12 Point Times New English Assignent

12 Point Times New English Assignent

This is the instructions please please make sure you follow every single point she is really a hard grader:

This class is focused on stories about pre-teens and teenagers developing their individual identities while negotiating their relationships with their families, their communities, and larger American society. These characters come from diverse backgrounds and each have particular challenges that they face growing up in America. In this paper, you will choose two characters and analyze them in order to develop an argumentative thesis statement about growing up or coming of age in a diverse American society.

Step 1: choose your characters

First, choose the characters you will write about. You will be writing about two characters for this paper. They have to be from different books (so, you can’t compare Autumn and Adonis because they’re both from Pinned). Here’s the list of books we’ve read so far that you can choose from:

  • In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse: In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse by Joseph M. Marshall III. ISBN#: 978-1419707858
  • The House on Mango Street: The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. ISBN#: 978-0679734772
  • American Born Chinese: American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang. ISBN#: 978-0312384487
  • Pinned: Pinned by Sharon Flake. ISBN#: 978-0545057332

The books You can find them online

Choose characters that you think have interesting similarities or differences, and that you want to spend more time thinking about and understanding.

Step 2: find the question you want to answer

Remember, a thesis statement is essentially the answer to a question. It should be specific (not too broad or general) and directly reference the stories/characters you are writing about. I want you to develop your own thesis statement for this paper. Here are some questions to consider that might help you come up with a thesis for your paper, but you can also choose your own question to think about and answer.

  • What role does family or community play in these characters’ stories?
  • How does a combination of internal and external factors influence the characters’ personal development?
  • How does the pressure of “normal” American society (however that is defined in the book) help or hinder the characters’ personal development?
  • What role does school or education play in the characters’ personal development?
  • What can we learn about growing up in America from the stories of these two characters?
  • How do the authors use the characters’ strengths and weaknesses to make a larger point about growing up in America?

Step 3: re-read and take notes

With your question in mind, re-read specific sections of the books about your characters, looking for information that will help you come up with a clear, specific, interesting answer to your question. Keep track of key quotes or ideas that you can use in your paper. You are not required to use outside sources for this paper – you can base your paper entirely on your analysis of the text from the two books about your characters. However, if you do use any outside sources at all, even for background or fact-checking they must be cited (along with the stories you are writing about).

Step 4: writing

After you have collected your notes and done some prewriting (you can make a list of important ideas, or an outline of your paper), you are ready to write. You can use the first person “I” in your paper, since I’m asking you to share your own opinions and conclusions. Here are the paper requirements:

  • Start with an introductory paragraph that contains your thesis statement and any important context or background information leading up to it.
  • Include 4-6 body paragraphs that support your thesis with details from the story that you interpret for your reader. Avoid simply summarizing the events of the story by thinking about how or why things happen. Explain the clues or nuances that a reader might have missed, or share your interpretation of an image or moment in the story. Use quotes and paraphrases to make your points, and make sure each one of them is followed by a parenthetical citation in MLA style.
  • Finish with a conclusion that wraps up any loose threads of your paper, re-states (in different words) your key idea, and reminds your reader why this topic is important or interesting.
  • All sources that you use, including the books you’re discussing, any secondary readings from our Canvas site, and any other source you use to find out information about the topic must be properly cited with in-text citations and a works cited list in MLA style. Missing citations and sources count as plagiarism and will be reported accordingly. So, make sure that you keep track of your sources of information and use them honestly in your papers.
  • Make sure your final paper is 3-4 pages long (about 1000-1300 words), double-spaced, in 11 point Calibri or 12 point Times New Roman font.

Here is the Paper rubric that you need to follow:

Criteria Ratings Pts

This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeThesis statement

35.0 pts

Excellent: Paper contains a clear thesis statement that makes an innovative, interesting, or unexpected argument.

33.0 pts

Well done: Paper contains a clear thesis statement that makes an argument or takes a position on the topic.

29.0 pts

Needs improvement: Paper contains a thesis statement that is not clearly worded, or that does not take a clear position.

22.0 pts

Needs significant improvement: Paper does not contain a thesis statement.

35.0 pts

This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeEvidence and argumentation

26.0 pts

Excellent: Each paragraph contains detailed evidence. The interpretation of the evidence is sophisticated, and the evidence and author’s ideas are well-integrated.

22.0 pts

Well done: Each paragraph contains evidence that supports the thesis position, that is logically interpreted and doesn’t ignore significant story elements.

19.0 pts

Needs some improvement: Some evidence is missing from the paper, or the paper contains off topic illogical points. There are significant elements of the story that are ignored.

17.0 pts

Needs significant improvement: Paper lacks evidence to support the thesis, or is overwhelmed with illogical or irrelevant points.

26.0 pts

This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeOrganization

17.0 pts

Excellent: Paper’s organization is characterized by sophisticated transitions and a smooth flow of ideas

15.0 pts

Well done: Paper is logically ordered and easy to follow with clear transitions from point to point.

13.0 pts

Needs some improvement: Paper is mostly well-organized, but sometimes jumps around from point to point, or is missing smooth transitions.

9.0 pts

Needs significant improvement: Paper contains no consistent organizational pattern or logical progression.

17.0 pts

This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeSource use

13.0 pts

Excellent: Sources are of exceptional quality, are skillfully integrated with the author’s own ideas, and include correct citations.

11.0 pts

Well done: Quotes are accurate and integrated smoothly into sentences, paraphrases are good, citations are mostly correct.

9.0 pts

Needs some improvement: Quotes are not integrated smoothly into sentences, paraphrases are too close to original text, some citation problems.

4.0 pts

Needs significant improvement: Paraphrases are too close to original source text, quotes are inaccurate, and/or citations are missing for sources.

13.0 pts

This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeWriting style

9.0 pts

Excellent: Paper uses sophisticated language and sentence structure.

7.0 pts

Well done: Paper is smoothly written, using correct grammar and clear sentence structure with few mistakes.

5.0 pts

Needs some improvement: Paper contains some grammar mistakes, sentence fragments or unclear sentences.

3.0 pts

Needs significant improvement: Paper contains many grammar mistakes, sentence fragments, unclear sentences.

9.0 pts

Total Points: 100.0