WRITING REFLECTION ESSAY
This was our final writing assignment were we reflected upon our growth throughout the year in regards to our writing. We looked at all of our writing pieces that we had in our writing portfolio and compared some of our earlier pieces to some of our more recent works to try to find specific changes in our unique writing styles and/or analytical skills. We had to chose three specific areas where we thought we had grown the most and list the reasons why. I chose tow rite about how I developed my organization, diction and content throughout the year. the essay below is my first draft:
Monica Morales
9th Grade Humanities
Ms. Shirk
June 6, 2012
Writing Reflection Essay
Writing usually tends to be nothing more than a tedious homework assignment for most people, but for me, it is an opportunity to make my voice heard. I did not always have this perspective on writing, especially at the beginning of this year. I felt that I would not be able to write a good essay or make any kind of literature piece because I did not have the sufficient knowledge or experience to write a proper essay. However, I feel like I have been able to improve my writing a lot this year. I feel like I have fortified my language and diction, improved the organization throughout my work, and learned how to properly convey a message through my content.
Throughout these past months, I have found that proper wording and diction can really influence and change your writing. That is why I pushed myself to instead of express myself in a long essay, to try to keep my writing short and to the point by choosing the right words needed to prove my point. I tried this method while drafting and writing my vignette. For example, I was able to explain my whole transition from little girl into a young woman in about thirty short sentences. “She must accept what is true.” – this was a sentence from my vignette in which I was able to explain that no matter how much you fight something, you are always going to have to understand that you must face it eventually. I was very cautious in choosing the words that I wanted to use to write this vignette because my goal was to use less words while making a big impact on the reader. However, I learned that what makes a bigger impact is choosing the right diction while keeping all of your thoughts organized.
The way you format an essay can make a very big difference on how the reader portrays the work. I found that if you write an essay where all of your thoughts and main points are organized and put together so that they flow throughout the essay, the reader will think that it sounds like a more professional piece of writing. For example, while writing my sonnet, instead of just trying to come up with each line one by one, I tried to think about exactly what it was that I wanted to talk about so that I already had an idea of what my sonnet would look like. Then, all I did was just transfer my ideas onto the paper. It is also vital that your work makes sense and is not too hard to understand, because the reader must be able to analyze or figure out what you are trying to prove.
When you “analyze’ something, all you are doing is just carefully examining or picking apart a work in order to find the smaller details. Before I came into this school, I was never asked to analyze a piece of writing so deeply and take a look at every single detail to find the greater meaning behind it. That is why I found it so fascinating how you could find so much more information just by digging under the surface a little. A perfect illustration of this would be my Literary Analysis Paper, based on the book The Tortilla Curtain by T.C. Boyle. I feel that I was able to strengthen my analytical skills while writing this paper because it allowed me to come up with my own theory based on what I analyzed throughout the book. I also learned how to detect literary devices within a novel and become comfortable enough with them so that I would be able to come up with my own.
I can certainly say that throughout the year I have been able to expand my understanding on how proper wording can change a work, learn to collect my thoughts and ideas and fit them into my writing, and acquired the skills necessary to express and prove a point. All of the stress, multiple drafts, editing, critiquing, and revising that I have done to my work this year has made me realize that there will always be room for improvement in my work, and I am alright with that because I know that as long as I am able to express myself and have my voice be heard, It will all be worth it; and if I can improve on my writing while doing that, I do not see any reason as to why writing should be so monotonous. I am so happy to have been so fortunate to learn so many new ways to improve my writing this year, but I am certain that there is still an abundance of writing skills to be learned.
9th Grade Humanities
Ms. Shirk
June 6, 2012
Writing Reflection Essay
Writing usually tends to be nothing more than a tedious homework assignment for most people, but for me, it is an opportunity to make my voice heard. I did not always have this perspective on writing, especially at the beginning of this year. I felt that I would not be able to write a good essay or make any kind of literature piece because I did not have the sufficient knowledge or experience to write a proper essay. However, I feel like I have been able to improve my writing a lot this year. I feel like I have fortified my language and diction, improved the organization throughout my work, and learned how to properly convey a message through my content.
Throughout these past months, I have found that proper wording and diction can really influence and change your writing. That is why I pushed myself to instead of express myself in a long essay, to try to keep my writing short and to the point by choosing the right words needed to prove my point. I tried this method while drafting and writing my vignette. For example, I was able to explain my whole transition from little girl into a young woman in about thirty short sentences. “She must accept what is true.” – this was a sentence from my vignette in which I was able to explain that no matter how much you fight something, you are always going to have to understand that you must face it eventually. I was very cautious in choosing the words that I wanted to use to write this vignette because my goal was to use less words while making a big impact on the reader. However, I learned that what makes a bigger impact is choosing the right diction while keeping all of your thoughts organized.
The way you format an essay can make a very big difference on how the reader portrays the work. I found that if you write an essay where all of your thoughts and main points are organized and put together so that they flow throughout the essay, the reader will think that it sounds like a more professional piece of writing. For example, while writing my sonnet, instead of just trying to come up with each line one by one, I tried to think about exactly what it was that I wanted to talk about so that I already had an idea of what my sonnet would look like. Then, all I did was just transfer my ideas onto the paper. It is also vital that your work makes sense and is not too hard to understand, because the reader must be able to analyze or figure out what you are trying to prove.
