WR 120

You will develop your abilities to:

• read a range of genres with understanding, appreciation, and critical judgment
• express yourself orally and converse thoughtfully about complex ideas
• craft responsible, considered, and well-structured written arguments
• produce clear, coherent prose in a range of genres and styles, using different media and modes of expression as appropriate
• plan, draft, and revise efficiently and effectively, and help your peers do the same by responding productively to their work
• reflect on your own reading, writing, and editing practices

Although they differ with regard to their subject content, all WR seminars share common goals and lead you through a sequence of assignments that emphasize a process of planning, drafting, and revising informed by feedback from your classmates and instructor. You will reflect on your approach to this process so that you can adapt it to future occasions. The seminar will also give you opportunities to engage in focused scholarly inquiry and conversation.

In WR 120 you will craft a series of writing assignments in multiple genres, entering into an intellectual conversation on the topic of the course. You will learn about the process of writing, from understanding and analyzing sources to organizing your ideas, responding effectively and responsibly to the ideas of others, and revising your writing for clarity and impact. You will participate in workshops and other activities designed to help you make informed rhetorical choices and communicate with an awareness of your audience.

You will be given a range of assignments in this course, including various reading and writing exercises, three major assignments (two of which will be academic papers and one a work in another genre), and a final portfolio. Much of this work will not be graded, but that does not mean it is unimportant. Students who prepare diligently for class, participate actively, and take the homework exercises and drafts seriously learn more and produce better work than those who do not.

Although all sections of WR 120 use the same assignment sequence and carry 4 credits and a First-Year Writing Seminar Hub unit, WR 120 ELL is designed for students who identify as multilingual and/or English language learners. Your WR 120 ELL instructor will help you critically analyze the linguistic and cultural aspects of college writing while exploring your course topic in a supportive environment with other multilingual students.

Essential Lessons

• Generating and Structuring an Argument through Acknowledgment and Response
• Sentences Tell Stories: A Principle of Clarity
• Standard Rhetorical Moves of Introductions
• Summary & Analysis

Major Assignments

• Assignment Sequence: WR 120
• Cumulative Portfolios in the Writing Program
• Sample WR 120 Assignment: Op-ed
• Sample WR 120 Assignment: Rewriting a Fairy Tale
• Sample WR 120/15x Assignment: Academic Paper on an Outside-of-Class Experience

Exercises & Handouts

• Advice to Students on Preparing for Oral Presentations
• Clarity Races
• Class Participation Rubric
• Close Reading Exercise
• Crafting a Template for Your Observation Notes
• Creating an Oral Presentation Rubric
• Decoding a Public Genre
• Developing Key Terms
• Dork Short Oral Presentations
• Formulating Questions and Claims Based on Observations
• Inner Critic
• Paragraph/Essay Reconstruction
• Picture Prompts for Online Classes
• Pre-Reflection for Outside-the-Classroom Experiences
• Remote Learning Expectations & Etiquette
• Strategies for Engaging with Critics
• Using Different Kinds of Sources to Analyze an Exhibit
• Visual Representation of Texts
• Write the Title First

Flipped Learning Modules

• Academic Integrity (Part 1): Avoiding Plagiarism
• Academic Integrity (Part 2): Quoting, Paraphrasing, Summarizing
• Acknowledgment and Response
• Claims
• Creating and Presenting Posters
• Creating Reader-based Prose
• Debates
• Effective Visual Presentations
• Facilitating Discussions
• Integrating Ideas from They Say/I Say into your Writing
• Integrating the Writing Center into the Writing Program
• Metacognition
• Oral Presentations
• Oral Presentations for Multilingual Students (ELL)
• Place-based Learning
• Pronunciation Priorities for Multilingual Students (ELL)
• Sentence Clarity: Characters and Actions
• Sentence Structure
• Strategies for Analysis of Text
• Style: The Secret to Becoming a Successful Writer
• Summarizing
• Writing Arguments Part 1
• Writing Arguments Part 2

Guides & Tips

• Accessible Approaches to the Writing Classroom
• Anatomy of an Assignment Sheet
• Building Your Syllabus (Syllabi Templates)
• Equity in Writing Assessment: Alternative Grading Approaches
• Faculty Guide to Teaching WR 120 and WR 15x
• Leveling the Playing Field for Class Participation
• Notes for Inclusive Syllabi: Diversity and Land Acknowledgment Statements
• Outdoor Class Meetings and Activities
• Place-Based Possibilities: Experiential Learning Ideas for WR Courses
• Planning Peer-to-Peer Work: Groups, Peer Review, & Workshops
• Responding to Multilingual Students’ Writing
• Strategies for “Challenging” Conferences and Tutoring Appointments
• Strategies for Conferences and Tutoring Appointments with English Language Learners
• Student Presentations and Strategies for Audience Engagement
• Syllabus Checklist
• Teaching the Hidden Curriculum
• Teaching with the WR Journal: Volume 10 (2018)
• Writing Program Shared Vocabulary