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Posts from July 2017

Finishing the Genre Analysis Report

Finishing the Genre Analysis Report published on

This is the post for the week of July 31, 2017.

Corps of Engineers Takes Blue Roof Applications in Texas After Hurricane Ike by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Flickr, used under a CC-BY licenseThis week you will continue working on your Genre Analysis Report, which is due by 11:59PM on Tuesday, August 8, 2017. Your Progress Report is due by 11:59PM on Monday, July 31.

Readings for This Week

Since you have your big project to write this week, go back and review any readings that you need and whatever research you have found. You control your readings for this week.

If you have questions about readings, research, or writing, ask in our #general channel in Slack.

Tasks for This Week

Because I want you to have the whole week to work on your Genre Analysis Report, there are no extra tasks this week. Just the essential work.

  1. By 11:59 PM on Monday, July 31, submit your Progress Report in Canvas. The grace period ends at 11:59 PM on Thursday, August 3.
  2. Share a draft of your Genre Analysis Report in the Feedback on Genre Analysis Reports on Canvas by 11:59 PM on Friday, August 4.
    • In your message, ask your group to look at anything you are trying to improve. Let them know the kind of advice you need.
    • By noon on Monday, July 24, provide feedback to your group members, using the strategies in the Peer Review Commenting Strategies video.
    • Post your Genre Analysis Report in Canvas by 11:59PM on Tuesday, August 8. The grace period ends at 11:59PM on Friday, August 11.
  3. By 11:59PM on Friday, August 4, write your 08/04 Labor Log in Canvas. Specific questions for your log are included in Canvas. The grace period for your log entry ends at 11:59 PM on Monday, August 7.

 

Photo Credit: Corps of Engineers Takes Blue Roof Applications in Texas After Hurricane Ike by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Flickr, used under a CC-BY license


 
Last updated on 31st July, 2017, 12:08 AM

#WeekendWatch: Front and Back Matter

#WeekendWatch: Front and Back Matter published on

Last week’s #WednesdayWorkshop focused on What to Include in Your Proposal. For our #WeekendWatch, I’m returning to the discussion of sections of a report with this University of Minnesota video on Analytical Reports: Front and Back Matter.

The video explains in 4m35s the information you need to include in your Genre Analysis Report:


 
Last updated on 26th July, 2017, 5:08 PM

#FridayFact: The Workplace Hates Exclamation Points!!!

#FridayFact: The Workplace Hates Exclamation Points!!! published on

Admittedly, I am guilty of using too many exclamation points in my emails and texts, but I do try to avoid them in what I write in the workplace. It turns out that is the right choice, according to the Business Insider article Stop Using Exclamation Points At Work!

The article ends with the flowchart shown below, which suggests that most of the time, you should not use exclamation points. It’s a fun flowchart, so be sure to read it.

Should I Use an Exclamation Mark? from Hubspot


 
Last updated on 26th July, 2017, 5:10 PM

#InfographicInspiration: Writing Email That Gets Read

#InfographicInspiration: Writing Email That Gets Read published on

Earlier this term, I shared a #FridayFact about email in the workplace. For our #infographicInspiration this week, I’m returning to email by sharing a simple image that identifies key characteristics of effective email messages.

The website’s name is a little off-color, but the information clearly and concisely outlines specific ways to improve your email messages. Read more information about the infographic in the article 10 tips for effective email.

Email That Works Infographic


 
Last updated on 26th July, 2017, 5:09 PM

Due Dates and Canvas

Due Dates and Canvas published on

Due Date Key by GotCredit on Flickr, used under a CC-BY 2.0 licenseI want to share a short policy update. If you watch Canvas carefully, you may notice that some of the dates for Major Projects have (and will) change. If you don’t pay lots of attention to the minor details (which is fine), you can skip this info. Here’s what I’m doing to make the revision system work:

  • When we start a major assignment, it has a due date and it is open until the end of the grace period (3 days after the due date).
  • When I start grading a major assignment, I change the due date to the date that was the end of the grace period. I set the assignment as open until the end of the course (to allow you to submit revisions).

Why? By changing the dates, I have an easy way to know if someone who did not submit the project at all turns it in after the grace period ends.

 

Photo credit: Due Date Key by GotCredit on Flickr, used under a CC-BY 2.0 license


 
Last updated on 26th July, 2017, 10:40 PM

#WednesdayWorkshop: Citing Your Sources

#WednesdayWorkshop: Citing Your Sources published on

You will need to provide in-text citations and bibliographic citations in your Genre Analysis Report, so this week’s #WednesdayWorkshop focuses on How to identify and credit sources (6m 32s).

