I hope you all really, really, REALLY READ the letter I just sent.
I've already had correspondence with a handful of students who didn't really, really, REALLY READ a few things in the syllabus, etc.
I didn't create a novel disguised as a syllabus, so yeah.
JUST READ IT.
I should make a t-shirt that states that.
It's such a place of annoyance for me - with students AND faculty. Ugh.

In my giddiest daydream about how my teaching can affect students, I dream that they see writing as fun and not something they are incapable of. In addition to that, I dream that they find a book, an author, that they look forward to reading every day or every week. In that goosebump-induced dream, I don't even care if they only like to write erotic poetry or read about serial killers or research anarchy. The dream doesn't even include them putting down the Crackberry or logging off Facebook; it's just an addition to their lives. They read The Onion, perhaps, via Facebook and laugh. They read from a slang dictionary to their friends over lunch. It doesn't have to be boring, and it doesn't have to be appropriate. Language and books and writing spans too many genres and generations to limit what I want them to do, love, and learn.

Just writing that made my day start off ... on a lighter note.

TORTURE.
Online students need to read my emails. And before handing in their papers, they should double-check the paper's handout and the Ruby Rubric.
TRUE STORY.

 
[Found the above quote here.]

Click on this link to see what we did during the last class time, (which was Monday).
Today, Wednesday, we'll hand in the My Words. From there, I'll explain the activities for today. We'll be READING (using Activity #4 below) & summarize each page in 2+ sentences (10pts) and then play around with 10 more GRAMMAR TERMS (Activity #1 below). We'll staple the READING SUMMARIES and 20 GRAMMAR TERMS together. All this is due at the end of class time. Please use any additional time to work on P3. For the next class time, please try out Activities #2, #3 and #5. Bring some sort of evidence to class that you played with those web sites.

Possible Activity #1: GRAMMATICAL TERMS. Head to this site & pick 10 grammar terms. Copy and paste the ten terms you plan to use into a Word document. Create your own sentences using those terms. [10-20pts?]
Possible Activity #2: Head to - http://www.grammaropolis.com/ = Games = Word Sort + Fun Quiz.
Possible Activity #3: Head to - http://www.grammarphile.com/ = Look at 10 entries? Summarize what you find.
Possible Activity #4: READINGS. The Oatmeal - Misspelling, Semicolons, Apostrophes, and Using I.E. in a sentence. Read read read!
Possible Activity #5: Head to - http://englishplus.com/grammar/ and read the parts.
Possible Activity #6: MISTAKES. Head to this site and create a sentence with each of the errors. Then fix them. [2pts x 12 sentences = 24pts + 1pt for name? = 25pts.]
Possible Activity #7: CLICHES. Head to this site and click through the cliches (or go here for a huge list). Find 5 and use them in a sentence. Then create 5 of your own unique cliches. [10-20pts.]

Two Days Late and Half Off.
[our trivia name last night]
The bf gave me The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy last night as my Valentine's gift (among chocolates, etc.)...
that got us/me thinking of other "classics" I'd like to read:
The Grapes of Wrath
A Wrinkle in Time
Lord of the Flies
War of the Worlds
Slaughterhouse 5
Him = The 3rd Policeman

I told him that I'll start on Hitchhiker's once I wrap up David's book.
Then I may have to read Klosterman's other fictional piece - Eating the Dinosaur.
p.s. We talked about the TV show Lost and how they used a lot of stuff from Alice In Wonderland; that got me thinking = what if I assigned that book in English 110. Students could dig into the pop culture pieces that use that book?

