Assignment

Drawing from your observation notes and sentences from Journal Writing Assignments 1 and 2 describe a natural object or scene in nature. Use at least one each of the clauses and phrases you studied in the unit. Also, be sure that you include one each of the four sentence types in your description. Using your knowledge from Unit 3, use action verbs and active voice, keep your verbs in the same tense, and maintain correct subject-verb agreement. Your description should consist of 9-12 sentences.
Submission deadline (your work): June 7th by 10:00pm PST
Evaluation deadline (peer review): June 12th by 10:00pm PST

Rubric

Followed the Assignment:

• 0 points: Description does not describe an object or scene in nature.
• 3 points: Sentences describe an object or scene in nature.

Adjective Clause:

• 0 points: Description does not use an adjective clause.
• 3 points: Description uses at least one adjective clause.

Adverb Clause:

• 0 points: Description does not use an adverb clause.
• 3 points: Description uses at least one adverb clause.

Noun Phrase:

• 0 points: Description does not use a noun phrase.
• 3 points: Description uses at least one noun phrase.

Verb Phrase:

• 0 points: Description does not use a verb phrase.
• 3 points: Description uses at least one verb phrase.

Active verbs, Active and Consistent Tense:

• 0 points: Description contains three or more active verb, active voice or consistent tense errors.
• 2 points: Description contains one or two active verb, active voice or consistent tense errors.
• 3 points: Description uses active verb in active voice with consistent verb tense.

Subject-Verb Agreement:

• 0 points: Description contains more than one subject-verb agreement error.
• 1 point: Description contains one subject-verb agreement error.
• 2 points: Description maintains subject-verb agreement.

 

All these days, just so busy, so didnt have time to think about the writing assignment till today. Hence, What I am going to write is not from what I have written earlier this week.

          2  SWANS
 Not far away from the hotel, there is a pond.  Two white swans, obviously a couple,  live there. They have their nest built on one side of the pond by the small bridge. Opposite to their nest, there is a  food feeder under a big tree. Every the other day, some food is placed in the feeder. Sometimes, the swans can eat up the food, but sometimes they cant. So some other birds, like  robins, ducks, and Canadian geese, always try to get some easy food whenever they see it. When the birds or the ducks come to eat the food, the swans just leave them alone, never bothering them. However, when they see the Canadian geese eating or trying to eat their food, the two swans always swim fast across the pond to chase the geese away. Maybe because the geese, who are almost the same size as the swans, are big, and the two swans regard the geese as a threat to their life?

Module 2 Writing Activity for Week 4

Module 2 Writing Activity
In your journal, continue your sentence practice with noun and verb phrases. Write at least one of each of the noun phrases discussed in the unit (prepositional phrase, absolute phrase, and appositive phrase) and at least two of each of the verb phrases (infinitive phrase and participial phrase). You will, therefore, write at least seven sentences for this journal activity. As in the first assignment, underline the phrase in each sentence and consider its function in both as a modifier and an aspect of your writing style.

prepositional phrase
The dog is playing in the back yard.

absolute phrase
The man is cooking, his eyes glazing at the meat on the stove.

appositive phrase
An unusually sweet dog, Abby likes greeting people.

infinitive phrase
1. The man checks the food every a few minute to make sure it wont get burnt.
2. The woman deadheads the flowers to make them look neat.

participial phrase
1.  Seeing the neighbor walking towards our yard, Abby barks at him.
2.  So excited to see him, Abby puts her front paws onto the gate.

Module 1 Writing Activity for Week 4

Module 1 Writing Activity
In your writing journal, begin to practice building sentences with adjective and adverbial clauses. As in Unit 3, you may find it helpful to be observing a scene while you compose sentences. Using the lists associated with each of these types of clauses, write at least three (3) sentences including adjective clauses and three (3) sentences including adverbial clauses. Underline the adjective and adverbial clauses. Consider their function in both as a modifier and an aspect of your writing style.

