Week 9 Notes from Sister Bowen

Dear Class,

Welcome to a fresh week with no mistakes in it! (This statement is loosely derived from Annie's "Tomorrow" and Marilla Cuthbert's advice to Anne in the movie Anne of Avonlea.)

Reflecting on Week 8:

In addition to our heavy life-and-death reading last week, we got to examine our own conclusions about the characters in the three short stories: Did the characters act well? Did they get what they deserved? How might we have acted in similar circumstances? I hope you benefited from a lighter writing week and less homework.

I graded your essays and offered video feedback on them. Please review and apply that feedback. I can see who has watched their feedback and who hasn't on Youtube, and I care deeply about you reviewing your feedback so you can see how I interacted with your essay and also see my suggestions about how to strengthen your future work. If you don't review the feedback, it means that everything I did to help you was in vain. I'm thankful for your prayers on my behalf as I work to serve you well. Reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns about the feedback I gave on your work. I will grade all of your Week 8 work by Thursday evening.

Looking Forward to Week 9:

• This week, we get to read more poetry and short stories.

• There are only two lessons this week; one of them asks you to participate in some small group work. You will automatically be taken to your small group when you click on the Lesson 21 discussion board, so don't feel like most of the class has blown off the assignment--they are participating elsewhere. Be sure to post twoard the start of the week so your peers have someone with whom they may converse and learn.

• The Week 9 Assignment page reminds you that your final essay is due in Week 13 and your final exam (Test #2) is due during Week 14. Review the Assignments page to help you begin preparing for these two major tasks.

• Morgan and Maryandra are leading our Questions for your Classmates Week 9 Discussion.

• Extra Credit Option: After reviewing my feedback and making revisions to Essay #1, I suggest submitting it to Outlet, the BYU-I Art and Literary Journal. Here is more information about the magazine. Let me know you submitted it and I will add 1 point to your Essay #1 score. Make sure to let me know if your work gets accepted for publication, and post that accomplishment on your resume!

I love reading literature and discussing it with you, my fellow saints and scholars.

Spiritual Thread: The Message Meant for You:

 

In Relief Society yesterday, we discussed how strengthening our faith in Christ strengthens homes and families, and I shared how reading the scriptures and Conference articles helps me become more spiritually intuitive. Reading an article from the Women's session of Conference yesterday morning, I suddenly thought about my grandma. I realized that, with my mom out of town, someone needed to provide dinner for my grandma. I texted my mom to see if I should offer a meal or if someone else was already planning to feed her. My mom said to please feed my grandma, and I brought over dinner. I wouldn't have thought of my grandma if I hadn't been reading that article. When we're reading, we get impressions. This week, as you read work for our class and do your own personal reading, what impressions are you having? What are you doing as a result of these impressions?

Sincerely,

Sister Bowen

Week 8 Notes from Sister Bowen

Dear Class,

You have officially survived the first half of our class. Way to go.

Reflecting on Week 7:

• Your insights in the discussion boards were so interesting to read. I know it was a stressful two weeks in class as you crafted your first major essay and took Test #1, and I am impressed with your hard work.  I love that we add reading gorgeous literature to the mix of our current chaos, and I feel honored to work with you.

• I received your mid-course feedback, and I just want to say thank you for being so kind and helpful. One student asked for more specific feedback about what is going well in his/her work, so I'm trying to highlight strengths better, and several students said it has been challenging taking this course as it pilots in I-Learn 3.  Thank you so much for your patience and diligence as we work through the bugs. I spend hours dealing with these issues every week, so I can relate to your frustrations and confusion. Keep reaching out when you see problems; I'll keep doing my best to serve you, as will our course designer. We want you to be able to focus on the incredible content and our group learning in our class. I promise this class can be life changing if you let it shape you!

• Finally, your tests were wonderful to read. Although I get a sense for writing ability in the small writing assignments, the essays shine bright lights on strengths and weaknesses. I love the chance to help you see what I see and give you formative feedback. I've attached a few strong sample student essays for your reading enjoyment.

Looking toward Week 8:

• There are only two lessons this week.

• Jennifer D. and Laura will be leading discussion in our Questions for your classmates: Week 8 board this week. If you have a question you are dying to ask the class about our reading this week, fell free to post it by Tuesday evening.

• I plan to grade your Week 7 small assignments by Tuesday evening and your essays by Saturday evening.

Spiritual Thread: Angels among Us

It took almost two hours to discover my spiritual thread topic this morning.

