Chris Greger

English 46B
Spring 2019

Discussion & Participation Assignment:

Reading Journals
After each reading, sit for a moment and think about one specific part of the text that caught your
attention, that stood out for any reason, that you thought was strange or perplexing or interesting
or surprising. Then, do the following things.

 On a piece of paper, write your name, the date the reading assignment was due, and the
title of the text you’re responding to.

 Underline the specific passage in the text that provoked your question or response. The
question/observation might have something to do with the passage’s meaning or
implications, or it might connect to a broader idea outside the text. Note: try to focus on
content, form or ideas – not just an “I don’t get it” question, like, “huh?”

 On your journal page, write out your question or observation (as well as the page number
of the relevant passage).

 Add a sentence or two about the significance of your question – why it’s interesting, what
its implications are.

 Possibly, add a few sentences speculating as to possible answers to your question.

 Optional: if there are any other passages in the text that seem to connect to the question
you’re raising, identify & underline them as well.

These don’t have to be long or intricate, but I would like one journal entry for each day; I’ll be
collecting these periodically and without warning, so please keep your journals current and bring
them to class each period. I’ll be giving them back to you, without grades but with comments,
within two class periods.

Please note that these are meant to be informal assignments, a chance for you to articulate
genuine questions, perplexities, interests or enthusiasms about the text you’ve just read; for this
reason, they don’t need to be typed and can be fairly succinct (so long as they’re thoughtful!). If
you write them in your notebook, though, when I collect them I’ll ask that you tear them out and
put them into your manila folder. This shouldn’t take tons of extra time; it’s really a glorified
form of annotation (plus, it’ll help with paper topics and exams).