The pre-writing ideas activity for this episode asked you to observe communication in other communities. The writing task for this module builds on that work by asking you to consider a community that you belong to and the way you use language to address members of that community as your audience. Reflect on the ways in which your interactions with that community have taught you about language and culture.

Here's the details for your second writing task!

What should I do?

Write a short story describing a situation that called for you to use language in a group-specific way. Your story should include a narration of the event that occurred. Your story should also (either implicitly or explicitly) reflect on what that experience taught you about the relationship of language to social and cultural situations, and reflect on how you learned to use language in this way.

Your purpose in this task is to explore language use and learning, using your experiences as “evidence.” To get started writing, start by thinking about how your language changes when you address different types of audiences. If you speak more than one language, you might begin by considering what happens when you address speakers of one language or another. If you speak only English, then think about the varieties or forms of English you use in different situations, with different kinds of people: your family, a group of friends, a second group of friends, at school. Make lists, draw pictures, and talk with others as a way to invent possible ideas for this paper. Look back at your notes from the Create Ideas activity, and think about a moment were you were involved in a similar type of group-specific communication.

What are the requirements for this essay?

There is no page length or word requirement for this assignment - do what seems most natural to you and your schedule. You might also consider other short stories that you've read as a guideline for creating your own. Your audience is your fellow Thinking Like a Writer classmates, so keep them in mind as you write.

Sticky Note reminding writer to create ideas, write a plan, and then begin writing the first draft.

Writing Tip: After you've read through the Writing Task, but before you write your short story, complete a Writing Plan for this assignment (the button below will take you there). The questions in the Writing Plan are intended to help you think about and make decisions for writing your rough draft. Completion of these will allow you to create a more focused, well-organized piece of writing that meets the goals of the assignment and responds to the needs of your audience.

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or to email your instructors!