Entry #12 - Oral Presentation

For our oral presentation on the skill of reading, my group and I decided to prepare a power point presentation which included the most important features of the theory and the examples we had made. In this way, we could show our mates what where the most important aspects to take into account and at the same time, it served us as a memory guide in case we forgot to mention any significant point. In fact, it was more useful for us than for our mates because it was extreme difficult for them to see the presentation from the screen of the netbook. Nevertheless, I believe that it was not an essential element as the rest of the class seemed engaged in the oral presentation, and they were taking down notes.

Taking into account my own presentation, I believe that in the whole it was good enough. Although there had been some mistakes in pronunciation, and surely some in language, I think that I was able to transfer my mates with the key concepts. However, it may have been quite challenging to them to follow me, as I tend to speed up while talking especially when I get nervous. 

Writing Assigment #2

Syria’s Disarmament: A Justification to Disarm U.S.’s Enemies

The Syrian conflict began in March 2011, when protestants against the president Bashar al-Assad demanded his resignation. When they took up the streets in demonstrations against Asad’s regime, the government responded with extreme measures, such as kidnapping, torturing and killing protestors and their families. In consequence, civil rebel forces began to arm themselves to encounter the government’s violence. Nowadays, the tension between the government and the rebels became substantial when allegations that the government had used chemical weapons in civilians were asserted. These allegations led to international intervention in order to defend the Syrian’s human rights. In this way, countries such as England, United States, France, Russia, among others, gather together in order to disarm the Arab republic and to avoid an increase in the amount of deaths. Superficially, these are good justifications for the disarmament of the country; however, there are hidden reasons for encourage such measure.[1]

As it had been stated before, one of the main reasons for Syria’s disarmament is the number of crimes against humanity that has been committed against the Syrian people since the use of chemical weapons. But truth is that many murders and deaths had occurred since the civil war began. There have been more deaths caused by guns than the ones which resulted as a consequence of the use of chemical weapons. However, in the last two years before the use of chemical weapons, only a few measures were taken in order to help the Syria people. These measures include refugee camps, food aid, medical supplies, emergency health care and water. Nevertheless, any of these measures included procedures to put an end to this violent confrontation. So, as there are weapons, the number of deaths will continue increasing no matter how many refugee camps would be created.

On the other hand, since Syria has broken the 1925 Geneva Gas protocol which “prohibits the use of chemical and biological weapons in war” (Geneva Protocol), there is a possibility for the United Nations to request of an intervention of the country; yet, this has not been confirmed. Nevertheless, the President Barak Obama had clearly stated that he “would use its political, economic and, if necessary, military power” (New York Times) in order to put an end to the conflict. In this way, the violent conflict in Syria will be halted by using more violence. However, as Professor Sigrun Skogly had explain in a BBC article, “these actions need to be exercised in a manner that is likely to minimise the continued human suffering of the populations and a military campaign may not be the appropriate response in such circumstances”, as the president of the United States is insisting on.

In this way, it may be thought that the United States’ persistent intentions to disarm Syria are far beyond of achieving peace in the Arab republic. As Zaher Mahriqui stated in his article for the Press TV “the objective of the US and [his ally] Israel has always been to disarm any Arab army that might us its weapons against Israel”. In consequence, disarming Syria will be a key point in ensuring Israel’s peace. However, this will be a long way as the Arab republic in not the only thread that the American’s ally has.  So, the aftermath international intervention would just be the American justification to weaken its enemies and any thread against it and its allies.

In conclusion, the disarmament of Syria is a direct consequence of its use of chemical weapons on civilians. This measure is claimed to be in favour of the Syrian people and to avoid more crimes against humanity. Additionally, an international mediation was needed since Syria has broken the Geneva Protocol, which prohibits the use of chemical and biological weapons. However, this last reason for international intervention could only be a mean for the United States to disarm the Arab republic which threads the peace in its ally country Israel.

---

[1] Expository Thesis Statement

Outline

• Introduction:
• Thesis Statement “countries such as England, United States, France, Russia, among others, had gather together in order to disarm the Arab republic and to avoid the increase in the amount of deaths. Superficially, these are good justifications for the disarmament of the country; however, there are hidden reasons for encourage such measure”
• Body:
• Measures taken to help Syrian people
• Break of Geneva protocol
• Reasons for disarmament
• Conclusion:
• Disarmament, a justification to maintain peace in Israel

Graphic Organizer

Bibliography

1925 Geneva Protocol. United Nations office for disarmament Affairs. Available at http://www.un.org/disarmament/WMD/Bio/1925GenevaProtocol.shtml. Retrieve: September 28, 2013.

