Module 4: [Observation Location Draft]
Welcome to Module 4
Hello everyone--welcome to Module 4!
This week will be lighter on the readings--just one, called "A Fable for Tomorrow" by Rachel Carson--because you are going to be doing more applying of what you've been learning about observation and description. After you've read that excerpt, you will answer some questions about Carson's writing.
Next, you will be brainstorming some ideas about locations you have observed in your own life. These brief questions will help you begin thinking about places you have spent significant time or where you had meaningful memories, and how your observations will help you in creating a setting for a story.
Finally, you will be writing a draft for a story, which I'm calling an Observation Location--this means you're choosing a real place you have lived/visited/observed in detail, and creating a scene in that real setting. The scene itself can be entirely made up, but the location should be accurate to your experience. You are welcome to write something that really happened (or a blend of fact and fiction) but it needs to feel like a scene/story--so if the time you went to Aruba was beautiful but nothing actually happened there, make something up! It can be as inventive as a murder mystery or as prosaic as a meet cute at the grocery store; as long as there's both plot of the story and description of the location, you're on track! The rubric is included; your final version will be 2-2.5 pages, but you should submit 1 page for Sunday, 2/18. I know we typically have due dates on the Mondays, but with the Monday holiday and this being a draft (that will require peer editing next week) it would be ideal to have drafts submitted by the Sunday in this case. If this is a significant problem and you need to turn it in on Monday instead, please let me know.
Have a wonderful week and feel free to reach out with any questions,
Professor Gaboury
P.S. Enjoy and be safe in the snow!
Module Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this module, you will be able to:
Module Objective #1: Determine and evaluate Carson’s purpose in writing the excerpt
Module Objective #2: Write about a location you have observed, using specific, descriptive details
To Do
Please read/watch all of the module learning materials (readings, presentations, videos, etc.) and complete all assignments/assessments listed below. If you have questions, please contact the course instructor or ask in the Questions About This Course forum.
Readings:
- Carson, Rachel. “A Fable for Tomorrow”
Assignments/Assessments:
"A Fable for Tomorrow" Questions
Observation Location Brainstorm
Observation Location Rough Draft Your final draft will be 2-2.5 pages; please submit a draft of at least 1 page by Sunday, 2/18
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