Spanish 413: Advanced Writing

Spanish 413, is an advanced writing course that I teach frequently. It has evolved from a study of advanced grammar through writing, to one that helps students develop all aspects of their writing in Spanish, not just grammar. The class, taught in a workshop style, focuses on the creative process of writing, and the elements that go into developing a more sophisticated writing style in Spanish, including varying grammatical and syntactical structures, deepening and broadening lexical choices, paying attention to tone and audience, and working on the organization of ideas and research. An important aspect of the course are the individual blogs, where each student keeps a portfolio of his or her work for the course. Their blogs display both weekly posts where they explore different topics and types of writing for the first half of the semester, and a final project, also published on the blogs. I always allow students to pursue their own interests in these big projects, which can be creative or research oriented. Here is the syllabus for the last time I taught the course Español 413 primavera 2017
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Finally here are some sample student projects over the years:

2017

• Joshua Boelsche El Guia de Netflix
• Brooke Talkington El Sur de Hampton Roads

2014

• Louis Boehling “En el camino: Mochilerismo al sur de la frontera”
• Megan Full “La cultura del vino”

2013

• Kaylee Wilsher “La evolución del libro”
• Emily Werner “Students Helping Honduras”

2011

• Santiago Suero “España en el precipicio”
• Stephanie Ospina “Relatos”