Attacks on Ghouta. Analysis og Allegeat Use of Chemical Weapons in Syria. Human Rights Watch. Available at   http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/syria_cw0913_web_1.pdf. Retrieve: September 28, 2013.

Landler M. (September 24, 2013) Obama Defends U.S. Engagement in the Middle East. The New York Times. Available at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/25/us/politics/obama-iran-syria.html?pagewanted=1&_r=0&ref=syria. Retrieve: September 28, 2013.

Mahruqui M. (September 24, 2013) What does the Syrian Chemical Diarmament Deal Mean?. Press TV. Available at http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/09/24/325714/syrian-chemical-disarmament-analysis/. Retrieve: September 28, 2013.

Syrian Civil War. Wikipedia. Availabla at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_civil_war. Retrieve: September 28, 2013.

Viewpoints: Is thre Legal Basis for Military Intervention in Syria?. BBC News. Available at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-23847169. Retrieve: September 28, 2013.

Entry #11: Metacognitive Analysis

We are almost finishing the year, and it is a very good idea to see how my writings had improved or, in the least of the cases, how they have become worsen. In order to do this, it is important to consider the different features that we have been learning throughout the year that had helped me improve. And at the same time, those features which are still flaccid and need my improvement. 

One of the things that I have learnt, and mainly incorporated, this year is the importance of planning all my writing pieces beforehand. Every time I was requested to write something, I used to write the first thing that came to my mind. However, since we learnt the relevance of the five steps in writing (pre-writing, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing), I began to pre-plan my writing, then to write and, before sharing or handing the final draft, I revise and edit it. In this way, my writings became more cleared and organized; since following an order makes the writing more understandable for the reader than writing as the ideas spring.

Another important thing I have adopted in my writing process is the use of different paragraphs according to what I aspire to express. For instance, if I have to compare and/or contrast two or more novels, now, I am able to do it in a better way, as we have learnt how to organize a contrastive paragraph. In this way, when I had to write a comparison essay between the novels “Eaters of the dead” and “Beowulf” for Language and Culture, I was able to fulfil the task, since I implemented this new knowledge.

However, there are some things that I still have to improve. For instance, my topic sentences are too weak. In consequence, I have to pay more attention to them while writing. One way of doing this, is always keeping in mind the main topic of my essay, so the topic sentence has coherence with the whole writing piece. Another way, is paraphrasing it in a way that it is not a simple sentence, but a more complex one. Yet, another problem is the weakness of my paragraphs as well. This can be solved by providing more supporting sentences and not just one as I had done. Either topic sentence or paragraph weakness, I still have to work hard in my writing pieces in order to pass the subject, but mainly to improve myself as a writer.

In all, there are various things that I have learnt and acquired during my writing process that had helped me improve. However, there are still some features that need my improvement, such as the case of topic sentences and the amount of supporting material included in each paragraph. Nevertheless, and even though it is not easy, I consider that I am able to progress in this features.

Vocabulary

• Aspire: (vb intransitive) usually followed by to or after: to yearn (for) or have a powerful or ambitious plan, desire, or hope (to do or be something): to aspire to be a great leader

• Beforehand: (adj , adv) early; in advance; in anticipation
• Flaccid: (adj) lacking firmness

• Fulfil: (vb transitive) to carry out or execute (a request, etc)

• Implement: (vb transitive) to carry out; put into action; perform: to implement a plan        

• Request: (vb transitive) to express a desire for, esp politely; ask for or demand: to request a bottle of wine
• Spring: (verb) to move or cause to move suddenly upwards or forwards in a single motion

Graphic Organizer:

Source:

Word Reference. http://www.wordreference.com/. Web. 14 Sept. 2013

Entry # 10: Essay

Essay from natycarla

Art: a Way of Expressing Feelings and Interacting

Much of the people enjoy going to art galleries, concerts or reading a pleasant book. In most of these cases, the artist behind all these art forms tries to communicate his public what his inner feelings and emotions are. And this is exactly what art is about: expressing oneself. However, art conveys a much deeper meaning; and this is the fact that it can provide disable people many opportunities they have never thought about. Through art people with either physical or mental limitations are able to communicate, to express themselves, and even to interact socially in a way that was not possible for them.

