Student: Mrs. Lowe, I can’t do this outline. It’s too hard!
Me: [looking at her screen] Um, Gina?
Student: What?
Me: You have ONE WORD written.
[Surrounding students giggle.]
Student: I know! I told you it was too hard!
Me: And your one word is “Introduction.”
[Surrounding students giggle more.]
Student: I just don’t know what to write!
Me: Okay. So Roman Numeral I is your Introduction. What comes next?
Student: …
Me: What are the three sections of your paper?
Student: Author’s life and times, literary contributions and individual analysis.
Me: Good. So that’s II, III and IV. And V is your Conclusion. Now, under II, what are some subheadings?
Student: Oh, I can fill those in. That’s easy!
Sometimes it’s nice to look good even when you don’t really deserve it.
