Journal Guidelines

 

Response Journal Guidelines

 

You will need two stitched binding composition books for this class.

 

Honors classes must use college ruled composition books.

 

One composition book will be used for reader responses, the other for a vocabulary journal.

 

Reader’s Response Journals

 

You will complete a Reader's Response journal entry after every short story or assigned reading selection from the textbook, every chapter from an assigned novel, every act of a play, and every outside reading book you complete for this class.  It will follow the guidelines stated below and will include your response to the selection you have read. 

 

All reader's response journal entries must be dated and numbered sequentially. Include the title of the short story you are responding to at the top of the page. If you are responding to a book, include the book title and the chapter. Use normal print. Using large print, or putting huge gaps between your words, just for the sake of filling up the page, will result in a massive point reduction.  Each entry must be at least one full page in length with no more than two blank lines remaining on the page in order to receive credit.  Do not use profanity.  Do not include any information which you are not willing to share as you may be called upon to present your journal to the class.  Do not use texting short cuts in your journals, or for any other class assignment. Keep it clean. Always use school appropriate language. Always use proper English. This is, after all, an English class.

 

Consider the following questions when writing a reader’s response journal entry: How did the story make you feel? What did you think of the characters and their motivations?  Would you have written the story differently and why? What would you have done in that situation? I do not need or want to see a summary of the story. I already know what happened.  I want to see your thoughts and reactions.  I want to see analysis and insight.

 

Non-fiction Article Response Journals

 

Non-fiction article response journal entries, which will often be completed on the first day of the week, must be a minimum of two pages in length and consist of a one-page objective summary and a one-page subjective response to a news article acquired over the weekend.

 

We will cover what is expected in an objective summary and subjective response early in the class.

 

This article may come from a recent newspaper, magazine, or may be a recent article from a reliable internet source. Now that all students are provided with Chromebooks, you may simply bookmark your article over the weekend and pull it up in class.

 

You must include a full citation at the top of every non-fiction article response. You may use the MLA or APA format for this purpose.

 

This is a standing assignment for each and every weekend unless otherwise stated in class.

 

Articles must be long enough to allow you to compose a one page objective summary. You cannot write a one page objective summary for an article that is only half a page in length.

 

Articles must be recent. Newspaper and internet articles may be no more than two weeks old. Magazine articles may be no more than two months old.  You may use older material if it is not related to current events, examples include movie or book reviews, video game reviews, a travel brochure or a how to guide.

 

Consider these questions when writing a response to a non-fiction article: How does the information in the article relate to your life and experiences? How might the subject matter affect your future? What is your emotional response to the information presented in your chosen article?

 

These will be kept in the same composition book as your reader response journals and will be numbered and dated sequentially as well.

 

Journals will be taken up and checked at least twice during each nine-week grading period, usually at the middle and end of the grading period. The final journal check for each nine week grading period will count as a project grade.

 

For those of you taking the course online, you will be required to type your journal responses and turn them in to me, in document form, through Google Classroom. You will turn in a reader’s response after each short story we read in class, and an article response will be due each Monday during the class. This does not apply to those of you who are quarantined. Quarantined students will complete responses in your composition books to be turned in after you return to school.

 

Vocabulary Journal

 

You will also maintain a second composition book, for use as a vocabulary journal, into which you will place any vocabulary lessons completed in class. You will use this journal to study for your vocabulary tests.

 

You will also be required to define literary terminology for each unit completed in class and this journal will be a good place to keep track of those assignments.

 

Story Words

 

You will keep a running list of new vocabulary words, introduced with each story or selection from your textbook, in the back of your vocabulary journal. Start the “Story Word” list on the back page of your vocabulary journal and work your way forward. (These words will be highlighted in blue throughout the story and the definitions can be found in the margins of your book.) Write the title for the story, list each word below the title, and write its definition out beside the word. Number these, and add to this sequential list, after you read each story. For example, one through ten may come from the first story we read in class and eleven through fifteen from the second story. Some stories may have only a few words to add to this list, others will have many.  These words usually show up on literature tests and quizzes.

 

Word Bank

 

In the back of this vocabulary journal you will also keep a record, or word bank, of any words you encounter throughout the course of this class that you do not know and that are not included in the “story words.”

 

These words may come from any source; from the novels, stories, and textbooks you are required to read in each class, from the non-fiction articles you are required to read and analyze for this class, and the terminology you encounter during your research projects. You may also find words to add during your personal pursuits or from work completed for other classes. If you encounter a new word on TikTok or Youtube, you can add that to the list as well.

 

Any difficult or unknown word, from any source you read, may be added to this list. You are expected to add a minimum of ten words per week, but you may add as many as you like. These words will not be tested but keeping this list will help to improve your vocabulary. You will receive a grade for maintaining the word bank itself. You must list each word and write a definition for it in order to receive credit.

(Word Bank may not be required in call classes)