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For this assignment, imagine that you are the author of the “For Dummies” series of books. You know the ones: “Car Maintenance for Dummies,” “Dog Training for Dummies,” “ACT for Dummies,” etc. Your task for this assignment is to claim to be an expert on something—anything. Studying, sleeping, playing Playstation, skiing, playing hockey, procrastinating, eating at a restaurant—anything that you know a lot about or are interested in researching intensely. Check out for www.dummies.com for ideas, and to analyze some of the assumptions the Dummies Guide series makes about its audience--another term we'll be dealing with this unit. (Or, check out www.clicknotes.com for the literary alternative to the Dummie's guides.) Write a 5-7 page, informational manual explaining how someone else could become familiar with your topic. Be sure to include: key terms and/or words that could orient someone to your topic, things to know, things that must be done or avoided, helpful hints for success, etc. The purpose is to make someone a virtual expert on the subject or action after reading your paper. You, however, have to decide how much of a "dummie" your audience is. If you assume your audience knows almost nothing, write the paper as if they don't. If they're already experts, there's bound to be information they don't need to know. (For example, if you're writing a guide for people to learn how to coach hockey, you can assume they know the game already.) Either way, assume your audience has come to your paper for information and instruction. Your instructions should be thorough and easily understandable, and they should also follow a logical order. Hint: Don't pick a topic that can't be explained in 4-5 pages. Something like "Baseball for Dummies" would be too big a topic. Instead, narrow it down to "The Best Way to Be A Cub Fan for Dummies." This assignment is also a research assignment. You must use 4-5 outside sources to back up your information. Use at least one book and one print journal (scholarly journal, magazine, or newspaper). Internet sources are o.k. to use, but make sure they are legitimate sources for information. Whether through direct quote or paraphrase, use these sources appropriately and effectively. Make sure they are used to offer extra information and/or back up your statements concerning the topic discussed. Cite correctly in MLA or APA format, and include a “Works Cited” page. |
