Journal Topics 11th grade
Writing is an important channel of communication. Academic writing requires practice and grammatical understanding. In order to build writing skills, we will periodically complete typed journal responses. The goal is to develop your ability to have solid and specific content, as well as to utilize standardized academic writing techniques (MLA, spelling, grammar, transitions, vocabulary, etc…)
NOTE: ALL JOURNAL RESPONSE ACTIVITIES ARE TIMED; THEREFORE RESPONSES ARE DUE AT THE END OF CLASS!!!
Assignment: complete the listed steps 1. Select a prompt 2. Open a word document and save it to your H-drive 3. Change the Margins to 1 inch (all sides) to change margins go to File – Page Set-up – Margins 4. Add a pagination; to add pagination go to View – Header – type your last name – right align – click the # symbol 5. Type your selected prompt and center it as the title 6. Left Align your cursor and begin your written response 7. Your response must be AT LEAST one typed page in length (double spaced; Times New Roman) 8. Your response must AT LEAST have 3 distinct paragraphs (Intro, Body, Close) 9. Use spell-check 10. Proofread 11. Use the synonym feature to vary word choice and elevate vocabulary usage
Helpful Proofreading Links: (OWL) Purdue University Online Writing Center @ http://owl.english.purdue.edu/
Harvard University Writing Resources@ http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~wricntr/resources.html
Berkley University Writing Resources @ http://writing.berkeley.edu/writing- resources/off-campus
Journal Topics (Select a Topic) 1. Write about something(s) you would like to achieve/do/accomplish before graduating high school.
2. How can “good” be distinguished from “evil”? What are some good and evil things, actions, people?
3. How do you want to be similar to and/or different from some adults you know now, when you become an adult?
4. What is worth living for? What, if anything, is worth dying for? How did you come to believe this?
5. When are you happiest?
6. Write about something you do well.
7. What do you think about when you can’t fall asleep? 8. What would happen if there were no televisions, cell phones, or computers? What would be good and bad about this?
9. What would you do if you found a magic wand?
10. What are some of humankind’s best ideas? Which of our ideas would we be better off forgetting? How do you decide?
11. What have been the most important changes in the past ten years? twenty years? last year? last month? What will the most important changes be in the next year? next fifty years?
12. Who do you think has the most important things to say? who are they speaking to? Why are these things important?
13. Who is saying the most dangerous things today? Who are they speaking to? What is dangerous about these things?
14. What are the five best movies you've seen? What is good about them? What are the five worst movies you've seen? What is bad about them?
15. Write about a time when you helped someone out who needed your help or about a time someone helped you out when you really needed help.
16. Freewrite (express yourself through writing: something you want to talk about; creative story, etc.. the choice is yours!)
17. Write about a time when there was not enough time.
18. What is difficult about being a teenager today?
19. What sort of changes would you like to see in government, for instance in policies and procedures?
20. The best thing about my family is...
21. Who and what do you think is phony and who or what is/are genuine and real?
22. Something I could teach someone else is...
23. What annoys you?
24. Do you have any responsibility or incentive to help others who need help? To what extent should charity of any kind be encouraged or enforced? How does helping others help you (or does it?)?
25. Is your life better now than it was five years ago? Will it be better five years in the future than it is now? How so?
26. What are you thankful for?
27. Write a letter of recommendation for a friend.
28. What is the nicest thing you've ever done? 29. What are your five favorite songs? Do you have any particular memories associated with these songs?
30. Write about a time you learned something that you felt was important.
31. Write about bullying in history, literature, and entertainment. Why do people bully? What's their problem? Is there anything positive about any of the character traits of bullies?
32. Write about freedom. What are you free to do and what aren't you free to do in any given situation? What freedoms do you enjoy the most? What are some freedoms you wish you had?
33. Why are people nicer to each other (more charitable/helpful/giving) during holidays than at other times? Why couldn't we just be nice all the time?
34. How do you feel about the possible extension of Bush-era tax cuts and/or the possible repeal of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy?
35. Write a creative story (select a genre and be creative!)
36. Pretend you are an alien anthropologist. You do not understand spoken or written human language, so you can only know about us from observation. What do humans do that seems the most strange to you?
37. What are your favorite sayings/ quotations? How do they speak to you and for you?
38. Freewrite.
39. What freedoms/rights would you be willing to fight for?
40. What are the best and worst things that have ever happened to you?
41. Invent a new sandwich. Describe the process by which you make it, market it, and sell millions!
42. Who are your role models? What made you choose them?
43. Who or what makes you laugh?
44. Write about a time you lost something important.
45. You jump into a "wormhole." Where do you end up? What do you do there?
46. What is going on at the end of Inception? If you haven't seen it, make up an ending, or write about a time you were confused by a movie or a story.
47. Write about something crazy/funny/weird that you did to try and impress someone else (did it work?).
48. Write about a time someone did something that irritated you.
49. Is Bill Gates (or choose another celebrity) "smart"? Why do you think so? Are you “smart”? Why do you think so?
50. What was the greatest conflict in human history? Why do you think so? 51. What has been your proudest accomplishment?
52. Write a letter to the president.
53. Who is the best recording artist(s) of all time? Why?
54. Does the U.S. have an obligation to intercede in foreign affairs to prevent widespread human suffering?
55. Describe a memorable moment involving a pet or other animal.
56. What are your plans for spring break or this summer vacation?
57. When I am scared I...
58. If you could change three things about your life what would they be?
59. I do my best when...
60. Freewrite.
61. What's the weirdest thing that's happened to you?
62. As a friend, I can be counted on to...
63. Write about a time you or someone you know got hurt. Why did it happen? How do you (they) deal with it?
64. A quality in others I admire is...