Relates a two-part writing assignment for the study of poetry, in which students are assigned to write a critique in response to a particular question and are then asked to give a personal response. (TJ)

Presents an exercise in descriptive writing that shows how to take a subjective statement and support or deny it using a common body of factual observations. (PA)

Describes a method for teaching composition which develops students' intellectual and literary skills. (RB)

Describes an assignment for high school or college literature classes in which students focus on a particular character, answer a list of questions about that character, and eventually write an imagined yet realistic dialog with that character. Notes that this helps students grasp a character's complexity and depth. (SR)

Offers a writing exercise intended for college English classes, which offers a hypothetical case to be considered (along with directions for papers and additional leads) that prompts students to consider ceremonial uses of language (such as the "Pledge of Allegiance") and various issues related to it. (SR)

Encourages students to attempt to capture the voice of established poets in parodies. Notes that this close interaction with literature allows the students to gain a deeper appreciation and understanding of literary styles. Presents two student parodies of William Wordsworth's "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud." (RS)

Describes how creating a poem that focuses on memory, understanding, and emotion can lead to the construction of a meditative poem. States that poetry of meditation can be modified for use in almost any writing or literature classroom environment. (PA)

Describes a writing assignment in which students read only the first two paragraphs of Charles Dickens's novel "A Tale of Two Cities" and then, after some brainstorming and prewriting, write a paragraph or two modeled on those, explaining the confusion and turmoil of the present day. Notes how Dickens's expressions become more familiar…

Describes three assignments the author uses when teaching Chaucer (suitable for college or college prep high school classes) in which students learn what iambic pentameter is by writing two rhyming couplets, a ten-line conversation in rhyming couplets, and a creative project of at least 25 rhyming couplets, all in iambic pentameter. (SR)

Provides an assignment for a business communication or a public speaking course from junior high to college level. States a minimum of three oral presentations are necessary for the assignment encompassing an announcement of the awards competition, the voting process and incentives for winning an award, and the ceremony held on the last day of…

Presents a simple writing assignment, composing an anthology, in which students have some control over their learning and gain confidence, enabling them to approach class discussions with more personal involvement and leading them to find more for themselves in poetry. (RAE)

Demonstrates how grading students journal can be made easier by making the journals goal-oriented, such as using them as the basis for exams. Suggests that journal assignments can involve more complex learning tasks such as analyzing, interpreting, and applying course materials in specific ways. (PA)

Describes ways in which freshman composition classes can be made more interesting, such as the use of cliche analysis. Defines cliche, and provides some appropriate examples for classroom use. (PA)

Aims to teach students how to merge the realms of creativity and analysis by using metaphors. Presents various activities to develop metaphorical thinking and writing skills. (PA)

Describes an assignment in which students interview businesses to learn about the kinds of writing done in that business and then assess the rhetorical context of such writing. (SR)