Before tomorrow’s class, be sure to complete the following tasks.
- Review yesterday’s blog post as well as the syllabus. If you added the class after our first meeting on Monday, you can download the syllabus from Blackboard. In your journal, jot down any questions you have about the course.
- Complete the Habits of Mind handout that you began working on in class yesterday. If you added the class after our first meeting on Monday, you can download the Habits of Mind handout from Blackboard. Tomorrow in class you will share your writing with two or three of your classmates, and you will collaborate on a writing assignment that synthesizes some of your individual writing.
- If you haven’t purchased or rented it already, order the textbook, the paperback edition of Writing Analytically, 9th edition, by David Rosenwasser and Jill Stephen.
Also, as soon as possible, create a free WordPress blog at wordpress.com, and email the URL to me so that I can link your blog to the class page.
Because writing longhand and limiting screen time are essential components of the class, I am including below some notes that illustrate why those practices, which may seem quaint, are vital to our work.
Writing Longhand
One practical reason for writing longhand: What we mark through remains on the page. Sometimes what we cross out can be useful later on, elsewhere in our writing. More importantly, research in cognitive neuroscience indicates that writing longhand has these benefits:
- We remember more when we write notes by hand.
- Writing cursive activates areas of the brain that remain dormant when we type.
Simply put, writing longhand sharpens our minds in ways that typing doesn’t.
Limiting Screen Time
When we use our phones and laptops, it’s difficult for us to give our undivided attention to one endeavor, but often that singular focus is critical.
When we type on our phones, we often aim to convey as much as we can with as few characters as possible. Texting and emailing–both of which now feature predictive text–do not foster the vital skills of developing our writing and producing original thought.
Limiting our screen time not only helps us improve our writing skills, it can also benefit our overall well-being.
- The blue light of screens disrupts our circadian rhythms more than other light does, making it harder for us to sleep.
- Studies in cognitive psychology demonstrate a correlation between screen time and both anxiety and depression.
The research cited in the links that I’ve included above isn’t definitive, but it makes a strong case for the value of limiting our screen time and putting pen to paper. I encourage you to continue these practices after the semester ends.
Next Up
On Wednesday, you and two or three of your classmates will collaborate on an assignment fousing on the Habits of Mind worksheet that you will complete before Wednesday’s class.
Jane Lucas 