freshman seminar booklet 1 xd

“The most captivating and
interesting way to teach freshmen
how to be successful in high
school!” - New York Times

Copyright © 2019 by Ivan A. Krsul

All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any manner without written
permission of the copyright owner except for the use of quotations in a book review.

First paperback edition May 2019

Book Design and Information by Ivan Krsul

Published by Mos Publishing
www.ivankrsulauthor.com

Chapter 1 - The Basics Chapter 3 - Online Information
a. Learning Styles a. Evaluating Sources
b. Schedule b. Annotating Sources
c. Work Area
d. SMART Goal Chapter 4 - Essay Writing Concepts
e. Growth Journal a. Hook and Introduction
b. Body Paragraphs
Chapter 2 - Plagiarism c. Rebuttal
a. Plagiarism in a Nutshell d. Conclusion
b. Paraphrasing e. Argumentative Essay
c. Quoting f. Research Essay
d. MLA Citation

Chapter 5 - Internet Safety https://www.polyu.edu.hk/ogur/GURSubjects/FS.php
a. Online Safety Essentials

Chapter 6 - Public Speaking
a. Debate
b. Making Presentations

Chapter 7 - Grammar
a. Said is Dead!
b. In/At/On

Chapter 8 - Studying For Tests
a. Mind Maps
b. Test Anxiety



Before we can begin with the lessons of Freshman Seminar™, you should
identify your learning style. By doing this, the course will become much,
much easier.

To do so, go to the link below and take the quiz:

http://www.educationplanner.org/students/self-assessments/learning-styles-qui
z.shtml

After you take the quiz, take a look at what your strengths are.

Visual Learners:

● Tips:
○ Color code notes, words.
○ Use outlines for everything.
○ Sit at the front of the class.

Auditory Learners:

● Tips:
○ Record your class lecture to study from it.
○ When studying, read things out loud.
○ Participate in class discussions.

Tactile Learners:

● Tips: https://www.traveldirectors.com/see-it-say-it-do-it-i
○ Get hands-on experience when learning. dentify-learning-styles-to-become-a-better-team-pl
○ Role-play activities, subjects, or topics. ayer/

○ Use any game to study, especially with other people.

It is extremely important that you set up a schedule. Here are
the steps to doing so:

1. Open up an Excel document.

2. In a column, list down the days of the week.

3. In the top row, list down the hours, all the way from when you wake
up, to when you go to sleep.

4. Fill out what you do throughout the whole week, at the corresponding
hours.

Here’s an example of what it should look like:

7:00 8:00 9:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00

Monday Wake Up Bio. Tech Brunch Alg. Eng. Lunch P.E Free Sleep
Span. Homework Homework Homework Time

Tuesday Wake Up APES Seminar Brunch Bio. Tech. Lunch Alg. Eng. Free Sleep
Homework Homework Homework Time

Wednesday Wake Up P.E Spanish Brunch APES Bio. Lunch Alg. Eng. Free Sleep
Homework Homework Homework Time

Thursday Wake Up Eng. P.E Brunch Span. APES Lunch Bio. Tech Free Sleep
Homework Homework Homework Time

Friday Wake Up Alg. Eng. Brunch P.E Free Sleep
Saturday Span Lunch APES Seminar Homework Homework Homework Time Sleep
Sunday Family Family Family Free Sleep
Wake Up Time Time Time Time Free Free Free Free
Lunch TIme TIme Time Homework Homework Homework Time
Family Family Family Free
Wake Up Time Time Time Time Free Free Free Free
Lunch Time Time Time Homework Homework Homework Time

Another important aspect of being organized is to have a tidy and nice
work/study area.

Here’s an example:

TRY IT:
Make

a drawing of
your

work/study
area.

Try your best!

http://saleuggsoutletstore.org/feng-shui-bedroo
m-layout/feng-shui-bedroom-layout-bedroom-
map-bedroom-layout-bed-room-small-furniture
-color-chart-living-room-diagram-bedroom-cha
rt-layout-photo-7-map-furniture-sets-cheap-col

The best way to set-up an achievable and
beneficial goal is through SMART:

pecific - WHAT do you exactly want to achieve? TRY IT:
Make
easurable - HOW will you know when you have achieved it? a
ttainable - Is it realistic? Do you have control over it?
elevant - WHY does it matter to you? SMART
ime - WHEN do you want to achieve your goal? goal

for what you
want to

achieve in
this class.

One approach to organize yourself to achieve a goal is
using a growth journal.

As an end of unit project, you will create your own.

