Students need to see how to put a large project together.  You can ask them to turn in:

• an outline of the total project
• a 1-page abstract
• a draft & 1-page explanation of meeting assignment’s instructions.
• a report on a tutoring session at the Writing Center & consequent revisions


Even chronological formats require certain important features & expectations, as the following activity for the historical autobiography suggests:

A time-line.  Draw a time-line of key personal and political events occurring your character’s life.  Show relationships—e.g. if your character dies in the Boxer Rebellion, when does that person get involved with the Boxers?  When do significant, relevant events happen?  What geographical moves have an impact, and when?  Briefly describe the cause/effect relationships of the life events you plot.  Provide at least 10 events for a total of 30 points.

Write a short exercise that would help students synthesize the parts of your assignment into a coherent whole.