Writing Center Fall 2013 Workshop Series

On Tuesdays, 1–1:45pm, Wednesdays from 5:30–6:15pm and Saturdays from 12:30–1:15pm, there will be Writing Center Workshops available. Each workshop topic is reviewed three times in a row on the days mentioned. These workshops are held in the Writing Center, room HS 150.

Everyone may stay informed by liking the Writing Center’s page on Facebook, ”Montgomery College Germantown Writing Center” at https://www.facebook.com/montgomerycollegewritingcenter .

For more information about these Workshops or “Open Labs”, feel free to contact Allison Hutchison in her office, room HS159, via email at Allison.Hutchison@montgomerycollege.edu, or give her a call at (240) 567-1832.

Workshop topics and dates:

Microsoft Word Basics – 8/27 & 8/31: Basic skills for formatting essays and similar documents. Students will each have a computer to use for practicing skills.

Microsoft Word Intermediate – 9/3 & 8/28
: Go beyond the basics of Microsoft Word and learn about bullets, lists, headers, footers, hanging indents, grammar check, spell check and tables. Students will each have a computer to use for practicing skills.

Developing an Essay: The Thesis – 9/24, 9/4, & 9/7: 
Learn how to write a thesis as well as the difference between strong and weak thesis statements.

Developing an Essay: The Outline – 9/10, 9/11, & 9/21: 
Learn about outline structure and what to include in your essay outline. Save time drafting an essay by creating an outline first!

Citations: MLA & APA – 9/17, 11/13, & 9/14
: Learn about in-text citations and works cited/reference pages for both MLA and APA formats. Students will get a chance to use library resources such as Noodle Works.

Paraphrasing & Summarizing – 10/15, 9/18, & 9/28
: Learn how to put source material into your own words. We will go over signal phrases, patchwork plagiarism and sentence structure. You will also learn how to paraphrase.

Developing an Essay: Transitions – 11/19, 9/25, & 11/9
: Learn how to move smoothly between supporting details and paragraphs in your essays. Connect your ideas to the audience and support your main points using transitions.

Introductions & Conclusions – 10/1, 10/2, & 10/12
: Learn how to grab your readers’ attention in the introduction and finish with a bang in the conclusion of your essay. Keep the reader engaged from the beginning to the end!

Proofreading & Revising Tips – 10/8, 10/9, 12/4, 11/16, & 12/7
: Learn how to become your own editor and find common mistakes in your writing.

Perfectly Punctuated – 11/12, 10/16, & 10/19: 
Learn common punctuation errors and how to fix them! When should you use a comma or a semicolon? Does the apostrophe come before or after the ‘s’? Learn all this and how to save lives with punctuation!

Integrated Sources – 10/22, 10/23, & 11/2
: Learn how to use signal phrases to introduce source material to the audience. Lend credibility to your argument by avoiding “dropped quotations”!

Research Process & Source Credibility – 10/29, 10/30, & 10/26: 
Learn about beginning the research process, formulating a research plan and determining red flags for avoiding sources.

Transfer & Scholarship Essay – 11/5 & 11/6: 
Learn what to write when you are writing about yourself! What do college admissions and scholarship committees want to know about you, and what are “deal-breakers”?

Resumes & Cover Letters – 11/26 & 10/5: 
Learn what to include in a resume and cover letter. How can you make yourself stand apart and get hired?

Points of View: First, Second, Third – 12/3, 11/20, & 11/23
: Which point of view is appropriate for academic writing? How can you avoid using “you” to address your audience directly and shifting points of view?

All-new “Open Labs” on Thursdays from 11:00-11:45 AM.

Microsoft Word – 8/29, 9/5, 10/3, 10/24, 12/5
.

Microsoft PowerPoint – 10/10, 10/17, 11/21
.

Grammar – 10/31, 11/7, 11/14.

The “Open Labs” are designed for students that are working on an assignment and have questions about Microsoft Word, PowerPoint or grammar. They can come to the Writing Center and receive live help while they work on their assignment! For instance, if they have a question about how to change margins or create a hanging indent in Microsoft Word, our staff will be able to show them how. We have specific dates for each area of need, but really, students can attend on any date and ask questions about all three.