Assignments Due Wednesday, 27 February.

Assignment: Due Wednesday, 27 February.

English 112

Reading: From Writing for College, Writing for Life read chapter five, 128-86. Don’t try to do all this reading at once; instead, break it down into chucks of around ten pages per day. In chapter five, you’ll be reading about how to use writing to explore. In the writing assignment for this week, you’ll be developing a draft of an essay which will help you explore where you want to take your life over the next few years.

Writing: Where do you want to be in five years?

Write a *draft* of the body of an essay in which you describe where you want your personal, professional, academic, and civic life to be in five years. Part of achieving one's goals is learning to fully visualize what it is you want to achieve. The next step is coming up with a plan which will allow you to move toward the goals you visualize, but I don't want you to write about your plan just yet; instead, I want you to concentrate on writing a complete, nuanced description of where you want to be.

In your descriptions, be realistic and concrete. Provide examples and illustrations. If you say you want a spouse or significant other, what qualities do you want this person to possess? How will this person compliment you? What kind of person will they be, and how do you visualize your relationship with them? If you say you want to be finishing up your bachelors degree, tell your reader what degree you want to be working on, if you see yourself as a senior, junior, or heading toward graduate school, and what school or kind of school you'd like to be at. If you say you want to be living in a nice apartment, and then describe the apartment. What town is it in? Is it near your job or school? What kind of neighborhood is it in? Do you see yourself having roommates? If you say you want a job, what kind of job is it? What kind of work do you see yourself doing? How do you see your work fitting into your other plans? How many hours per week do you see yourself working? Is it an inside, office job or are you doing landscaping outside? In short, be specific and detailed, not vague or general.

In visualizing your goals, be realistic. Five years isn’t as long as it may seem. You may see yourself as rich, but can you get there in five years, or will you just be starting to lay a foundation for later financial security? Do some of your homework. It takes most students six years to finish college, and students who work will take even longer; so, if you plan on working while getting a college degree, then you need to plan to still be in school, finishing up, and working toward a career. You also may mention what limitations you may face or what you'll need to overcome to achieve your goals.

For right now, don't worry about drafting an introduction or conclusion, just draft the main sections of your essay's body.

Note: Remember to update your writing inventory responses with what you learned from the reading and writing exercises this week.