FINAL WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR GRADE IN THIS CLASS

The goal of the class is to improve your writing. In doing so, you can also improve your grade. Here's how:

1. With respect to your final paper (the one on the endangered species), you may rewrite it this weekend. Please attach your original to your rewrite and give it to me FIRST THING on Monday morning.

2. With respect to the last writing on The Perfect Storm, you may rewrite this as well. Again it is due attached to the original FIRST THING on Monday morning. Persons who rewrite should pay attention to perspective, to completeness, to accuracy of information, and to grammar (especially verb forms).

3. On Wednesday next week we will have our last in-class writing. Here is the topic of that writing:

On p. 122 of the book Cod by Mark Kurlansky, Thomas Huxley is quoted as having dismissed the idea of that overfishing is possible with the following explanation: "Any tendency to over-fishing will meet with the natural check in the diminution of the supply . . . this check will always come into operation long before anything like permanent exhaustion has occurred." This idea about overfishing has also been applied, at various times, to ideas about overhunting of terrestrial animals as well.

Respond to this quote using information and evidence from three sources: Cod, The Perfect Storm, and the paper you wrote in this class. In your paper, I want you to:

1. Write an introduction in which you basically use the question as the first paragraph.
2. Write a clear thesis of response to this.
3. Present solid information of support for your thesis. Your information should be well paragraphed and well cited and paraphrased.
4. Write a reference at the end of the paper (APA style) for any source that you use.

You may bring your books and sources and an outline as follows:

The outline may include your whole thesis statement, topic sentences for each paragraph, a list of facts you want to use in each paragraph (not in sentence form) , AS WELL AS YOUR completely written conclusion and references. HOWEVER, the outline may not be more than one side of one page and it must be typed.

4. On Friday of next week, I'm going to offer a chance to do a final in-class. This is a 15 point make up and replaces a low fifteen point inclass book quiz. The actual topic will be given (via blog) on Thursday night at 9 p.m. You can decide for yourself if you want to do this.

On Thursday next week, we will have roll book/grade meetings in my office.