English 9

Name_______________________________________

The project—Find a person over the age of 40 who is not one of your parents and interview that person.

Use the question sheets provided.

Write an 800-word report over that person using the answers provided by that person.

Each paper must include the following—

At least two direct quotes from the person presented in proper quote form.

A cover—the cover must be handmade or computer done. (If you want color printing, I can accomplish that for you.)

Two photographs scanned into the paper. They may be recent or old pictures.

A proofread story about the person.

The paper must be typewritten in12 point, times new roman. Other fonts are not as easy to read and this is the requirement as set by the writing handbook.

The report must be presented in a story or report form

I do not want question and answer form.

The paper must be bound in some way—staples, etc.

Be careful not to embarrass your person in any way.

The paper will be due on Thursday, February 23 at 4 p.m

Early Bird Bonus—

Papers turned in early will receive a 10-point bonus per school day up to 100 extra points. (That means I will give the full bonus starting anytime before October 18.)

Papers turned in after November 4 will receive a deduction of 10 points per day.

These numbers apply only to school days.

Computer time—

We will take limited computer time in class. The amount of computer time will be determined by availability, need and assorted factors beyond our control. If students use the time wisely, there will be more time but if students are not using the time, the time will be used for more productive purposes.

Correct quote form—

According to Grandma, "Kids today have it just too good."

"Kids today have it just too good," said Uncle Ralph.

"Kids today," said Uncle Ralph, "have it just too good."

"Kids today have it just too good," said Uncle Ralph. "They need to get out and clean barns every Saturday like I did and walk to school five miles uphill, as I did."

The Paper must be Proofread BEFORE it is turned in. Do not rely on just the computer spell check.

Interview tips—

Call ahead to arrange a convenient time with the person.

Do not wait until the last minute to do the interview. You have received a long period of time do this for a reason.

Tape recorders may be good for this but if the person is uncomfortable, then don’t use it.

Take a notebook—do not rely on memory.

Do the interview in two sessions if the person starts to get tired or emotional.

Remember please and thank you’s.

You may need to speak more loudly but do not shout. Speak clearly to be sure you are understood.

Be patient if you get some really long answers. If you have an elderly person, you may encounter a lonely person who needs to talk or you may encounter a person who will tell you some things you will never forget.

Be prepared for people who will only give you an answer to what you said and may just give yes and no answers. Try to get them to explain their answers—it will improve your writing and your knowledge.

Important

Make three copies of your paper—

One for you

One for Mrs. Dulitz

One for your interviewee

Also, save it on your h drive and maybe on a disk. Things happen….

Formatting must follow the form provided in the writing handbook.

12 point—Times New Roman

One inch margins

Double-spaced—no extra spacing between paragraphs.

Left alignment

One tab indent per paragraph

(I’ll just provide the rest of the information.)

I want a cover done in a creative fashion. It may be done with the computer or in means available to you.

This is a major assignment—be sure to make it a great assignment for yourself and the person you interviewed.

English 9--Interview Project