Harrington school bash: write-a-thon?

It looks like we're moving closer toward an end-of-semester event for Harrington School's first year students. I'm now in contact with a Residential Life staffer in Weldin Hall, where the Harrington living-learning community is located. Apparently, she has some resources to put on an event. So perhaps this could be some fun? I hope so.

Here's one idea I have been kicking around: a "write-a-thon." Everyone has trouble sitting down to draft papers and other assignments. So perhaps we could sponsor an event (with food) to get these students writing? After some opening remarks and some eating, we could set them to work, freewriting style. (Don't stop writing! If you have to stop, you must talk with a tutor!) Perhaps there could be prizes: for most words written, for most assignments fully drafted. It could be something like an athletic event for writers.

Comments? Guffaws? All feedback appreciated--

Oh, the poster wall. . .

I really liked the idea of papering over the south wall of room 408 with posters, but I'm not sure how well its developing. In any case, I'm definitely tired of looking at that Korn poster. What should we do about the poster wall? Just tear them all down? Or do you all have more posters to contribute?

I have been thinking about this fish tank in the writing center idea. I've freed up a 1-gallon bowl, and I've got enough extra plants, shrimp, and maybe even an extra tiny fish I could pop in there. What I don't have is an extra desk lamp. I was looking around the writing center, and I'm worried that the overhead lights alone won't be enough to keep the plants growing, and I was hoping to plant densely enough that I wouldn't need filtration (which would be hard to set up aesthetically in a 1-gallon bowl). Anyone have an extra desk lamp or reading light they could donate to this little project so that we can have a writing center fish mascot?

Getting more onto the topic of tutoring, there is definitely a difference when tutoring one of your own students. It is more difficult to encourage mutual participation when you are the one who gives the grades. My time on campus has been spreading a little thin, so I've been telling students they can also find me in the writing center, but I think I'll stop dropping those hints, and put more of a distinction between office visits and the writing center. I will keep encouraging both, but I'll stop mentioning that I'll be around the writing center now and again. Anyone have any tips for breaking down some of those teacherly barriers during writing center meetings?

Side Note: Did we ever find a way to mark some posts as visible to site participants only? I feel a little awkward discussing current tutees/students, even if I do stay abstract. I keep thinking that people will find posts that indirectly allude to them, and it makes me a little uncomfortable.

Starting the semester's tutoring

Monday was a great tutoring day. I was back to back, and the best part was that the students I met with had come in for very diverse reasons. I love that sessions can range from very directive help for a non-native speaker with great fluency to very holistic comments for a confident student whose draft is near completion.

Sometimes, we worry about how heterogeneous our students' are and how different their needs can be, but I think that's my favorite part of teaching/tutoring. Maybe I like the challenge, or maybe I just get bored easily, but the element of surprise and the constant change is one of the perks of our line of work as far as I'm concerned.

I wonder if other people feel this way. Am I "the odd man out," so to speak, for enjoying this aspect as much as I do? What does everyone else think about it?

Graduate Writing Seminar this Friday, 12PM

I'll be moderating a panel presentation on graduate writing in the sciences this Friday (CBLS Atrium, 12-1 PM). Pizza will be provided.

URI researchers including Nancy Fey Yensen (Dean, HSS) and Scott McWilliams (Prof., CELS) will be talking about how they identify and communicate about "gaps" in research knowledge. Following the presentations, CELS graduate students and others will have the opportunity to ask questions of the panel.

This presentation begins a seminar series on graduate writing on the sciences. Seminars to follow will focus on writing literature reviews and working with references, among other topics.

I am thinking that this presentation will probably be useful for Writing Center tutors who would like to know more about science writing. I'd also like some tutors to attend to demonstrate the Writing Center's interest in supporting science writers.

its on!

So I just had to hop on and say how much fun it is to be tutoring again!

Unlike last year, I had tutees from my very first shift- both WRT 104 students working on narratives, both with full drafts. Is it something in the air this fall, or am a little mad to be perceiving everyone as just a little more excited and proactive? Even my own students have started using office hours, and I usually have to bribe and cajole them with eminent papers. I don't what it is, but its making my already sleep-deprived days feel more than bearable. Like :)

Anyway, hope you all have great first shifts, too, and looking forward to talking about North and Shamoon on Wednesday (two of my fav tutoring articles)!

Facebook page? Banner?

Writing Centers always have publicity problems, since everyone assumes that they are "fix-it shops" or "comma garages." Editing services, in other words.

In the case of our Writing Center, we also struggle with not being noticed. It's not clear, in other words, whether students think about us very frequently. (If they do, what do they think about us?)

In our staff orientation last Saturday, I thought we had some good ideas for addressing some of our publicity problems. If we want students to notice us, a Facebook site might be a good way to help that happen. Also, the idea to staff a table in the union (with a big ol' banner) is a good idea, too.

On Saturday, I set up our WCenter Facebook site. Now we just need to design the thing! (By design, I mean layout and text as well as some bigger questions: how do we want to use this tool? Do we really want our pictures up on the site? Will we be friends with it?)

This coming week, we should also start thinking in earnest about staffing a table in the Union. What do we want to do there? How do we want to appear? Perhaps the sign shop can make us a giant version of our sticker to display? Where are those stickers anyway?

Comments? Ideas? Please have your say--