The prairie sky

We've been talking about the prairies this week, so I thought I'd point you to the "Seven Wonders of Canada" website created by CBC. This was a nationwide contest to choose what Canadians thought to be our country's greatest wonders. Naturally, to this prairie boy at least, the prairie sky was one of them.

This video clip from the CBC news will show you just what I'm talking about.

Final assignment 2008

The final project for this course gives you the opportunity to write a paper on anything connected to Canadian culture that interests you. Your topic could stem from something we've covered in the class, something you learned about in Ottawa, or anything else about Canada you'd like to explore in greater detail. When you're thinking about what to write, cast your net widely. Your paper could be on anything from an historical event or an aspect of Canadian politics, to hockey in Canadian culture or any of the books we've read this semester.

That said, your paper must also have an argument, a thesis that you are setting out to prove with the research that you've done. When using your research, make sure that we still hear your voice and ideas and that you're not simply stitching together many different pieces of information that you've picked up from elsewhere. Finding that balance between simply describing your topic and analyzing what you think is interesting about it. This one of the key things you need to do to write a good research paper.

Your paper will, as I suggest above, need to to involve a fair amount of research. You can use the internet, but you also will need to use the library. At least two of the sources you cite in your essay must be PRINT sources that you located at the library. If you've not yet started to explore the resources our library has to offer, this is your opportunity to do so. You can include images and even multimedia if you wish (you could send your paper to me electronically or even make it a blog posting!), but not to such a degree that it overwhelms your text.

Before you begin researching, you must clear your topic with me. By December the 10th at the latest, submit to me a proposal outlining your topic and the approach you are going to take. Your proposal should also discuss what kind of sources you plan on using and should show me that you've already done some preliminary research on your topic.

Word length: 2000-2500 words (roughly 8-10 pages)
Due date: 12/19, 8:00 AM (at the absolute latest)

Top 5 Canadian songs

Here's your assignment in place of Friday's class. Post a comment to this blog entry where you list your top 5 Canadian songs from the iPod. Make sure to explain the reasons for each choice.

See you after the Thanksgiving break!

Readings for Nov. 19

Alice Munro: Miles City, Montana (p. 656)

Canada at War - resources

The Memory Project Digital Archive

"The Digital Archive officially launched on the anniversary of D-Day on June 6th, 2003. Explore over 85 years of military history through hundreds of first-hand accounts and original artifacts shared by veterans from across Canada."

Canada and the First World War

An online exhibit from the Canadian War Museum

Remembrance

Information on Remembrance Day in Canada and all that it signifies

Podcast assignment 2008

Create a 7-10 minute podcast on a Canadian topic that you find interesting. This could be anything from your take on our Ottawa experience, an interesting event in the history of Canada, Canada/US relations, or even your favourite Canadian band, writer, or hockey team. The sky is the limit!

Your goal is to create an interesting podcast that will pique your audience's interest in the topic. For it to be engaging, you need, of course, to have an argument or hook of some kind that will make people want to listen to what you have to say. You can do research if you like and, if you wish, you can incorporate images and audio clips. You could even create a video podcast if you like. If including research or audio and video clips that you have not created yourself, make sure to tell your audience where you got that material. If using copyrighted music, use a clip of less than thirty seconds rather than an entire song.

It's also important to think about your delivery of your content. A successful podcast will be one in which you are relaxed and clear, while not seeming overly rehearsed or sounding like you're reading directly from the page. Let your personality come through. Have fun, too, with the medium. There are all sorts of things you can do to make your podcast different from those of everyone else.

To hear last year's student podcasts, you can find them all on our blog under the "Assignments" tab.

PODCASTS ARE DUE NO LATER THAN 11/14.

WHEN YOU'RE FINISHED, SEND YOUR FILE TO ME VIA THE UVM FILE TRANSFER SERVICE

Roch Carrier's The Sweater

As you know, we've had a chance to listen to a recording of Roch Carrier reading his story, The Hockey Sweater and we'll also watch part of the film, The Rocket. We've also been able to read two of Richard Harrisons' poems about Richard. Before class on Friday, please watch this ten-minute film based on Roch Carrier's story.

The goal of this assignment is partly to have you read/hear a Canadian classic that tells us something essential about Canadian and especially Québécois culture. The other aim, though, is to give you, I hope, a greater sense of the importance of hockey to Canadian identity and the place of Montréal Canadiens and Maurice Richard in the history, culture, and identity of Québec. As this year is the 100th anniversary of the Canadiens, I'm sure we'll be hearing a lot about Rocket Richard over the coming months.

The story, the children's book, the audio book, and the National Film Board film short are all touchstones in many Canadians' memories of childhood.

Canadian Studies Ottawa Trip Itinerary

Here is the itinerary for our upcoming Canadian Studies Trip to Ottawa which runs from Oct. 23-25. This trip has been running annually since the 1950s and is one of the great traditions of our program here at the University of Vermont.

This year, there will be 109 of us heading to the nation's capital and this promises to be an amazing trip for students and faculty alike. The majority of this trip is funded through student fees, but we also get generous support from the Canadian Embassy in Washington, DC, the James and Mary Brigham Buckham Fund from the Dept. of English, and from the College of Arts and Sciences.

