Calendar

Lec # Topics Key dates

1

Introduction

2

Mairs, Nancy, "On Being a Scientific Booby," and John Muir, "3 Short Pieces." In Writing Nature.

Levi, Primo. "Carbon." In The Periodic Table.

Writing: Autobiographical sketch due at start of class

3

Writing Worth Reading. pp. 66-68 and 193-194.

Lopez, Barry. "Gone Back into the Earth." In Crossing Open Ground.

Leopold, Aldo. "Thinking Like a Mountain." In Sand County Almanac.

Sample Student Narrative Essays

Writing: Exercise 1a due at start of class

4

Thoreau, Henry David. "Brute Neighbors," Lewis Thomas, "Ponds," and Ursula LeGuin, "A Very Warm Mountain." In Writing Nature.

In class: Return exercise 1a

5

"Rhetoric: Writing about Personal Experience," David Quammen, "The Face of a Spider," and Alice Walker, "Am I Blue?" In Writing Nature.

Writing: Exercise 1b due at start of class

6

"Developing the Paragraph." In Writing Nature.

Writing: First version of essay #1 (5 copies) due at start of class

7

"Case Study: A Student's Personal Essay." In Writing Worth Reading.

In class: Essay Workshop

Writing: Written comments (2 copies) due at start of class

8

In class: "Cadillac Desert." (Video)

Writing: Final version of essay #1 due at start of class

9

"Arguing." In Writing Nature and Selections from Conflicts of Interest.

Writing: Exercise 2a due (3 days after lecture 9)

10

Ward, Diane Raines. "Sweet Water." In Water Wars.

Stegner, Wallace. "Glen Canyon Submersus." In The Sound of Mountain Water.

McPhee, John. Excerpt from Encounter with the Archdruid.

In class: "Cadillac Desert." (Video)

11

Opposing Points of View on Specific Water Conflict

Writing Worth Reading. pp. 428-430.

In class: Exercise Workshop

Writing: Exercise 2b (3 copies) due at start of class

12

Writing Nature. pp. 541-560.

"Las Vegas, A Guilty Pleasure." (Sample Student Essay)

Writing Worth Reading. pp. 114-131 and 91-98.

In class: Exercise 2b returned

13

"Making the Argument." In Writing Worth Reading.

Writing: First version of essay #2 (5 copies) due at start of class

14

In class: Essay Workshop

Writing: Written comments (2 copies) due at start of class

15

Bring in list of ideas for research essay

In class: Library Session

Final version of essay #2 due (1 day after lecture 15)

16

Carson, Rachel. Silent Spring. pp. 1-127.

In class: Student-led discussion of chapters in Silent Spring

17

Writing Worth Reading. Skim pp. 333-352.

Read "Reading and Taking Notes." In Writing Worth Reading.

Independent research for your own paper

Writing: Exercise 3a due at start of class

Bring in copy of article or chapter (see ex. assignment)

18

"Documenting your Sources," and "Suggesting Recurrent Themes." In Writing Worth Reading.

"Vanishing Frogs." (Sample Student Essay)

Research for your own paper

In class: Discussion of Plagiarism

Writing: Exercise 3b due at start of class

Bring in copy of second article or chapter

19

Stewart, Meg. "Dredging to Keep New York-New Jersey Harbor Alive." In The Earth Around Us.

Research for your own paper

In class: Oral Presentations

Writing: Exercise 3c due at start of class

20

Research for your own paper

"Writing a First Draft." In Writing Worth Reading.

In class: Oral Presentations

In class: Exercise 3c returned

21

Research for your own paper

Carson, Rachel. Silent Spring. pp. 276-297.

In class: Oral Presentations

22

In class: Oral Presentations

Writing: First version of paper #3 (5 copies) due at start of class

23

In class: Essay Workshop

Writing: Written comments (2 copies) due at start of class

24

In class: Introduction Revision Workshop

Writing: Bring revised introduction (at least first full page) for essay #3 (2 copies)

Final version of essay #3 due (1 day after lecture 24)

25

In class: Style Revision Workshop

Writing: Bring in one-page segment of essay #1 or #2 (2 copies)

26

In class: Reading and Listening to Favorite Works

Celebrating the successful completion of 21W.730

Writing: Optional revision of earlier paper due at start of class