Start-Up Activity

Tell your class, "We are going to play a game. I want each of you to pull out the writing assignment you are most proud of." Wait for them to do so. "Now I want you to cross out your name and write someone else's name on it." They, hopefully, will not comply. "Oh, and I'm going to cross your grade out of the gradebook and put in a grade for the other person."

Of course, your students will find this to be incredibly unfair. Tell them that's what plagiarism is. When you take someone else's ideas and put your own name on them. Plagiarism isn't just sloppiness. It's actually unjust. This chapter will help your students understand what plagiarism is and how to avoid it.