Friday, January 20

Hi, Guys,
Sorry I can't be there with you all today.  This flu is 100% awful.

To get you started, I'm going to ask that you look for the copies of Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird.  They are in the cupboard to the left of the art supplies cupboard at the side of the classroom.  (Brittany, we'll get you started on alternate material when I get back, though you should also have a copy of this one.)

I would like you to sign out copies for yourselves.  You can use an ordinary sheet of white-lined paper for this: just put down your name, the number of the book, and its condition on one line.

Your assignment for Monday is to read the Introduction (pages xi--xxxi) and to pull out one or two passages from Anne Lamott's writing that caught your eye.  They might be funny, or remind you of something in your own life, or say something useful about what it means to be human or to write, or maybe you just like the way she puts something.

Use either ordinary notebook paper or a Double-entry Journal form (there was one with your syllabus yesterday, but there are also blanks at the front of the room) to record the passage and the page number on the left side, and your comments in a short paragraph on the right side.

You should also find a book that you really like, to bring to class on Monday.  You'll be pulling passages of other people's writing that you enjoy from their books, and sharing those, too, so it's OK if it's a book you've read before.

Feel free to spend the rest of the block either:
Browsing my library for a book you might want to read, or,
Read the Anne Lamott, and doing the Double-entry Journal for Monday.

See you soon,
Ms. Bishop