how do you present yourself through writing?

This week, we'll focus on creating and honing two important post-high school writing pieces: your personal essay for college applications and scholarships and your resume.

The module will squish in two cycles of the workshop model; we'll spend Monday through Wednesday delving into the personal essay, then devote Thursday and Friday to building an interview-worthy resume. Get ready to show off your stuff!

Stock photo: because we all wear reading glasses and reference bar graphs when filling out applications...

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essential questions

• What is the difference between personal writing and transactive writing?
• What does clear, concise writing look like?
• How do we format effectively so people want to read our writing?

goals

• Students will understand that personal writing involves sharing ideas and experiences that have a deep meaning to the writer - it reflects rather than persuades.
• Students will understand that clear, concise writing requires utilizing the entire writing process (prewriting, drafting, sharing, revising) to ensure the piece has a focal point and that every word helps reach that point.
• Students will understand that effective formatting includes understanding effective bulleting, tabbing, and intentional emphasizing 

activities:
​resume

INTRODUCE

• Critique Christine's resume - what works? what doesn't?

EXPOSE

• Read "What Your Resume Should Look Like in 2018" article from Time Magazine
  • Review (and re-critique) Christine's resume according to article
  • compare with updated resume
• Discuss intentional formatting: bullets, tabs, alignment, emphasis (bold/italics/underline)

PRACTICE

• Download resume template from Time Magazine
• Discuss intentional formatting: bullets, tabs, alignment, emphasis (bold/italics/underline)
  • Fill in basic information together

CREATE

• Fill in template with your activities and experiences.
• Pay attention to the details! Make sure formatting, font, sizing, etc. is consistent and intentional. Even the spaces matter.
• Submit to Christine

REFLECT

• Conference with Christine about resume draft
• Update as needed

activities:
​personal essay

INTRODUCE

• warm-up: explore sample college admissions essays
  • choose one that speaks to you and explain what you think works

EXPOSE

• evaluate a sample essay that is badly written - diagnose the problem(s)
  • compare with final draft
• explore structure of personal essay
  • check out what to do and what to avoid
  • look at differences between personal and transactive essays
  • practice differentiating between ideas and examples
  • determine criteria for evaluation checklist

PRACTICE

• make a list of colleges you are applying to and their application essay prompts
  • choose one prompt to work with
  • alternately, choose a prompt from the Common Application choices
• opening lines mini workshop
  • review opening lines from Stanford admissions essays
  • write three possible opening lines for the prompt you have chosen
  • share lines, get input and feedback
  • discuss: where will you go with these opening lines?

CREATE

• Draft an essay, building on your opening lines
• Read essay out loud for fluency and voice
• Submit rough draft

REFLECT

• Peer conference about rough draft (focus on content)
  • Revise 
• Conference with Christine (focus on style)
  • Revise again, woohoo!
• Submit final draft

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common app prompts

2018-2019 Common Application Essay Prompts (see online here)

​1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story. 

2. The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience? 

3. Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome? 

4. Describe a problem you've solved or a problem you'd like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma - anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could be taken to identify a solution. 

5. Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others. 

6. Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more? 
7. Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design. 

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c-tachs

Writing

• Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience
• Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach
  

Language

• Demonstrate command of conventions of standard English grammar when speaking and writing
• Demonstrate command of standard capitalization and punctuation
• Spell correctly

resources

Personal essay syllabus    
Building a Resume syllabus
"What Your Resume Should Look Like in 2018" 

Time​ resume templates:
2018 format (one column)
2017 format (with sidebar)

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