3 sentences including adjective clauses: (who, whom, that, which, whose, when, and where)

1. The big dog, which is running with a bone in her mouth, likes barking at people passing by their front yard.
2. The big guy, who is standing by the stove, is fixing dinner for the family.
3. He likes the house he bought 3 years ago.
4, We live in a nice neighborhood where most families have beautiful gardens.

3 sentences including adverbial clauses:
1.  He is cooking while his wife is watering the flowers in the garden.
2.  The dog stops barking and runs back onto the deck when she smells the food.
3.  The dog sits down, looking up at the man as she knows that she always get something to eat by begging like that.   
   

Week 3 Writing Assignment

Assignment

Drawing from your observation notes and sentences from Journal Writing Assignments 1 and 2, write a description of the scene you have observed. Use action verbs and active voice in your sentences. Also, keep your verbs in the same tense and maintain correct subject-verb agreement. Your description should consist of 8-10 sentences.

1. Joyce, great grandma, is sitting by the table and singing in low voice to the 10-month-old baby on her lap, with her fingers gently tapping the table.  2. On her left, the baby's sister is counting in Chinese.  3. The baby's another sister, who is about 2 years old, is standing on her toes by the table, with her little hand on the edge, stared at the cake on the table.  4. Ann Mari, the kids' aunt, is opening the box and showing the gift to her boyfriend.  5.  Matt, the kids' uncle,  is putting the plates and forks on the table.  6.  The kids' mum is moving the chair closer to the table for the kids.  7. The kids' grandma is pouring the tea she just made into a big jar. 8. The kids' grandpa is getting glasses ready for the bottle of wine, which he has saved for his daughter's graduation party. 10. Meanwhile, Bob,he great grandpa, is sitting right across the table, leaning against the back of the chair, with his eye brows frowning--you can tell that he is not feeling well.

Week 3 Journal Wring 2

Module 2 Writing Activity
In your journal, continue your observation list of the scene you observed for Unit 3, Journal Assignment 1 by noting several vivid action verbs. Revise some of your sentences using action verbs and/or write 2-3 new sentences with action verbs. Try not to use any of the forms of “to be” (is, are, was, etc.). Underline the action verbs in your sentences. Again, you will want to keep all of these sentences at hand as you do the peer reviewed writing at the end of the unit.

I think I made a list with enough  words in my last journal for me to use here.

1. Mat handed the napkins and his sister.
2. The little girl stared at the cake on the table, with her mouth half-opened .

Week 3 Journal Wring 1

Module 1 Writing Activity
Observe a scene, preferably in a crowded, busy, or public place. List the activities that you see occurring and the actors (those doing the activity). Write 5-6 sentences that use your observation list and underline the subjects of your sentences. Write a few sentences experimenting with using different types of pronouns from the tables in Unit 3. You will want to keep all of these sentences at hand as you do the writing activities for this unit.

A. persons involved: My husband and I, Ann Mari, Dug and his wife, Mat, Bob and Joyce ( grandparents),  Mat,teenager, Doug's brother and his wife, young couple, 3 kids, young man  ( I dont know for sure yet if I am going to  mention all the people in my writing )
B. activities:  stand, put, pour, take,  make, cut , sing, play, tap, stare,  move, drink, eat, open,  count, sit,  show ( I might not use all the verbs listed here )

Sentences

1. Doug's wife poured the tea into a big jar.
2. Ann Mari opened the gifts.
3. The little girl counted in Chinese from 1 to 10.
4. The little kid stared at the cake.
5. Joyce held the baby girl one her lap, tapping the table gently and sang to the baby.
6. Doug took out the red wine.

They invited us to their daughter's graduation party.
He gave her one of my photos as a gift.
She made some tea.
We sang a song before she cut the cake.
They left early.

Week 2 Writing Assignment

Assignment

Choose two of the sentences listed below to expand by adding logical additional parts of speech (nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositional phrases). Be sure that you have read the "Parts of Speech at Work" that is immediately after "Interjections." Each sentence should be at least twelve to fifteen words.