Screenshot of Lynda.com session, How to identify and credit sources

In your Genre Analysis Report, you can use whatever bibliographical format you are most familiar with. Here are some tools if you are unsure how to make correct citations:

You can also watch the Lynda.com information on Citing Sources in research papers for more specific examples of citations.


 
Last updated on 26th July, 2017, 5:04 PM

#TuesdayTutorial: Progress Reports for Clients and Stakeholders

#TuesdayTutorial: Progress Reports for Clients and Stakeholders published on

This week you are writing an internal progress report. It’s similar to the kind of progress report that you might give to your manager or co-workers to let them know what’s happening with a project.

You also need to know about how to write external progress reports, which will go to clients or stakeholders outside your organization. While the general purpose is the same as that for an internal progess report, the audience is quite different.

The Lynda.com video Using in-progress reports to communicate with clients (4m 23s) will walk you through the key features and the important characteristics of this kind of progress report.

Screenshot from #TuesdayTutorial: Progress Reports for Clients and Stakeholders


 
Last updated on 25th July, 2017, 12:38 AM

Making Progress on Your Genre Analysis Report

Making Progress on Your Genre Analysis Report published on

This is the post for the week of July 17, 2017.

Progress Report by Forest Hill Society on Flickr, used under a CC-BY licenseThanks for your patience last week while I was at the Council of Writing Program Administrators Conference in Knoxville. I caught up on all the missing posts Saturday afternoon. If the info in those posts makes you want to change your proposal significantly, please use the Grace Period to give yourself a little extra time.

This week you will move on to writing your Genre Analysis Report, which is due by 11:59PM on Tuesday, August 8, 2017. After your work this week, you will write a Progrress Report that tells me about your project. Your Progress Report is due by 11:59PM on Monday, July 31.

Readings for This Week

Tasks for This Week

  1. By 11:59 PM on Monday, July 24, submit your Short Report Proposal in Canvas. The grace period ends at 11:59 PM on Thursday, July 27.
  2. Make 2 replies in the Discussing Example Genre Analysis Reports, following the instructions that you find in the post. Your responses are due Friday, July 28 by 11:59 PM. Grace period ends at 11:59 PM on Monday, July 31.
  3. Share a draft of your Progress Report in the Feedback on Progress Reports on Canvas by 11:59 PM on Friday, July 28.
    • In your message, ask your group to look at anything you are trying to improve. Let them know the kind of advice you need.
    • By noon on Monday, July 24, provide feedback to your group members, using the strategies in the Peer Review Commenting Strategies video.
    • Post your Progress Report in Canvas by 11:59PM on Monday, July 31. The grace period ends at 11:59PM on Thursday, August 3.
  4. By 11:59PM on Friday, July 28, write your 07/28 Labor Log in Canvas. Specific questions for your log are included in Canvas. The grace period for your log entry ends at 11:59 PM on Monday, July 31.

 

Photo Credit: Progress Report by Forest Hill Society on Flickr, used under a CC-BY license.


 
Last updated on 24th July, 2017, 12:07 AM

#WeekendWatch: Comma Splices

#WeekendWatch: Comma Splices published on

At one point or another, you are bound to make a comma splice. We all have. I make them most often when I’m texting and not paying attention to what I’m doing. It’s not the worst error you could make, but it is one you should avoid in professional writing.

So you know comma splices are a problem to avoid, but do you know what they are? Watch this tutorial video from Texas A&M to find out!

 


 
Last updated on 22nd July, 2017, 11:43 AM

#FridayFact: Five Presentation Mistakes

#FridayFact: Five Presentation Mistakes published on

Powerpoint by Bart Everson on Flickr, used under a CC-BY licenseThe #FridayFact for this week is one that I’m sure everyone agrees with: no one likes a boring slideshow with crowdedl text on the slides. The Harvard Business Review article Five Presentation Mistakes Everyone Makes, by Nancy Duarte, outlines these errors:

  1. Failing to engage emotionally.
  2. Asking too much of your slides.
  3. Trotting out tired visuals.
  4. Speaking in jargon.
  5. Going over your allotted time.

The article is short and easy to read, so take a few minutes to learn how you can improve the presentations you give!

 

Photo credit: Powerpoint by Bart Everson on Flickr, used under a CC-BY license.


 
Last updated on 22nd July, 2017, 11:40 AM

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