Here are the steps to doing so:
1. Cover: Your name and title of the Growth Journal
2. Page 1: Write the quote, “I have not failed, I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”
3. Page 2: Write out your SMART Goal that you made in the previous lesson
4. Page 3: Write out five inspirational quotes that are meaningful to you.
5. Page 4: Sketch 6 detailed steps that you will follow to achieve your goal.
6. Page 5: Make a pyramid, divide it into three sections -

*The following steps will be repeated each week:
7. Page 6: Your 3 big wins this week, 3 positive experiences, and a sketch of what you learned
8. Page 7: Create a chart containing days of the week (row) and your six actions (column).

Then, for each day, place a checkmark if you did the action, if not, place an “X.”
9. Page 8: Free writing - anything you want!



One of the most important skills everyone
should have is to avoid plagiarism.

Plagiarism: Using someone else’s work or
ideas as your own and without giving the
person credit.

Issues if you plagiarize: https://www.compilatio.net/en/tricks-to-avoid-plagiarism/
● Possible expulsion.
● F in assignment. In the following lessons you will
● Failed course. learn strategies to help you in
avoiding plagiarism!

To start off, one of the best ways to avoid plagiarism is to PARAPHRASE.

Paraphrasing: rewriting someone else’s work in your own words.

Instructions:

1. Read the paragraph more than 2 times.
2. Note down main ideas.
3. Underline words you don’t know and search them up.
4. Stop looking at the original paragraph.
5. Paraphrase the passage in a document, paper, etc.
6. Check if your paragraph has the same ideas as the original.

quora.com/What-is-the-best-website-for-paraphrasin

The next method to help you stay away from plagiarizing is to QUOTE.

Quoting: using someone else’s exact words between quotation marks to serve as
evidence for your points.

Ways to use quotations:

1. Use little quotes as part of your sentence: TRY IT:
Search up
a. His words are “deceptive” and show no “care for others.” BrainyQuote,
enter the
2. Use a complete sentence, then a colon: website, and
a. The setting shows lies: "Nothing is as it appears."
start
3. Instead of a complete sentence, use an introductory one: practicing
quoting!
a. His actions represent “disgust, anger, and hate for him.”

4. Paraphrase the quote first to introduce it:

a. As shown by his behavior of dislike and hatred, he “kills him.”

Finally, the most important to not plagiarizing is citing your sources, usually in MLA
format.
Citations: Gives credit to authors whose works you used and makes your works credible.

To do an MLA Citation you need the following: To learn more or if you have any
questions, go to the Purdue Owl
1. Author’s last name, first name. Website:
2. Title of the article/source. https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/purdue_o
3. Website Name (in italics).
4. When it was published. wl.html
5. URL of the article.
6. Date accessed.
7. Use font Times New Roman and double spacing.

Example:

Torres, Gonzales. “What Is a Computer Virus? | The Ultimate Guide to PC Viruses.” AVG, 18

Dec. 2017, www.avg.com/en/signal/what-is-a-computer-virus. Accessed 4 Feb. 2019.



When writing an essay or any type of work, some of the sources you use might not be
trustworthy.

To find out if they are, use the 5 Ws. TRY IT:
ho is the author, is he an expert? Go to
hat is the purpose of the site, what makes it easy to use?
hen was the site created, last updated? https://zapatopi.net/tr
here does the information come from? eeoctopus/

and evaluate
this website
according to
the 5 Ws.

hy is the information useful, why should I use this site?

After you have chosen your sources, you need to ANNOTATE them.

Annotating: tools used to understand and interact with the text/source.

Highlight, or Uses of the
Circle: Margin:

● Vocabulary Words ● Add reactions depending
● Main Ideas on what you’re reading
● Names
● Events ● Identify important
● Dates paragraphs or parts.

● Ask questions
● Opinions



The introduction of an essay serves as a way to tell the readers what your essay is
going to be about.

It has three components:
- Hook:

● Can be a quote, question, personal story, an interesting fact, or a joke.
● Example: Have you ever thought what would happen if you were in a stranded island?

- Background Information

● Facts that introduce the reader to your topic. Be sure that you go from something
BROAD to something NARROW.

- Thesis Statement:

● Complete sentence that controls and states the main points of the entire essay.
● Example: The internet has helped all of us, but, many dangers are still present.

To write your body paragraphs, it is important that you follow the P.E.E
format.

oint: Main idea, what the paragraph is going to be about.

vidence: Facts, statistics, examples that prove and support your main TRY IT:
Make a
idea. P.E.E
paragraph
about the
dangers of
computer
viruses.

xplain: What does the evidence mean, how does it support your points?

The conclusion acts as a way to end your essay, as well as trying to make it remarkable
and memorable to the reader.