List Idea from galadarling.com.
2010, What I Did:
Turned 33 on a very blizzardy day /// Attempted to by a house /// Put my feet in the Gulf (I've had 'em in the Atlantic, Pacific, and now the Gulf) /// Had an authentic taco at a lil' stand in Houston /// Went to a wedding on a cruise ship /// Stayed at the awesome Chase on the Lake hotel in Walker, MN /// Saw Cinderella play as well as Johnny Lang and Lynryd Skynryd /// Wrote a Chuck Klosterman chapter /// Applied for a Ph.D. program /// Presented at GPACW about online teaching tips /// Went to a family reunion at Chahinkapa Park (stopped in at the zoo, too)  /// Watched my "second" brother get married in Duluth at a haunted mansion /// Played trivia at Prantes /// Sang karaoke w/Arielle on her birthday /// Met Sir Ken Robinson! ///
2010, Where I Went:
Galveston, TX /// Moondance Jam in Walker, MN /// Des Moines, IA for TYCA /// Downtown Mpls for TIES /// Duluth, MN ///
2010, Top Five Purchases:
Sorels w/Christmas 2009 money /// Under Armour tops and pants /// Smart wool sox /// Various skinny jeans/jeggings from The Gap /// Grey cardigan from Marshall's ///
2010, Obsessions:
Goldfish crackers /// Coke Zero /// Pepsi Max /// Boots /// Non-black items integrated into clothing ///
2010, Best Thing(s) I Did For Myself:
Participated in both Biggest Loser Challenges on campus /// Instead of sending out holiday postcards, I gave to charities ///
2010, Best Meal:
Crab legs December 12th ///
2010, Loveliest Gift:
Tie between the tripod (from bf's parents) + an iPod (from parents) + money from grandparents ///
2010, Favorite Facebook Statuses:
"She thought she would someday die in a car wreck or from cancer, but it'll probably be from a digestive meltdown due to buffalo sauce." /// "She is proud of her boyfriend's letter-to-the editor; he writes so well." /// "You can't keep blaming yourself. Blame yourself once and move on." - Homer Simpson /// "She is downloading podcasts for her new iPod (thnx ma&pa); she's gonna stuff herself so full of knowledge, her snot will have ideas." /// "She told a student who was texting in class that unless Jesus was on the other end, she'd better put it away." /// "She is honest and blasphemous and violent. All on short notice." /// "F-Bombs make you live longer." - Kathy Griffin /// "There is only one person you have anything to prove to." - Me ///
2011, Goals:
Run a half marathon (in May or October) /// Get tenured /// Read 2 books a month = 24 books by the end of 2011 /// New family member = new star tattoo /// Test out some new classroom stuff ///

From Shelby's paper -
Ten Ways to Boost Your Creativity:  
To facilitate your personal development and self growth, here are some creativity tips you can use to resurrect, refresh and enhance your creative faculties:
1. Look after yourself. Sleep well, eat well, do what you enjoy and do it more often. Creativity is reduced when your senses are dulled.
2. Do something different. We do so much automatically... Vary one element of your regular routine for a while. Take a different route to work or watch a different TV show.
3. Be curious about your world around you. It always amazes me when people don’t see what’s around them. See the area you live/work in as a tourist would. How would you explore it if you were a tourist?
4. Read a book on something you previously had no interest in … and see if you can create interest while reading it.
5. Do something childlike once in a while.
6. Create quiet time for yourself everyday. Not to do anything, but just to clear and refresh your mind.
7. Ask “what if” questions. Just for fun and see where the answers take you.
8. We often make assumptions …about the people we work with (especially if we don’t like them!) try treating someone you don’t particularly like at work as if you liked them. How would you act towards them?
9. Write and storyboard your life …as if it were a script you had to sell to a film company.
10. Talk to people you routinely ignore. Imagine their lives from their point of view, the often have viewpoints which you may never have considered before.

This is the Assignment Fairy; she's helpful because, um, we know that most students won't just read because we say it's good for them.

We have to move away from saying, "Read 1-25 in X for Monday; there might be a quiz."
Instead, we should try, "Read 1-25 in X for Monday, and here is the accompanying assignment/activity for that." 
That's what the Assignment Fairy is for; she sprinkles us with idea dust.
But don't strangle her if she can't come up with anything; she's busy helping out a lot of teachers. A LOT.

^^ "reading" tagged images from Flickr.