Academic
Everyday
Social
Journalistic
Wild Card
100
If I asked you to post on Canvas, usually in response to something you read, where your classmates could read and respond, this is what you would be writing.
What is a discussion post?
100
Check boxes, short statements, and an audience of one, oh my!
What is a to-do list?
100
Hello from [insert destination here]! (Plus a cool picture.)
What is a postcard?
100
Often written as a dialogue or recorded as a video, this genre is an important feature of PR and advertising for entertainment media.
What is an interview?
100
Often featuring cute pictures, inspirational quotes, or sexy firemen, most homes have one of these on the wall.
What is a calendar?
200
This writing assignment is popular throughout middle school and high school, and features a set structural outline regardless of content.
What is the five paragraph essay?
200
This guide will always have a list and instructions, whether published online, in a book, or scribbled on a flashcard.
What is a recipe?
200
A little out of date perhaps, but often signed "with love."
What is a love letter?
200
Land of the "talking heads" and scrolling banner headlines, this tends to happen at set times each day.
What is a TV newscast?
200
I've received many of these this semester, usually attached to an email that includes the phrase, "Sorry I missed class."
What is a doctor's note?
300
Formulaic, often brief, and rooted entirely in logos, this assignment is something you might see in your biochem lab.
What is a lab report?
300
Featuring bright colors, fun mascots, and slogans about health, you might find this in your pantry.
What is a cereal box?
300
Fancy paper, calligraphic script, and a photo all tell you you've received something particular in the mail.
What is a wedding/graduation invitation/RSVP? (And why are they so similar??)
300
The "gift of gab" combined with a whole team of nerds with statistics, this is often what retired athletes do.
What is sportscasting/sports announcing?
300
What is an album cover?
400
Without a thesis, an argument, and an interesting artifact, this type of essay will fall flat.
What is a rhetorical analysis?
400
Kitschy, short, and cliche, you might find these on your mom's wall.
What are word art/wall decor signs?
400
A popular way for everyday experts or other skilled or opinionated individuals to share their thoughts.
What is a blog?
400
Calls to action, "Loose Lips Sink Ships," and nationalist imagery.
What are propaganda posters?
400
Placed at the beginning of a chapter or book, these are almost always quotes to set the mood.
What is an epigraph?
500
Ispirational and informative, the slogan for this type of speech is "Ideas worth spreading."
What is a TedTalk?
500
Spoken at funerals and memorial services, usually by close friends or family.
What is a eulogy?
500
You might laugh, you might cry, and you definitely hope it's less than five minutes so you can move on to dancing and cake.
What is a wedding/best man/maid of honor speech?
500
The newspaper says, "Survived by his wife, Rose, and their three children: Tommy, Sandra, and Clint."
What is an obituary?
500
If I'm going to travel to a new place, I might buy one of these.
What is a guide book?