In the last few years, it became popular the insertion of art programs in prisons. These programs have the aim to “offer an engaging and humanising option for inmates to engage in the rehabilitative process” (Djurichlovic 12). The art programs are “beneficial as they provide the participant inmate with a positive relationship that is not based around authority, one that also provides a link to the outside world” (Djurichlovic 6). Thus, these programs are favourable to the individual prisoners as they can express their feelings, but at the same time, they are beneficial to the society as the prisoners are in contact with other people apart from their cell mates. Additionally, this helps the reinsertion of the prisoner into society as they acquire new skills that might help them survive once they are freed. In all, prison art programs have a positive result both for the individual person and the whole society.

 Painting, which is another way of expressing oneself, is thought to be exclusive for only few people. In this way, it is believed that mental or physical disabled people are not able to produce a masterpiece; however, “some of the best artists deal with disabilities in the everyday lives” (Angela West), and use art as a way of communicating with the rest of the world. Iris Grace Halmshaw is one of these artists. She is a three-year-old girl who was diagnosed with autism two years ago. Iris “cannot talk yet due to her autism but she is able to express herself through beautiful paintings that have been sold to collectors for hundreds of dollars” (Huffpost Arts & Culture). She began painting as part of her therapy and quickly, she began to love it. Irish, as many other disable artists, show that despite their mental or physical condition, they are able to develop into artists, even though their mental or physical conditions.

Contrary to the stereotype that deaf people cannot enjoy music, is the fact that they do enjoy music in diverse ways. One of them is through the vibrations produced when an instrument is played. A second way is signed songs, where they sign the lyrics, and at the same time “they put a lot of expression in their faces to convey the meaning of the words” (Samantha Monroe). Moreover, deaf people “perform music and create it as well” (Samantha Monroe); in other words, deaf people learn to play instruments, contrary to what is socially thought. The most renowned example is the German musician Ludwig van Beethoven; who despite being deaf composed and played symphonies in a way that almost anyone can do. However, he was not the only one; surely, there must be many more cases resembling Beethoven, where deaf people become musicians who delight people with their talent, in spite of their hearing problems.

It does not matter what kind of art -painting, music, dance or literature- is being used to express oneself. The important thing is that by means of any art form, people disabled or not, with either physical or mental limitations, or even prisoners, can be able to express their inner feelings and emotions. This is possible due to the fact that art is by no way discriminatory. On the contrary, it is by virtue of arts that many children and adults have managed to gain their insertion in society, such is the case of prisoners; or even, it made possible to open a channel of communication and social interactions, such as with autistic or deaf people. And above all, due to art many people have pursued their dreams of becoming artist even though their limitations.

Works Cited

-----.“Iris Halmshaw, 3-year-old with Autism, Can’t Talk; But her Beautiful Paintings Sell for Hundreds”. Huffpost Arts & Culture. Mar 7, 2013. Web. Jul 7, 2013. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/>

Djurichkovic, Alexandra. Art in Prison. A Literature Review of the Philosophies and Impacts of Visual Arts Programms for Correctional Populations. Australia: UTS Shopfron Student Series, 2011. Web. Jul 7, 2013. <http://epress.lib.uts.edu.au/>

Monroe, Samantha. “Deaf Music”. Music in the World. A Space to Explore Music and Meaning. Dec 2, 2012. Web. Jul 7, 2013. <http://blogs.longwood.edu/ >

West, Angela. “The Amazing Art of Disabled Artist”. Web Designer Depot. Mar 12, 2010. Web. Jul 7, 2013.  <http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/> 

Entry #9 - Concluding Paragraph

As it has been shown in cartoons and in several scientific researches the irresponsible use of cell phones while driving puts not only the driver's life at risk, but somebody else's. Many times, these imprudent drivers had only faced a light punishment, even in occasions were fatal accidents had occurred. This is why it is necessary the creation and implementation of a bill to regulate the use of cell phones on the road. In this way, the existence of such a firm law will impose specific punishments to negligent drivers; and as a consequence, many driving accidents would be avoided.

