AP Literature Writing Portfolio |
“When something can be read without effort, great effort has gone into its writing.” ~Enrique Jardiel Poncela |
“You write to communicate to the hearts and minds of others what's burning inside you. And we edit to let the fire show through the smoke.” ~Arthur Polotnik |
“Writing is a struggle against silence.” ~Carlos Fuentes |
OBJECTIVE
Create and defend a writing portfolio that demonstrates your growth as a reader, writer, and thinker.
This year, you will have multiple opportunities to improve your reading, writing, and thinking. As a culminating project for AP Literature and a review for the writing portion of the AP exam, you will create a writing portfolio that demonstrates your growth this year.
Your writing portfolio must be submitted digitally as a website. Weebly, Wix, and Google Sites are all good free services to use. They are user-friendly products, and there are also tutorials available on YouTube. However, you may choose to use a different service if you wish. I’m also available during enrichment if you have specific questions.
Your writing portfolio must be submitted digitally as a website. Weebly, Wix, and Google Sites are all good free services to use. They are user-friendly products, and there are also tutorials available on YouTube. However, you may choose to use a different service if you wish. I’m also available during enrichment if you have specific questions.
REQUIREMENTS
Your writing portfolio must include:
A home/landing page that indicates your name, your teacher’s name, your class block, and the date. Your landing page can be artistic, but it should also be professional. This is a culminating senior portfolio. Your landing page should also include an summative reflection (see next requirement).
Navigation that is logical, clean, and professional. You may choose to organize your site by the types of writing on the exam (poetry, prose, free-response) or by artifact.
A summative reflection in which you defend your growth as a writer
In your reflection, you should:
Consider using your home/landing page to host this reflection. Because this is a summative reflection of your work in your portfolio, you should write this LAST.
In your reflection, you should:
- reflect on your overall writing strengths and weaknesses (commentary can be generalized in part; however, it should include SPECIFIC REFERENCE to what you observe from your completed writing inventory),
- discuss specifically what improvements you see in your writing – (How did you grow?),
- reflect on the overall revisions you made to your artifacts (Do you notice patterns?)
- defend your choice of artifacts that you included in the portfolio (Why did you include the pieces you did?)
- discuss at least three literary titles from your reading this year that have informed your growth as a reader, writer, and thinker, making sure to explain the impact of each title (Two of the three need to be assigned titles.), and
- consider how analysis and clear communication will play a role in your future
Consider using your home/landing page to host this reflection. Because this is a summative reflection of your work in your portfolio, you should write this LAST.
A completed Writing Inventory with commentary (included in your summative reflection OR as page copy beneath your Writing Inventory). You must post a document file or picture of your completed Writing Inventory.
SIX to SEVEN (6-7) artifacts (pieces of writing) that will be the focus of the portfolio: These are the pieces that you will use to correct some of your writing weaknesses, reflect on your growth as a writer, and rewrite to demonstrate your progress. The artifacts must equitably represent each area of the AP exam: literary analysis of POETRY (2 artifacts required), literary analysis of PROSE (2 artifacts required), and OPEN/FREE response (2 artifacts required). If you choose to include a seventh artifact, it can be the genre of your choice (creative writing is acceptable). Requirements:
- Each artifact must begin with an ANNOTATION/DESCRIPTION of the prompt or task. Refer to the following example annotations: "This is a think piece that focuses on a significant motif from Act II of Hamlet and its effect on that act of the play." OR "The most important themes in literature are sometimes developed in scenes in which a death or deaths take place. Using The Poisonwood Bible, write a well-organized essay in which you show how a specific death scene helps to illuminate the meaning of the work as a whole. Avoid mere plot summary.
- Each artifact must include a REFLECTIVE PARAGRAPH in which you describe the overall revisions you would make to the original piece of writing. These reflections should describe both WHAT you would change and WHY you would make these changes. I will provide you with a few prompts to help you reflect on your writing. Keep in mind that conveying precise, clear ideas is paramount.
