least three (3) verses in the poem. I am gathering these into a new collection called Ways with Words - a collection of student creative writing. 

So whichever is your choice of writing, try to write to the best you can, because your work may be published (出版した) on both the blog and in these books!

Deadline (締め切り) 

It will be in the new year, on our last day of class, on January 15th, 2020 (1/15/20), and it will be a final version (完成版). This means you should begin writing now – do not wait until the day or night before! 

Good luck! I hope you can enjoy writing on your choices. 

Image: Personal photograph of public artwork along wall, Nakano-ku, Tokyo. All rights on artwork reserved to the artist. 

Writing English A: Spring semester final writing assignment・前期末作文

Hello!

How are you? Here is our spring semester final writing assignment (前期末作文) - writing an analysis of a poem.

Topic
I will post here links for two (2) different poems - "Jaguar" by Francisco Alarcon, and "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost.

Read both poems - then choose the one (1) that you like the most.

To read the poem "Jaguar" by Francisco Alarcon, click on this link here.
To read the poem "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost, click on this link here.

These poems are very different from each another, but each one has rich, and unexpected, things in them. So for whichever poem you choose, write about these points:

• A general background to the poem (for example, in the case of “Jaguar,” an animal in a zoo, with some explanation as to why or how you believe the animal got there)
• The kinds of metaphors (隠喩) or other images shown by the words
• A surprising point or some unexpected image, or use of a word or some words, in the poem
• Your idea of a bigger or hidden theme, issue, or story that the poem hints at
• What you think or feel about the poem – if and how you liked it (or – this is okay – if and how you did not like it)

I am gathering writing on these topics into a book called Words on Words - this is a book about student analysis and opinions on poetry, stories, and other literature. The best of your writing on this topic could go into this book, so write to the best you can! 

How much to write

I would like you to write as much as you can, because your work may be published (出版した) on both this blog and in the Words on Words book. I would like to see maybe 3-4 paragraphs' worth of writing. 

Deadline (締め切り)

It will be July 17th (7/17), by the end of class. 


Here are the board notes for our class on 7/3:

Good luck! I look forward to reading your great writing!

Take care!

Images: Top - by Katie Chan - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=41882238/Bottom - by Famartin - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=47766834

Writing English A: Literary circles questions for "All Along the Watchtower"・文学的なディスカションの質問「見張り塔からずっと」

Hello! 

How are you? Here are the literary circles leader questions for "All Along the Watchtower."

I decided to make this a separate post, as it would've made the blogpost before this one with the pictures too long.

About literary circles 
What is a literary circle? It's a small group short study and discussion about a piece of literature (文学) - where people get together and read and study, then talk about the meanings and feelings, of a short story or a poem the groups has read together. 

Literary circles can be made longer to include study and discussions over many meetings about novels. We don't have time for that! But we can read together, study a little, and talk about the meaning and our feelings and understanding of a poem - in this case, the words to one of Bob Dylan's most famous songs, "All Along the Watchtower." 

We won't listen to the song, though if you want, you can search it out yourself on YouTube.  

How literary circles work
Literary circles usually have four (4) members. Each person in the circle has a job to do. Each circle has a leader who helps the other groups members stay on task, and helps them if they need it. 

Each group has a summarizer, who writes a short summary (要約) about the story or poem being studied. 

Each group also has a details master, who answers questions that the leader shows to him or her. The details master then writes answers to the questions in his or her own words. 

Finally, each group also has a vocabulary master. The vocabulary master writes meanings, in his or her own understanding, to a list of words the leader will show. He or she tries to make his or her own meanings without a dictionary, though for any difficulty he or she can ask the leader for help, and use a dictionary if the vocabulary master really needs it.

In groups with only three (3) members, the leader will have two (2) jobs - he or she will also be the vocabulary master.  

So are you ready? Let's begin!

Leader questions about "All Along the Watchtower"
First question for every member of the group: Who are the two (2) main characters in the poem?  

For the summarizer

Are you ready to summarize the poem? (Can you read to us your summary of the poem?)

For the detail master

1. What is the feeling of the joker?

2. What was the thief’s reply?

3. Who else was along the watchtower when they spoke?
4. What did they see and get a feeling about outside the watchtower?

(Leaders - think of two (2) more questions of your own from the poem to ask the details master!)

For the vocabulary master

1. What is confusion?

2. What does a plowman do?

3. What is a servant?

4. What does approaching something mean?

(Leaders - think of two (2) more words of your own from the poem to ask the vocabulary master!)

Final question for every member of the group: What kind of situation are they in? What do you think may happen next?  

I hope this helps you to understand and enjoy the words to this song. 

Take care!

Image: Cropped version of photograph originally by Matson Collection - Library of CongressCatalog: https://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/matpc/item/mpc2010004316/PPOriginal url: https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/matpc.18827, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=67311769