Entry #8 - Immigration

European Immigration after World War II

After World War II, the social conditions in the countries involved in the war were devastation, so many people decided to migrate to other countries. Argentina, as many countries of America, received an innumerable number of immigrants from countries such as Italy and Spain. These people were looking for a new beginning and a personal growth which could not be achieved in their native country as a consequence of the war. With themselves, the immigrants brought their customs and new ways of working and doing things. In this way, the countries which received immigrants began to grow and develop economic and socially. Clearly, immigrants managed to start over in a new country and , at the same time, they produce the improvement and development of social and economic conditions of those countries.

Entry #7

My paragraph
In my country, any person who is interested in tourism and sightseeing has a variety of cities to visit on holidays. For those who are interested in skiing or snowboarding on the mountains should visit the south of Argentina or the city of Mendoza. For those who want a warmer and less extreme holiday, their best option is to spend some weeks at the beach sunbathing. For the person who wants to be in direct contact with nature, should visit the city of Córdoba or Misiones, where he can see the waterfalls. This summary of cities to visit in Argentina shows that this country has a wide diversity of places to go on holiday.

Partner's Topic and Concluding Sentences
In my country there are many amazing places where tourists can do their favourite sport or just spend the time. For those who are interested in skiing or snowboarding on the mountains should visit the south of Argentina or the city of Mendoza. For those who want a warmer and less extreme holiday, their best option is to spend some weeks at the beach sunbathing. For the person who wants to be in direct contact with nature, should visit the city of Córdoba or Misiones, where he can see the waterfalls. This brief summary of the cities in Argentina is a useful tool for tourist to choose where they want to go to spend the time and to do whatever they like most.

Metacognitive Analysis
I believe that both paragraphs convey the same meaning and idea. However, the first topic sentence has a broader topic, while the second one is more specific. All the same, both topic sentences bear the same topic: what tourist can do in Argentina while they are on holiday. As regards the concluding sentences, I think that both are appropiete, however, the first one is more redundant, so I believe that the second concluding sentence is more suitable.

Structured Paragraph Writing

Writing Structured Paragraph

Three elements for successful writing:                                               

·         formal style

·         correct punctuation

·         paragraphing: clear and logical organization of the material to write

Paragraph:

·         a distinctive section in a piece of writing

·         contains related sentences.

·         deals and states one main idea/topic/concept

·         physically easy to identify: a new line for each paragraph.

·         well organized → interrelation and clear link between sentences (cohesion)

·         three qualities to construct a successful paragraph:

o   unity:

§  All sentences in a paragraph must show the same idea.

o   coherence:

§  all sentences clearly related and stick together

§  makes an easy reading

§  create a logical bridge from one sentence to another by:

-        repeating key words

-        substituting keywords with synonyms.

-        using pronouns to already mentioned nouns.

-        using transition words to progress through the text (E.g.: as a result, furthermore, similarly) and to indicate chronological order and relationships.

o   development:

§  the main idea is supported with evidence and examples to give it validity.

§  holds the readers’  interest and explores the topic fully

§  format: use detail and evidence to support the topic sentence.

§  illustrate the point with examples → convinced the reader that the topic sentence statement is valid.

·        parts of a paragraph:

o   Topic sentence

§  Opening and first sentence that clearly state the main idea of the paragraph.

§  Interesting topic and opinion.

§  Not over detailed.

§  Attract reader’s attention.

§  May go elsewhere

§  Includes two parts:

-        The topic, which is the subject of the paragraph-- what to write about

-        The controlling idea, which is the comment about the topic and might answer to a wh-question (who, where, when, what, why, how), each of which is to be developed on one different paragraph.

o   Body

§  heart of the paragraph

§  supporting details/arguments for the topic sentence.

§  solid and concrete details in order of importance or chronology.

§  two ways for ordering details.

-        by order of importance: the strongest argument (that stands out)

-        order of chronology of events: specific order in which an event happens

o   concluding sentence

§  summarize the main points of the paragraphs

§  may not be present.

§  in a long paragraph helps summarize the main idea.

§  gives the reader a final comment on the topic.

§  leaves the reader with the most important ideas.

§  last thing the reader reads: last impression

§  has two functions:

-         remind audience what you are writing about → restate topic sentence in a different way.

-        keeping them thinking.

