1)  Go to the top of Foss Hill, in front of the Observatory.

2)  Look southeast (if you're in this course you should know where that is!).  Observe the foreground, middle ground, and distance for roughly 180 degrees.  What do you see?  Details?  Big picture?  Think about the most effective way of reporting on what you see.  What's impressive or important about it?

3)  Write 2-3 pages reporting on your view of this scene.  Your essay should not be simply a list of details ("a maple tree in the foregound; College Row in the middle; the Connecticut River in the rear").  You never see just buildings, but a campus or a town or a strip mall.  You never see just plants but a lawn or a garden or a farm.  Tell what you see as in informed viewer, not a camera.

4)  Read D. W. Meinig's essay "The Beholding Eye."  Think about how it applies to your view of the scene and your essay.  Which of Meinig's ways of seeing did you use?  Which did you omit?  Why?