Portfolio Components (in order of presentation)

A letter to the portfolio reader introducing the papers you selected.

These should be about two double-spaced pages long. The letters will address your thoughts about any recurring themes in your papers (and the overall theme of the course), your criteria for selecting the essays you included, and your reasons for arranging your papers as you did. These letters set the stage for how your work will be received. As such, they should demonstrate serious thought about your work in Humanities 1.

Your three best papers for the course, arranged in any order you choose.

The only paper you absolutely must include is your research paper. The other two papers will normally be your first two revisions. To prepare your portfolio, carefully reread the comments you received on these revisions and revise once more to work out any remaining problems.

In some cases, you may choose to substitute a paper you did not initially revise for one that you did. Students who choose this option usually do so because of unsatisfactory performance on a revision assignment. If you wish to do this, you must first clear your plan with your instructor.

A "Works Cited" page that lists all the sources (primary and secondary) you cite throughout your portfolio.

This means that you will not include a "Works Cited" page after each paper. Instead, you will combine the three bibliographies into one large bibliography at the end of the portfolio. Stick faithfully to MLA style; see the sample paper in Hacker if you have any lingering questions.

Portfolio Formatting

The pagination of your portfolios is continuous—do not start each new paper with page number one. Page one will be the first page of your letter to the reader; your last page (over twenty for most of you) will be the last page of your "Works Cited" section.

Please keep the font, margins, and type size consistent throughout the portfolio. Fonts that make the "not annoying" list include 12-point Times New Roman, Arial, Book Antiqua, and Bookman. At the top of the "annoying" list is 12-point Courier, which is ridiculously huge. Margins should be one inch all the way around.

Fasten the pages of your portfolio with a large paper clip. Your instructor will provide you with a manila folder, so report covers are unnecessary (and undesirable, as they tend to be unwieldy).

Make sure your portfolio is free of grammatical and mechanical errors. Please bring any questions about these matters to your T.A. or Instructor.