September 11 Paper Requirements

Write notes of any information that could be included in your writing or any other facts which interest you.  Use the paper I gave you for note-taking. Your notes will be graded mostly based on your effort.  Nobody will be allowed to print any information from a web site.

After watching me "model" an interview, you will need to conduct an interview of your own.  The interviewee should be at least 28 years older than you.  You must take notes during the interview and, using those notes, you need to include at least one paragraph in your paper.

REMEMBER THESE THREE THINGS:
1.  Your writing must be 6-8 paragraphs in length (including the two introductory paragraphs).
2.  At least one of your paragraphs must be based on the interview you did.
3.  At least one of your paragraphs must be based on your notes or research.

  Choose at least four (no more than six) of the following prompts:

The Morning
**What was your morning like before any news was reported to you?
**Where were you when you found out what happened?  Who told you?  What did you say/think/do? 
**Interview somebody who is at least 28 years older than you.  You could use his or her information for this heading.

What Happened?
**What were the actual events?
**Using your own research, put this into your own words.

Why the Towers Fell  ***USE THE VIDEO WE WATCH FOR THIS HEADING!***
**We'll be watching a video about this. You are allowed to take notes on that video and use them to form this paragraph.  (Note: On average, I've had 6-8 students in each class choose this option for one of the headings.)

Thoughts That Day
**How did you feel that day?  What was going through your mind?
**Interview somebody who is at least 28 years older than you.

The Days Following
**What were your thoughts in the days and weeks following September 11?
**Interview somebody who is at least 28 years older than you.

American Reactions
**How did Americans react shortly after the events of September 11? 
**There are a few web sites with this information, but you may have to interview somebody older to find out how Americans all over our country reacted.

Reaction Worldwide
**What were the opinions of other countries?
**Using your own research, put this into your own words.

Changes
**In what ways has the United States and/or Americans changed since this dreadful day?
**Interview somebody who is at least 28 years older than you or do some research.

Why?
**Why do you think this happened?  What explanation(s) do some of the "experts" give?
**Interview somebody who is at least 28 years older than you or do some research.

Prevention
**How could we have prevented this?  What could we do to prevent a second awful attack?
**Interview somebody who is at least 28 years older than you or do some research.

Twenty-two Years Later
**How do you feel about what happened 22 years ago?   Have your views changed?  How can you make a difference?
****Interview somebody who is at least 28 years older than you or do some research.

***Notice that no paragraph loaded with a bunch of random facts will be allowed.

                                                                Grading
EMPHASIS: USE SPECIFIC/PRECISE NOUNS (Example: Change "...the men sprayed water on..."  to  "...the firefighters sprayed water on..."
  Fully explain your thoughts, opinions, memories, or the facts regarding that day.  Use topic sentences.  Include a conclusion at the end of your paper.  This paper is worth 30 quiz/test points.  I will be grading on sentence structure, clarity, grammar, capitalization, and punctuation.  I will be looking for ACCURATE information.  You will not be graded on your viewpoints, but how well you explain yourself.  Use "strong" paragraphs (at least five sentences...but no more than eight or nine).  Grading will also be based on your effort.

  Your rough draft is to be typed.  It will be revised using your printed copy.

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