T.E.E Rule

·         T : Topic sentence

·         E: Explain

·         E: Example / Evidence

Introducing paragraph:               

·         must state the topic of assignment and a briefly comment of its importance → catch the reader attention and go directly to the point of the essay.

·         state the main argument/issue discussed.

·         give intention of how you intend to answer the question → state your plan

Concluding paragraph: 

·         summarize the main point by using different words and changing the way not the contents in a few sentences

·         state assignment main conclusions.

·         must satisfy the reader → the question must be answered.    

·         make it original and striking

·         use your own voice and opinion

Closing paragraph

·         has to keep readers thinking after they finish reading

·         don´t:

o   introduce new material

o   end with a generalization

o   use quotation

Sources

Parts of a Paragraph - English Academic Writing Introduction. (2009). Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=cCuExRE6N-4. Retrieved: May 25, 2013

Writing Structured Paragraphs. (2009). Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=w183qB0KDFg. Retrieved: May 25, 2013

Students:

• Caputto, Natalia
• Sarramea, Carolina

She is a writer

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was born in Nigeria in 1977. After studying medicine and pharmacy for a year and a half, she moved to the United States to study communications and political science. She, then, completed a master in creative writing, and of Arts in African studies.

Chimamanda is the author of three novels and a short story collection. She had received many awards and distinctions for her writings. Moreover, her works have been translated into thirty languages, and some of them had appeared in various publications. Nowadays, Chimamanda divides her time between Nigeria and the United States.

“The danger of a single story”

In the video ‘The danger of a single story’, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie tries to make aware her audience that are the consequences of a single story. To start with, a single story could create negative stereotypes, which make a story the only story possible. Secondly, and related to this, is the concept of power; that is to say, the ability to tell a story of another person or society, and make it definitive, as the only existing truth. This is exactly what happened to Chimamanda when she first went to university, and her roommate was impressed with her good way of talking. This was the result of a misconception of African people that she had had for a long time ago, because she only knew a single story. Moreover, a single story, and as it is evidenced in the example, leads to the impediment to view the other as a similar human being. Therefore, a single story does not only have the power to produce stereotypes and make this story the only one, but it can also makes the recognition of the other human as an equal to us.

Commonwealth Lecture

In this second video, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie talks about the importance of literature, however, not any literature but a realistic one. To begin with, literature is more than just words, it shows people the differences they have as human beings, and at the same time it delights and instructs them. Realist literature, at the same time, is the process of turning facts into truth. As it is read, people merge into bodies that are not of their own, empathizing with the other and, at the same time, evoking that as human beings, people are emotional. Additionally, realist literature has the power to remind human beings that they are similar, and thus, literature transmits a sense of belonging. In this way, people become conscious that all beings constitute part of a common and equal humanity. To conclude, realistic literature might determine that humans are emotional, and consequently, they are able to empathize with others; however, it also demonstrates that people are not alone, but they belong to an extended humanity.

Sources

Tunca, Daria. The Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Website. Université de Liège, 2004 – 2013. Web. 23 May  2013. 

Citation Rules

Modern Language Association: Citations Rule

MLA provides a guide of how to present an academic paper, and how to cite appropriately.

Paper Layout:

·         The paper should have 1” margin in the four sides.

·         The font should be a readable one, so it is advisable to use Times New Roman; size 11 or 12.

·         The paper should be double spaced.

·         It should have a header, placed on the right margin. And it should contain the last name of the author and the page number.

·         The first page should contain: the name of the writer, the teacher’s name, the course information, the date, and the title of the paper. The latter should be centred and should have capitalized every letter expect for articles, coordination conjunctions and prepositions.

·         In the body, all paragraphs should be indented half inch to the right.

·         In the last page, should have the title “Works Cited” centred, and then all the citations. All the lines after the first one must be intended half inch to the right.

Citing a Book:

The basic format for citation a book is:

Last name, First name. Title of Book. City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication. Medium of Publication.

For example:

Henley, Patricia. The Hummingbird House. Denver: MacMurray, 1999. Print.

When a book has more than one author, we should put the last name followed by the first name of the first author; and the rest of the authors are written first by their first name, and then followed by the last name.

For example:

Gillespie, Paula, and Neal Lerner. The Allyn and Bacon Guide to Peer Tutoring. Boston: Allyn, 2000. Print.