Itinerary for Ottawa Field Trip: October 23-25, 2008

Thursday, October 23:

- Depart from south side of Waterman Building (College Street) at 7:00 AM sharp. Participants will arrive by 6:45 in order to assure a prompt departure, because Parliament won't wait for us (and we won’t wait for you). Students ought to be dressed for Parliament (i.e. "business attire" -jackets and ties for men) because there is no time/place to change once we are on the bus. We will plan on arriving at St. Michael's at 7:05 to pick up the St. Mike's group.

· Brief lunch at the Rideau Centre in Ottawa before walking over to Parliament as a group

· Go to Parliament for tours and to go up the peace tower and view the Memorial Chamber. Tours for Massell’s students (Group A) are at 12:10 and 12:15. Tours for Ayres/Martin/Bose students (Group B) are at 12:30 and 12:45.

· Group photo outside of Parliament after the tours

· 3:00-4:30: Meet with Members of Parliament in room 752 at 131 Queen Street.

· 5:30: Quick meeting in the Pearson Room after checking in at the Lord Elgin Hotel.

· Dinner on your own.

Friday, October 24:

· Breakfast on your own.

· 9:00-3:30: Tour of Canadian art at the National Gallery of Canada and tours of the Grand Hall and Canada Hall at the Canadian Museum of Civilization. Before walking over to the National Gallery, Group A will be in Lord Elgin lobby by 9:00 AM (10:00 AM tour), and Group B will be in Lord Elgin lobby by 10:00 AM (11:00 AM tour).

· Lunch on your own at National Gallery before heading to Museum of Civilization. Group A leaves for Museum of Civilization at 12:45 PM, Group B leaves at 1:15 PM.

· 3:30: Both buses leave Museum of Civilization for Carleton University.

· 4:00-6:00: Speaker/reception at Carleton University, Southam Hall, Room 416.

· 6:45: Bus leaves for hockey game, Ottawa 67s vs. Sarnia Sting at Ottawa Civic Centre.

Saturday, October 25:

· Breakfast on your own. Morning free for shopping, sightseeing, touring, etc.

· Check out of Lord Elgin by 12:30 PM.

· 1:00: Buses depart from Lord Elgin. Arrive in Burlington around 5:00 PM.

PARTICIPANTS SHOULD NOTE:

Crossing the border: Either A) birth certificate and government-issued photo ID (driver's license) or B) a passport is now required as proof of citizenship to cross the US-Canadian border. Students will need to present these documents before boarding the bus. Only a driver’s license is not enough.

Dress Code: Dress is "business attire" Thursday, and "neat and clean" Friday. In general, pack for chilly weather.

Money and Food: We will provide refreshments at the Carleton reception and vouchers for concession food at the hockey game. $75 - 100 US should cover other meals. We strongly suggest that students exchange at least some of this at a local Burlington bank (including the Chittenden bank inside the Davis Center) before October 23. You may want to bring a few snacks.

Ground Rules: Attendance and participation at all scheduled activities is required. "Downtime" is your own. Be aware that your conduct and actions represent UVM, St. Mike's, Vermont, and the USA.

Canadian Election assignment part two

Each of your groups has chosen a Canadian political party for the subject of your presentation assignment. Prepare a ten-minute presentation on why your classmates should vote for your party.

In your presentation, make sure to demonstrate your understanding of the following:

• Key issues in the current election
• Your party's history and main principles
• The difference between your party and the others
  
• Why you think your party leader would be the best Prime Minister

In addition, prepare a written summary to submit on Monday (2-3 pages plus a list of sources you used). Your presentation will count for 10% of your final grade for the course. You will be graded according to the following categories

Content: fair / good / very good / excellent

Research and preparation: fair / good / very good / excellent

Presentation: fair / good / very good / excellent

Enthusiasm: fair / good / very good / excellent

Contribution to the class’ knowledge of the topic: fair / good / very good / excellent

Canadian election assignment (part 1)

Today, I'd like you to watch the full episode of The National from Thursday night and we'll talk about your reactions to it on Monday.

Also, please read this extensive post I wrote to give you some background about the Canadian government and the Constitution.

Talking to Americans

Here's a source for the full video of Talking to Americans: part one and part two. The new season of The Mercer Report begins tonight on CBC. The show website lets you watch clips from the most recent episodes and every segment from the past seasons.

Group blog assignment

As you know, each of your groups is focusing on one region of Canada and your group will be creating a blog where you will share with the rest of the class (and the world!) all that you’ve learned about this area.

Fall 2008 syllabus now posted

Welcome to English 005! It's going to be a great semester and I'm looking forward to working with all of you.

For the full syllabus, click on the "Syllabus" tab above. Note that the schedule may need to be adjusted at times, so make sure to check it regularly

Class blogs now complete

With the class now being officially finished, you might be interested to take a look at the group blogs created by this year's English 005 students:

Group 1: BC and the Territories

Group 2: Atlantic Canada

Group 3: Ontario and Quebec

Group 4: Prairie Dawgz