Writing Assignments

Is Social Networking a Different Language?

Some professionals believe the language we use on social networking sights is different from everyday language. They say this because of the words like g2g, ttul that we use on a consistent basis over text messaging, aim, and Facebook messenger. Write a short paper on this topic. Be sure to include some of the saying we use, which one’s you understand and don’t understand, and most of all discuss if social networking language is in fact different from our every day language.

Comments For Kids

Visit the Student Blogging Challenge website. Click on the Participants menu to find a list of kid bloggers who are participating in the challenge. There are blogger children from many different countries all around the world. Find 3-5 young bloggers, visit their blogs, and offer them your encouragement. For ideas on what to say, see How to compose a quality comment, courtesy of Linda Yollis’ 3rd grade class in California. When you are finished, write a post on your own blog describing your experience. Who knows? You might give much needed encouragement and support at just the right time. You might even make a new friend!

Wiki Game

Play the Wikipedia Game. If you’ve never played, this is how: You have two words, a starting word and a finishing word. These “words” can be anything that has it’s own wiki page. For example, your starting word can be “persian cat” and your ending word can be “mocha.” You go to the wiki for starting word (i.e. persian cat) and by only clicking on links on the wiki page (e.g. on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persian_cat you will see the linked words “cat fancy”) you must end up at your second word, in this case, “mocha.” Usually, you play this with another person and see who can get from word 1 to word 2 the fastes. It’s fun, but since it’s only you, write a story, poem, song, or any other form expression using words using the words from the links you clicked to get from your starting word to your final word. P.s the example I’m showing you is actually just the link to the persian cat wiki page.

Tarantino your story!

Write a story–can be about anything, but put the last image (can be more than one sentence) at the beginning of the story. Similar to some of Quentin Tarantino’s films–starting the movie with the end. Make it interesting and fun!

Write a Review Story

There are amazing corners of the web where ridiculous products go to die, and then are reborn with amazing reviews. Find a product and write a review for it that makes light of it or tells a story in a new way.

Sandy Brown Jensen’s Illustrate your Original Poem

On your blog, use at least three images from your original art or photography to illustrate a poem you have written.

Police Beat

Essentially, identify an innocent seeming song that advocates some odd/criminal behavior and reformat it as a police report style article. My example based on “Ain’t Too Proud To Beg” is below.

Example
Eddie Kendricks, 46, was arrested at his former residence, 12 Jones street, at 4:37AM. Kendricks is accused of stalking and violating an order of protection filed by his former wife, Angela Berry, after their recent divorce.

Kendricks is accused of sleeping on the doorstep of the residence they previously shared. Kendricks is also accused of actively preventing Ms. Berry from leaving her home. Witnesses report that Kendricks often appeared incoherent, at times sobbing and begging at the door of Ms. Berry’s residence for hours at a time.

“At first, it was funny,” reported Berry’s neighbor, Ron Paxton. “We’d laugh at him, a grown man, behaving like that. But then he just wouldn’t stop. Poor Angie couldn’t even leave the house. Something had to be done.”

Prosecutors say more charges may be pending for Kendricks who has defied previous restraining orders and was out on bail at the time of his latest arrest.

Gateways to Geekery

Make a “Gateway to Geekery” post (in the style of The Onion AV Club’s posts) about a favorite director, actor, band, musician, writer, etc. Give an overview of his/her/their career(s), including sections on “Why It’s Daunting,” “Possible Gateway,” “Next Steps,” and “Where Not to Start.”

Feel free to include Creative Commons photos, screenshots, embedded YouTube videos, etc. to liven up the text. Have fun!

Three Word Wednesday.

Go to http://www.threewordwednesday.com/ and find the three words for this week.
from the site:
Three Word Wednesday gives writers, poets and those who journal a mid-week jolt of creativity.
Each week, three words are selected; you create something with the words. Then come back and post a link to your contribution.
The idea is to create an online writers’ collective, where feedback is offered and received.
All rights to the contributions rest with the author.
This is a place to stretch your muse, test your dreams.
Get writing, you.

Your DigiArt Tells a Story

Using a digital art application of any kind that lets you draw and/or paint, create at least four images that tell a digital story. Use captions and use your words to move the reader through the trajectory of the story.
Here is an example:
http://pln.lanecc.net/mindonfire/2012/01/15/lady-pig-sassy-crow/