"Electronic Textbook" English 111: Class Resources and Learning Links

Prof. R. Dollieslager at Thomas Nelson.

Last Updated Apr.. 2021

Email me at dollier@tncc.edu

Jump to "Tracking the Truth" resources.

Essay Writing

• Similarities in the Reading and Writing Processes
• The 5-pararaph essay (10 min.)
• Introductory paragraphs video (4 min.)
• Thesis statements video (4 min.)
• Introductory Paragraphs: Do's and Don'ts
• Concluding paragraphs--what to do.
• Concluding paragraphs--what NOT to do.
• Sample research paper: This shows the format of an academic essay including the works cited section. It is what your papers for English classes should look like.
• Purdue University OWL videos on writing, editing, revising, and researching.
• Grading Criteria for Essays (and other projects)
• Lesson Plan: "Langton Hughes' Defining Moment"

Note-taking, Study, Free Handbooks

• View Steve Piscitelli's video on SQ4R note taking
• View this Video on how to write Cornell notes
• Cornell notes format for lectures and reading.

• James Madison University's Learning Toolbox.This website includes tools to help you improve in the eight academic areas of Math, Organization, Study Skills, 
  Test Taking Skills, Note Taking, Reading, Writing, and Advanced Thinking.
• "OER" (Free) College Writing Handbooks and Online Writing Labs: handbooks, workbooks, help desks. My favorite on-line handbook/workbook is also linked here.  It is the Guide to Grammar and Writing
• Grammar Bytes. Grammar Instruction With Attitude: Daily grammar work out, grammar glossary, grammar exercises, MOOC (enroll in a free Massive Open Online Course), handouts, Power Point presentations, grammar videos, tips and rules--and it's actually FUN! Great stuff for teachers and for students alike.

• The "Lost Generation"? No. Turn it around. It's your choice.

Researching and Documenting

• Little Seagull Handbook with InQuizitive lessons.
• Sample research paper: This shows the format of an academic essay including the works cited section. It is what your papers for English classes should look like.
• Avoiding plagiarism by citing (videos):
  1. Avoiding plagiarism and using MLA documentation style (16 min.)
  2. What do I need to cite? (1 min.)
  3. Plagiarism: You can't just change a few words! (1 min.)
  4. Quoting and paraphrasing (6 min.)
  5. Citing without quoting (3 min.)
  6. Citing websites (2 min.)
  7. Purdue University OWL, MLA-style in-text citing, “signal phrase” and “parenthetical.” Please pay CLOSE attention to where the other punctuation marks are placed with regard to the parenthetical citations and particularly with the “close quote” marks and periods at the end of the sentences. (3 min)
  8. How to cite a Youtube video.

Tracking the Truth

• The Congressional Record: Track daily debates and search for your representatives' and senators' voting records.
• Fact Check.Org A Project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center: In an era of ever-increasing "fake news" sources, unreal "reality TV," entrenched political bias, science deniers, and rampant propagandizing, check your facts before you espouse your opinions or quote falsehoods.
• Fact Checker. A service of The Washington Post
• Library of Congress The largest repository of primary sources of information aside form the Internet itself--but much easier to find.
• Snopes "Welcome to Snopes.com, the definitive Internet reference source for urban legends, folklore, myths, rumors, and misinformation."
• Urban Legends "Where you'll find the most popular urban legends and be entertained with email rumors, recent internet hoaxes and stories you swore actually happened to your friend's, cousin's, pet sitter's, roommate, when she was in college."
• "Fake Or Real? How To Self-Check The News And Get The Facts" NPR, 5 Dec. 2016
• How does your favorite news source rate on the ‘Truthiness’ Scale? Consult This Chart.

Assistive Reading, Writing and Editing Technologies:

• The "Speak" function in M.S. Word
• Speechnotes Google Chrome browser and cell phone voice-to-text app
• Read Aloud: A Text-to-Speech Voice Reader for Google Chrome browser. To install it, just click on the "Add to Chrome" tab. This can also be downloaded to mobile devices from the App Store.
• Natural Readers reads texts aloud by drag and drop or download.
• You will find Paper Rater useful in providing computer feedback on your papers
• Grammar/spell check with M.S. Word, Grammarly and Canvas, which has a good grammar checker built into the Turnitin documentation checker.

Log-in Links and Communication Etiquette

Login Links

• Little Seagull Handbook
• InQuizitive lessons.
• New York Times in Education.
• New York Times newspaper.
• Canvas direct log-in

Communication Etiquette

• Email etiquette and protocols: Prof. Richardson's advice. (2:30 mins.) Professor DeCoster's advice (10 mins.)
• E-mail Do's and Don't's poster created by Eng 111-03 Fall 2015. Follow this etiquette and these protocols when emailing and texting your class colleagues, your professors, and everyone.