However, when there are more than three authors, we can either list all the authors’ names or just list the first author followed by the phrase ’et al.’, which means in Latin “and others”. So the two options would be:

Wysocki, Anne Frances, et al. Writing New Media: Theory and Applications for Expanding the Teaching of Composition. Logan: Utah State UP, 2004. Print.

Wysocki, Anne Frances, Johndan Johnson-Eilola, Cynthia L. Selfe, and Geoffrey Sirc. Writing New Media: Theory and Applications for Expanding the Teaching of Composition. Logan: Utah State UP, 2004. Print.

When we cite more than one book by the same author, we list the books alphabetically by the title. For the first entry we provide the author’s last name followed by the first name, however, for the rest of the entries, we use three hyphens and a period instead f the author’s name.  For example:

Palmer, William J. Dickens and New Historicism. New York: St. Martin's, 1997. Print.

---. The Films of the Eighties: A Social History. Carbondale: Southern Illinois UP, 1993. Print.

Sometimes, we may encounter a book with no author. In this case, we list these entries alphabetically by the title of the book. For instance:

Encyclopedia of Indiana. New York: Somerset, 1993. Print.

If we want to cite a poem or story the basic format of citation is:

Last name, First name. "Title of Poem." Title of Collection. Ed. Editor's Name(s). City of Publication: Publisher, Year. Page range of entry. Medium of Publication.

For example:

Burns, Robert. "Red, Red Rose." 100 Best-Loved Poems. Ed. Philip Smith. New York: Dover, 1995. 26. Print.

Citing Periodicals (magazines, newspapers, and scholarly journals):

The basic format for citing a magazine article is:

Author(s). "Title of Article." Title of Periodical Day Month Year: pages. Medium of publication.

The month should be abbreviated. An example would be:

Poniewozik, James. "TV Makes a Too-Close Call." Time 20 Nov. 2000: 70-71. Print.

The basic format for citing a newspaper article is very similar to the one of a magazine. The only difference is that we should indicate which edition is taken from (early or late edition). In this case, the identification of the edition should be after the date. For example:

Brubaker, Bill. "New Health Center Targets County's Uninsured Patients." Washington Post 24 May 2007: LZ01. Print.

Krugman, Andrew. "Fear of Eating." New York Times 21 May 2007 late ed.: A1. Print.

Another thing we should bear in mind when we cite an article of a newspaper is that if the newspaper is a less well-known or local publication, we should include the city name and state between brackets after the title of the newspaper.

Behre, Robert. "Presidential Hopefuls Get Final Crack at Core of S.C. Democrats." Post and Courier [Charleston, SC] 29 Apr. 2007: A11. Print.

Trembacki, Paul. "Brees Hopes to Win Heisman for Team." Purdue Exponent [West Lafayette, IN] 5 Dec. 2000: 20. Print.

To cite a review, we follow this basic format:

 Review Author. "Title of Review (if there is one)." Rev. of Performance Title, by Author/Director/Artist. Title of Periodical day month year: page. Medium of publication.

For example:

Seitz, Matt Zoller. "Life in the Sprawling Suburbs, If You Can Really Call It Living." Rev. of Radiant City, dir. Gary Burns and Jim Brown. New York Times 30 May 2007 late ed.: E1. Print.

When citing an article in a scholarly journal, we follow the next basic format:

Author(s). "Title of Article." Title of Journal Volume.Issue (Year): pages. Medium of publication.

Bagchi, Alaknanda. "Conflicting Nationalisms: The Voice of the Subaltern in Mahasweta Devi's Bashai Tudu." Tulsa Studies in Women's Literature 15.1 (1996): 41-50. Print.

Citing Web Publications:

The basic format for citing from a web page is the following:

Editor, author, or compiler name (if available). Name of Site. Version number. Name of institution/organization affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher), date of resource creation (if available). Medium of publication. Date of access.

For example:

The Purdue OWL Family of Sites. The Writing Lab and OWL at Purdue and Purdue U, 2008. Web. 23 Apr. 2008.

In the case that there is no indication of the publisher or sponsor name, we should use the abbreviation n.p. Additionally, if there is no publication date, we use the abbreviation n.d. Moreover, if we are require providing a page, but there is no one provided in the source, we use the abbreviation n. pag.

In case that we have to include the URL, this one should appear in angle brackets after the date of access. For example:

Aristotle. Poetics. Trans. S. H. Butcher. The Internet Classics Archive. Web Atomic and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 13 Sept. 2007. Web. 4 Nov. 2008. ‹http://classics.mit.edu/›.

