P12: Advice

If you could send a message back in time, what would you tell yourself about LA100, that you wish you had known at the beginning of this course?

What do you think a future LA100 student should know about this course? (I'm not thinking of a specific rule of punctuation or that the blue chair in my office is surprisingly soft; rather, I'm thinking of a big-picture issue.)

Remember to keep in mind the lesson about normative language. Rather than simply giving orders ("You should get all your papers in on time,") demonstrate your ability to persuade. ("The consequences for missing a paper deadline are much more serious in LA100 than they were in your high school English class. In high school, papers were worth a smaller percentage of your grade, you had more time to work on them during class time, and it was usually possible to erase a late penalty by asking a teacher for an extra credit assignment. But in college... ")

Remember also to SHOW with vivid details. Rather than listing assorted helpful tips as they pop into your head, instead try bringing your reader along on a particular day when you learned something specific that you wish you had known. As always, SHOW only those details that serve the point you want to make. (If your reader doesn't need to know what you had for breakfast or the color of your sister's hair, leave it out.)