• The children play.
• The woman walks.
• The sharks swim.
• The flowers bloom.
• The wind blows.
• The computer hums.

1.  The flowers bloom.   ----->
The luxurious peonies flourish in front of the fountain, stand proudly out against the lower plants around them, and the huge flowers on each of their stems add a touch of expressive grace to this already beautiful garden.

2.  The wind blows.  ------->
Suddenly, a gust of strong wind came from nowhere, whistled loudly and strangely through the tall trees behind our old house, and scared my doggy and me.

I did this a few days ago, but I didnt submit it because I was not sure if  the sentenses were good enough. Today when I reread them, I felt I couldnt make them better, so I pasted them here.
Please dont hesitate to let me know if you have different opinions as I am going to submit it right now ( that means I wont make any changes even if I could make them better).
Thanks in advance.

Reply to Azhar's Comment

Hi Azhar,

First of all,I would like to use your words, if you dont mind, to express my appreciation of your help and encouragement: I have no words to thank you for both.

I never like/liked to write, not even in my native language. I was,however, so thankful, grateful, happy and excited when I was sitting by the table doing my assignment. I thought I should let its readers ( as it is public, though partly ) to know my feelings. So all I did was recording them in brief words. By "brief", I mean 2 things: one is that I dont have a big vocabulary; the other one I dont like writing , as I just mentioned above. In fact, I kind of enjoyed writing my first ever public journal. Yes, enjoy it when you are writing. Thats my advice if it is. 

By the way, my niece is a screenwriter. She is really great. I wish I could be like her.

Best wishes

journal writing 2 ( 2nd Assignment)---Crafting an Effective Writer

Module 1 Writing Activity
In your journal, write down a list of at least five to ten nouns and five to ten adjectives as you observe a scene at home, work, or in your community.

nouns                                                        adjectives
deck                                                           nice
sky                                                             overcast
air                                                              sweet
birds                                                          happy
flowers                                                      fragrant
trees                                                          green
dog                                                            great
rain                                                            heavy
dirt                                                             wet
spring                                                        warm

Module 2 Writing Activity
In your journal, continue your list of nouns and adjectives by adding in five to ten verbs and adverbs. Then, write a couple of sentences using your list of nouns, adjective, verbs, and adverbs.

verbs                                                         adverbs
sing                                                            happily
bloom                                                        quietly
love                                                           gently
fly                                                             quickly
rain                                                           heavily
blow                                                         deeply
run                                                            fast
bark                                                           loudly
sleep                                                         cheerfully
dance                                                        beautifully

sentences
1. The fragrant flowers are beautifully blooming.
2. The sweet dog loves me deeply.

1st Assignment

Finally, I can do my assignments after having been driven nuts for days!
Here I want to thank Kate and Azhar again for their help.
Isn't it amazing that people can help each other without having to meet or even knowing each other!

Now I am sitting on the deck and doing my work.
Its so nice outside after a few showers. Its still overcast, but not so dark. The air smell sweet after the rain. Some birds are singing happily in the trees. By the deck the roses of different red shades are dancing in the late spring breeze. They started blooming several days ago. And in front of the fountain, the peonies low their heads to the ground---the flowers are so big and so heavy that the stems cant keep them up. Roses and peonies are on the top of the list of my favorites.  And the last not the least that I want to mention is my dog . Right now, she is sleeping by my feet. She is big and sweet.She loves people. She is really great. Her name is ----Abby.


Hence,  my assignment.


Module 1 Writing Activity
In your journal, write down a list of at least five to ten nouns and five to ten adjectives as you observe a scene at home, work, or in your community.

nouns                                                               adjectives
deck                                                                 nice
sky                                                                   overcast
air                                                                    sweet
birds                                                                happy
flowers                                                            fragrant
trees                                                                green
dog                                                                 great
rain                                                                 heavy
dirt                                                                  wet
spring                                                             warm