Sources:

OWL Purdue Online Writing Lab. The Writing Lab & OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. Web. 14 May 2013.

Effective Writing Center. MLA Formatting. University of Maryland University College. Web. 14 May 2013.

You tube. OWL Purdue, 12 August 2012. Web. 14 May 2013

Parragraphs

Paragraph 1:  Conversation between two friends.

- Oh, I almost forget to tell you the most important thing! Yesterday, when I went out to have lunch, I met Lance Armstrong, the American cyclist. I was so excited after meeting him, that I spent the rest of the day watching the cycling on television. Talking about bikes, have you got yours mended yet?

- Yes. Tomorrow I have to go to look for it.

Paragraph 2: A telephone conversation between two friends:

- Hello, Marie. How are you?

- Hi, Jenny! Fine and you?

-  Great!

- What are you going to do this holiday? We were planning with the girls to go on holiday all together to the Caribbean. Would you like to join us?

-  I don’t know, yet. All depends on the days I have the holiday in the job…  Besides, I was planning to go somewhere with my sisters, you know, to cheer them…

-  Yes, you are right. How are they assimilating your dad’s death?

-  Darlene is as miserable as ever, and Jackie never comes to visit us. Anyway, I’m sure you don’t want to hear about my problems, so let’s get back to those holiday plans.

 -  Come on! You know you can lean on me, always!

-Yeah, I know. Thank you my friend. I’ll let you know about the holiday.

-  Yes, don’t worry about it.

"I am a writer" - improved version & reflexion

Writing is a skill we start developing since we are very young. At about the age of five I learnt how to write. First I began to write my name and simple and familiar words. Then as I grew older, I began to write simple sentences, and finally, without noticing, I was able to write long pieces of writing.

Ever since school, I was asked to write. Although I was not required to write a specific genre, I had always had to write the answers to an exam, and in this way, I needed to make myself clear. However, in the last year of secondary school, our language teacher, asked as to write in pairs an essay about a novel. When I saw the results of my writing, I began to see writing as an important skill.

However, it was not until my first year in the teaching training collage, when I was required to be able to write successful a writing piece, that I have realized the importance of writing. At the same time, I became conscious of how good I was evolving in this skill I have always disgusted, mainly because of my lack of imagination.

As in my years on the teaching training collage I had to fulfil more and more writings, my writing abilities increased. And slowly, I began to appreciate writing. In this way, I commenced to believe myself as a writer, though not as a professional writer. 

Reflexion

I believe that if I had used the different steps in writing, the composition “I am a writer” would be much better. To start with, I should have written down all the ideas. And then I should have written some sentences and paragraphs related to those ideas. Once I had done this, I should have begun to write the composition, instead of writing as the ideas crossed my mind.

I am a writter - 1st version

Ever since I was a little girl, my parents and my school teacher taught me how to write. I first began to write my name and then, little by little, I started writing sentences.
However, it was not until secondary school that I first wrote a composition. I had never paid attention to it, as I hated writing, especially because of my lack of imagination to write about a specific topic in a limited time, as an hour of class.
Nevertheless, on the last year of secondary school, our language teacher asked as to write a composition in pairs. Since that day, I thought that writing was an important thing in my life.
As time passed, and I continued my studies at the teaching training course, I started to believe more and more the idea that I was a writer indeed. I still consider that I am not good enough in writing, but somehow, I managed to get to the fourth year of my course of studies and I had passed successfully all three years of Written Expression.

Welcome!

Hi! I am Natalia Caputto, and welcome to my blog! Here I will be uploading all my writing pieces for Written Expression4. Please bear in mind that I am only a student of the English Teaching Training College, so you will not find any master piece of writing…

 As I just said before, my name is Natalia Caputto, and I am in the last year of my career. So hopefully this year I will be receiving my degree of English teacher.

However, being an English teacher was not what I thought I would become. The last year of high school I was convinced that I wanted to be an English translator, but as my level of English was below the one needed for the admission to the career, I began my studies in the English Teaching Training College. Year after year, I began to love this profession more and more. But still, I am not abandoning the idea to study English translation.

I hope you like my writings. And in case you encounter any mistake please do let me know, all suggestions are welcome.