Annotation Assignment for First-Year Seminar Course

By Beth Johnson of Finger Lakes Community College

Description #

This is an assignment annotating an article using the S-I-T model.

Purpose #

Annotating our reading each week will allow us to build community and understanding. As we use Hypothes.is to annotate short articles and documents, we can share our thoughts about the reading, make connections to other texts and media we have experienced, with the goal of deepening our own understanding. We can ask each other questions about something, offer insights and expertise about our different creative efforts, and reflect on our learning. For some of us, speaking in front of others is uncomfortable. This annotation practice will give everyone the opportunity to share their ideas and inspirations.
My goals for using annotation:

  1. Foster community and encourage participation
  2. Deepen our understanding of the text
  3. Encouraging close reading and critical thinking
  4. Encouraging everyone to make connections between the text and their lives,
    other courses, or current events
  5. Enhancing in-class discussions

Assignment #

For this week’s reading you will need to make three annotations on the Creative Thinking Part 1.pdf using Hypothes.is and the S-I-T Prompt. Please see the rubric below for details.

S-I-T: one surprising fact or idea, one interesting fact or idea, one troubling or tricky fact or idea

Rubric #

Possible PointsCriteriaRatings
5 to >3 points Full marks3 to >0 points Medium0 points No marks
5 points
“S” Surprising Fact
Annotation “S”Highlight a section of thetext that surprised you.Explain in your annotation what was surprising. Possible questions to consider: Did this challenge your past experience? Were you expecting something different?Highlighted a surprising section and explained how the section challenged your preconceived ideas or how it did not match your expectations.Highlighted the text but didn’t clearly elaborate on what about the section was surprising.Failed to do the assignment as described.
5 points
“I” Interesting Idea
Annotation “I” Highlight a section of the text that you find interesting. Explain in your annotation what interested you. Possible questions to consider: Does this lead you to further inquiry? What other questions does this statement bring up?Highlighted a section of the text and clearly articulated what interested you. Detailed areas of further inquiry or other questions that it sparks?Highlighted the text but didn’t clearly elaborate on what about the section was interesting.Failed to do the assignment as described.
5 points
“T” Troubling or Tricky Fact or Idea
Annotation “T” Highlight a section of the text that you find troubling. Explain in your annotation what is troubling or tricky about the fact or idea. Possible questions to consider: Are you bothered by the claim or support for the fact? Does this fact create issues elsewhere (could be another text you have read, your own experience, or within the text itself)? There could be other things that are tricky about this. Please don’t limit yourself to just these questions.Highlighted a section of the text and clearly articulated what was tricky or troubling. Elaborated on thespecific aspects ofthe fact that aretroubling.Highlighted the textbut didn’t clearlyelaborate what aboutthe section wastroubling.Failed to do the assignment as described.
15 total points possible