- Each ARTIFACT must be DISPLAYED WITH EVIDENCE OF SELF-REVISION. You will use the original piece of writing. I gave you quite a bit of written feedback on most drafts. YOUR REVISIONS should EXTEND MY FEEDBACK. You may choose to include your own notes and annotations on the piece or a more formal revision handout. Students in the past have used the “comment” feature in Word to demonstrate plans for revision. You may also include peer-evaluation, but this should not be a substitute for self-revision. Revisions must be thorough, thoughtful, and effective.
- ONE ARTIFACT must contain the previous components AND A REVISED, TYPED ESSAY THAT CONTAINS HIGHLIGHTED CORRECTIONS AND CHANGES so that your audience can quickly see the changed parts of the final piece. Please note: If the revisions are so extensive that the overall content of the piece changes (maybe you misread the prompt or even failed to answer it), you should add an explanatory paragraph to the bottom of the revised piece and highlight that paragraph. Essentially, this revised essay will read well since it will be rewritten; it will also include highlighted sections that offer an at-a-glance impression of how much/what changed for this final piece.
To sum up, each ARTIFACT should include:
- Artifact annotation/description
- Reflective paragraph
- The artifact itself (refer to this page of the mock-up portfolio for display options) (Please note: You do NOT have to word process/type timed writings that are not going to be revised. Instead, you can make your corrections to the actual handwritten copy in pen/pencil and then post the writing as a scanned image or picture to the portfolio.)
- ONE ARTIFACT will also include a rewritten essay that contains highlighted corrections
Please note that by the end of the year, you should feel a sense of pride and ownership in what you have created. The requirements above are simply that - requirements; feel free to go beyond the required content and include material that you WANT to exhibit. A portfolio is a tool to show your strengths. A strength of any great learner is the ability to reflect on one’s weaknesses, adjust for those weaknesses, and make changes; thus, you may not want your artifacts to be those that were originally scored high. Building this portfolio will take this entire year; however, the end result should be a source of great pride for you. Do not just assemble this to fulfill a requirement; use this as a real opportunity for study, learning, and growth. I look forward to seeing you shine!
SUBMISSION & PRESENTATION
DUE DATE:
Final portfolio is due on Thursday, April 30*, 2015 by 11:59 p.m. for ALL AP CLASSES, regardless of A or B day.
*Please note that this is a 2-day extension from the original due date.
Final portfolio is due on Thursday, April 30*, 2015 by 11:59 p.m. for ALL AP CLASSES, regardless of A or B day.
*Please note that this is a 2-day extension from the original due date.
SUBMISSION: Portfolio links must be sent in the body of an email to me ([email protected]). The subject line of your email should be BlockLastNameAPPortfolio. For example: 3ADoeAPPortfolio. Please check your link (you may want to CC yourself) to make sure that when I click on it, it works. Faulty or broken links will cause you to incur a late penalty.
PRESENTATION: Post submission, you will be informally interviewed about your portfolio decisions. Expect to defend your portfolio to your instructor. You may also be asked to share your portfolio from your iPad with your classmates and visiting administration.
Need to see an example?
Portfolios are a popular form of final assessment in the post-secondary world, as well as a great interviewing tool for you to know. Learning this process now will put you leaps ahead of your fellow classmates next year. I have modeled this portfolio after requirements from both Clemson, the University of South Carolina, and the University of Georgia. Below, I have included a link to my own M.Ed. Portfolio from USC, as well as a mock-up I created to show you how I might organize this if I were completing it as one of you. Remember, YOU have some creative license with this assignment, but I know that some of you like to see an example and be given a bit more direction. As long as you are fulfilling my requirements above, the design and structure is up to you.
Helpful Videos & Resources
Weebly Resources
When you are ready to send your portfolio link, you must click the orange "PUBLISH" button.
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After you hit "PUBLISH," Weebly will generate your website link based on what you chose in your settings. If this is the first time you have hit "PUBLISH," you will be prompted to come up with the name of your site/url. Follow the steps until you reach the screen below. Follow the link that is circled in red to make sure everything works, and then use that link in the email you send me for portfolio submission. Details about submission are provided on my website. Please read and follow them.
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How to Use the Insert Comment Feature in Microsoft Office WordTaking a screen shot with your ipad mini tutorial
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