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Week 3: Assignment – WRITING ASSIGNMENT: Writing Instructions*
YOU MUST COMPLETE THIS TO PASS THIS CLASS.
Assignment Directions
Instructions are important documents in the real world. They are a way companies can connect to their customers, and they structure the way individuals do their jobs. Having correct and detailed instructions can also help ensure everyone does the same thing for the same task, providing consistency. They can show people performing tasks how to do so safely and effectively.
Unfortunately, instructions are often the worst-written documents we encounter: they miss steps, fail to orient the reader to important tools or concepts, assume too much or explain too much, and generally confuse a reader who is already unfamiliar with the task.
Writing instructions is harder than it seems, but more important than we assume.
For this assignment, you will produce a set of written instructions for a task of your choosing. Your instructions will be designed for users who have not necessarily worked through the process that you are describing. Your instructions must include both text and visuals and should allow even novice users to move successfully through your selected step-by-step process.
Your final instructions should:
- Be 250 – 500 words long
- Include 5 individual steps
- Include 5 accompanying images
- You should not be copying your steps from a sourcethese should be your own steps to complete a task.
- Be 12 pt, Times New Roman font, 1-inch margins, double spaced.
This project will be both an exercise in writing effective instructions as well as clear document design that makes effective use of headings, bullets, lists, body text, and image placement.
Some sample tasks include:
- cropping and resizing images in Photoshop
- how to test soil
- scanning with an HP scanner
- how to make beeswax candles
- building a campfire
Some tips on choosing a task:
- Choose a task you are reasonably familiar with. If you are a novice, you might miss steps and mislead the reader unknowingly.
- Choose a task with specific steps that arent based on technique. How to sink a free throw or how to ballroom dance are interesting topics, but a readers success will depend on form, not function.
- Choose something appropriately complex. How to fix a blister involves too few steps for an effective project.
Rubric
Criteria | Ratings | Pts | |||||
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Mechanics (25%)
Spelling, punctuation, and grammar are correct. Both sentence and paragraph structures conform to current conventions.
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Structure and Organization (25%)
Essay meets minimum length as assigned. Learner utilizes each topic point as a new paragraph and includes support. Work shows logical flow from one topic to the next; transitions are used.
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Steps (25%)
The essay contains the minimum required number of steps to needed complete the chosen task as indicated by the assignment prompt.
The steps follow a logical order and success of the chosen task seems reasonable if followed. |
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Images (25%)
The essay contains the minimum required number of images per the assignment prompt.
The images correspond appropriately to the essay topic and the related steps or steps. |
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Total Points: 100
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