My husband is usually very quiet when he gets ready in the morning if I'm sleeping. This morning was different. I could hear him muttering and grumbling before 6 am, and he finally declared that he couldn't wear his Batman costume because it was too small. Mind you, he'd bought it on Saturday--how much bigger could he have gotten in 40 hours?!--and he had already snipped the mask that came with the costume to make it fit better, so there was no returning that costume. $50 were now down the drain, and then he dealt another mortal blow: he'd need to use the Dracula costume he'd bought as a back-up! So we were $100 into our morning. . .and the baby woke up.

I was able to put the baby back to sleep, lecture my husband about all the money he'd cost us and suggest that he find some way of compensating for the loss; I finally offered one nice compliment--he looked scary. We said our morning prayer and off I went on a run, musing on possible spiritual thread topics. We could talk about gluttony (all those delicious treats that make Batman costumes too small), bounty, keeping an eternal perspective rather than letting the small things get in our way. . . and then I thought about all my nagging and scolding from this morning and found our topic: angels.

I was an angel at our neighborhood Halloween party, and the irony of my costume didn't escape me. I want to be an angelic influence, and I will this week! Please review Elder Holland's "The Tongue of Angels" conference talk and share some things you have done/are doing to be an angel this week.

I am cheering you on and praying for your happiness and success!

Sincerely,

Sister Bowen

Week 7 Notes from Sister Bowen

Dear Class,

Welcome to another busy week in class! During this upcoming week, the reading isn't heavy, but there are three lessons with accompanying tasks, and most importantly, your first major essay is due at the end of the week. I hope your excitement to submit a gorgeous essay trumps the feeling of being overwhelmed! I am praying for you.

Reflecting on Week 6:

I appreciated your examination of "Prufrock" as a love poem and modernist piece. And you submitted your Test #1. Way to go! Some of you may have seen that I changed your grade on the Week 5 themes and symbols assignment. When I saw the assignment a few weeks ago, responding to peers was required. Now, those instructions have disappeared; therefore, you shouldn't have lost points if you didn't respond to peers. I gave full credit to all of you who made your initial post on that board before the Saturday night deadline.

Also, I have been asking you to post your small assignments in the comments area on submission pages. Unfortunately, you cannot paste your assignment in the comment box unless you also attach it. Will you please attach and paste your assignments on the submission pages? It will make them visible to me so I can spend more time with your work and less time waiting for your assignments to load. 

Looking Forward to Week 7:

 Here are a few tips for success this week:

• Make sure to sign up to meet with me about your essay if you'd like some one-on-one help. I-Learn 3 doesn't support wiki sign up pages, so I've posted a sign-up board in Questions and Conversations entitled "Student/Teacher Conference Sign-Up." You need to post your essay drafts at least 24 hours before your scheduled meeting if you want me to read your work before we meet.
• If possible, I suggest completing the reading homework and lesson assignments as quickly as possible at the start of the week so you can then work on your essay.
• If you get the lesson work done by Tuesday evening, and just check in on the student-led discussion boards every day, you will have four days to develop your essay and get it polished for a Saturday submission.

I plan to grade your midterms by Friday evening. I won't have a ton of time to provide feedback with the quick turn-around and the student conferences. I'll read your essay through, demonstrate the score I would award in each category, and leave an additional note if I see a glaring weaknesses that needs to be addressed, hopefully helping you make any changes necessary to Essay #1 before you submit it on Saturday.

Understand that I look at your Test #1 differently than I look at your Essay #1. I recognize that it is timed, no one has peer reviewed it, and, at most, you have had one week to prepare for Test #1, whereas you have had several weeks to craft Essay #1. Both assignments are challenging, but for different reasons. I'm looking less for perfection in Test #1 than in Essay #1. Still, my feedback on Test #1 may help you as you prepare Essay #1, so I'll get through grading as quickly as I can.

 Best of luck to you and me this week!

Spiritual Thought: Miracles and Blessings

In sacrament meeting today, a speaker asked us to take a few moments to contemplate miracles and blessings we'd seen in the past week. I thought about the miracle of my nephew's birth this weekend. We have been on vacation in St. George for a few days, and my sister was five weeks away from her due date with her sixth child. She went into labor last night, and we were so worried about her little baby. As I drove to the hospital with my mom last night, just anxious to lend support and love, we passed the St. George temple Visitor's Center. The Christus was lit up, and I immediately worried about my little nephew going straight back to his Savior without us getting to love him and raise him. Amazingly, my sweet little nephew was a whopping 6.6 pounds, his lungs worked, and he and my sister were able to come to our condo tonight. I just can't believe this happened, and I am so thankful. What blessings and miracles have you seen this week? 

Sincerely,

Sister Bowen