To do so, you need to:
● Restate your thesis statement.
● Sum up the main points you used throughout your essay
● End with a Super-So-What?
○ The S.S.W should say to the reader to take an action.
○ Make sure it leaves a mark on them!

In an argumentative essay, the rebuttal has the job of making sure you present the
other side of the argument.
To achieve a successful rebuttal paragraph, do the following:
1. Expose arguments for the other side, make sure you don’t spend too much time on

it!
2. Counter these arguments by using evidence to weaken and disprove them.

By doing this, you will show that your side is the best one, and make the essay credible.

The argumentative essay is a way to express your point of view on a topic to the
readers.

Here are the steps to writing one: TRY IT:
Write an argumentative essay on one
● Decide on a topic.
● Choose your side. of the topics above. Try your best!
● Research information.
● Present your argument in an essay.
● Present the other side of the topic and

counter argue it (rebuttal).

A research paper is a way to convey information in a way that only presents facts, not
opinions, and is backed by various credible sources and research.

Steps:
1. Choose your research topic.

2. Research A TON about the topic.

3. Write the essay https://clipartstation.com/research-paper-clipart-2/
a. Introduction
b. P.E.E
c. Conclusion

4. Cite your sources.



There are many dangers present in the Internet, and if you’re not careful, you might
experience one of them.

To avoid them, be safe online by: Consequences:

● Think before you post. ● Lose scholarships.

● Don’t share personal information. ● Getting kidnapped.

● Stranger Danger. ● Getting your identity
stolen.
● Narrow down your followers
to people you know in real life. ● Predators can hunt you
down.
● Turn on privacy settings.
https://www.1001freedownloads.com/free-clipart/personal-information-2



Throughout your high school career and life, you will need to learn to stand up for what
you believe, and present it in an interesting and concise manner, essentially, DEBATE.

First, you need to know the following 3 terms:
1. Ethos - Ethical appeal used to convince your audience.
2. Pathos - Emotional appeal used to convince your audience.
3. Logos - Logical appeal used to convince your audience.

Next, some DEBATE essentials: https://theoutline.com/post/6709/debate-is-stupid
1. Gather evidence to support your side.
2. Be prepared to counter argue your opponent.
3. If timers are present, respect them.
4. Use strong body language, and a clear voice.
5. Use Ethos, Pathos, and Logos to sway your audience

to your side.

Yet again, presentations will be littered throughout your courses, so it is extremely
important that you learn how to make one, and how to present it.

When making a presentation:
1. Try to use Prezi instead of the usual Powerpoint.
2. Minimal in each slide.
3. Place images that add to the presentation, not ones that repeat the words said.
4. Always cite your sources!

When presenting: Here is a video to help you
1. Maintain eye contact with the audience at all times. vocalize and pronounce
2. Use strong body language. words better!
3. Have a clear voice and good pronunciation.
4. Engage with the audience. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CF
5. Know the material well to have confidence! Xqyl4C1J4



One important aspect of the English language are the prepositions: in, at, and on.

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/164451823
876945850/

When writing any sort of document in which you cite someone, stop using “SAID! “

Here is a chart to help you enrich your vocabulary, and to stop using “said.”

The author The author The author The author The author
says (and is implies/ argues or agrees disagrees
neutral) suggests claims

explains concludes defends agrees disagrees

illustrates reveals insists concurs bemoans

expresses Points out argues Approves Contradicts
demonstrates Propose Demands Grants Counter
manifests Implies Commands acknowledges Differ
tells Suggests Urges Admits Confront
dictates Confesses Maintains Allows Challenges
describes Mention Asserts Recognizes Deny
defines Indicates Disputes Consents Oppose



All of us have experienced anxiety at one point, but it can really show itself whenever a
big exam is coming up.

Causes Symptoms Solutions

1. Unpreparedness. 1. Physical - Shaking, nausea, 1. Be prepared.
2. Get enough sleep.
2. Afraid of failure. sweating. 3. Take deep breaths.
4. Get rid of negative
3. Poor test 2. Cognitive - “Blanking out”
thoughts
performance during the exam, negative 5. Ask for help!

previously self-talk.

3. Behavioral - Fidgeting, avoids

tests at all costs.

4. Emotional - Fear, anger, shame,

guilt.

An excellent way to retain information about a topic is doing a mind map.
(Visual learners, you should especially pay attention).

Parts:

Main Idea: What the mind map is going to

be about.

Main Branches: Most important aspects of

the main idea.

Small Branches: Specific information

about the main branches.

http://www.mindma

pinspiration.com/dr

awing-a-mind-map- Make sure to use words, not sentences.
from-start-to-finish/