When you “analyze’ something, all you are doing is just carefully examining or picking apart a work in order to find the smaller details. Before I came into this school, I was never asked to analyze a piece of writing so deeply and take a look at every single detail to find the greater meaning behind it. That is why I found it so fascinating how you could find so much more information just by digging under the surface a little. A perfect illustration of this would be my Literary Analysis Paper, based on the book The Tortilla Curtain by T.C. Boyle. I feel that I was able to strengthen my analytical skills while writing this paper because it allowed me to come up with my own theory based on what I analyzed throughout the book. I also learned how to detect literary devices within a novel and become comfortable enough with them so that I would be able to come up with my own.
I can certainly say that throughout the year I have been able to expand my understanding on how proper wording can change a work, learn to collect my thoughts and ideas and fit them into my writing, and acquired the skills necessary to express and prove a point. All of the stress, multiple drafts, editing, critiquing, and revising that I have done to my work this year has made me realize that there will always be room for improvement in my work, and I am alright with that because I know that as long as I am able to express myself and have my voice be heard, It will all be worth it; and if I can improve on my writing while doing that, I do not see any reason as to why writing should be so monotonous. I am so happy to have been so fortunate to learn so many new ways to improve my writing this year, but I am certain that there is still an abundance of writing skills to be learned.
The essay below is my final revised draft:
Monica Morales
9th Grade Humanities
Ms. Shirk
June 6, 2012
Writing Reflection Essay
Writing usually tends to be nothing more than a tedious homework assignment for most people, but for me, it is an opportunity to make my voice heard. I did not always have this perspective on writing, especially at the beginning of this year. I felt that I would not be able to write a good essay or make any kind of literature piece because I did not have the sufficient knowledge or experience to write a proper essay. However, I feel like I have been able to improve my writing a lot this year. I feel like I have fortified my language and diction, improved the organization throughout my work, and learned how to properly convey a message through my content.
Throughout these past months, I have found that proper wording and diction can really influence and change your writing. That is why I pushed myself to instead of express myself in a long essay, to try to keep my writing short and to the point by choosing the right words needed to prove my point. I tried this method while drafting and writing my vignette. For example, I was able to explain my whole transition from little girl into a young woman in about thirty short sentences. “She must accept what is true.” – this was a sentence from my vignette in which I was able to explain that no matter how much you fight something, you are always going to have to understand that you must face it eventually. I was very cautious in choosing the words that I wanted to use to write this vignette because my goal was to use less words while making a big impact on the reader. However, I learned that what makes a bigger impact is choosing the right diction while keeping all of your thoughts organized.
The way you format an essay can make a very big difference on how the reader portrays the work. I found that if you write an essay where all of your thoughts and main points are organized and put together so that they flow throughout the essay, the reader will think that it sounds like a more professional piece of writing. For example, while writing my sonnet, instead of just trying to come up with each line one by one, I tried to think about exactly what it was that I wanted to talk about so that I already had an idea of what my sonnet would look like. Then, all I did was just transfer my ideas onto the paper. For example, I went from ‘he has ugly hair” to “his hair looks like wires” to “ Rusty old wires grow on top of his head”. It is also vital that your work makes sense and is not too hard to understand, because the reader must be able to analyze or figure out what you are trying to prove.
When you “analyze’ something, all you are doing is just carefully examining or picking apart a work in order to find the smaller details. Before I came into this school, I was never asked to analyze a piece of writing so deeply and take a look at every single detail to find the greater meaning behind it. That is why I found it so fascinating how you could find so much more information just by digging under the surface a little. A perfect illustration of this would be my Literary Analysis Paper, based on the book The Tortilla Curtain by T.C. Boyle. I feel that I was able to strengthen my analytical skills while writing this paper because it allowed me to come up with my own theory based on what I analyzed throughout the book. I also learned how to detect literary devices within a novel and become comfortable enough with them so that I would be able to come up with my own.
I can certainly say that throughout the year I have been able to expand my understanding on how proper wording can change a work, learn to collect my thoughts and ideas and fit them into my writing, and acquired the skills necessary to express and prove a point. All of the stress, multiple drafts, editing, critiquing, and revising that I have done to my work this year has made me realize that there will always be room for improvement in my work, and I am alright with that because I know that as long as I am able to express myself and have my voice be heard, It will all be worth it; and if I can improve on my writing while doing that, I do not see any reason as to why writing should be so monotonous. I am so happy to have been so fortunate to learn so many new ways to improve my writing this year, but I am certain that there is still an abundance of writing skills to be learned.
9th Grade Humanities
Ms. Shirk
June 6, 2012
Writing Reflection Essay
Writing usually tends to be nothing more than a tedious homework assignment for most people, but for me, it is an opportunity to make my voice heard. I did not always have this perspective on writing, especially at the beginning of this year. I felt that I would not be able to write a good essay or make any kind of literature piece because I did not have the sufficient knowledge or experience to write a proper essay. However, I feel like I have been able to improve my writing a lot this year. I feel like I have fortified my language and diction, improved the organization throughout my work, and learned how to properly convey a message through my content.
Throughout these past months, I have found that proper wording and diction can really influence and change your writing. That is why I pushed myself to instead of express myself in a long essay, to try to keep my writing short and to the point by choosing the right words needed to prove my point. I tried this method while drafting and writing my vignette. For example, I was able to explain my whole transition from little girl into a young woman in about thirty short sentences. “She must accept what is true.” – this was a sentence from my vignette in which I was able to explain that no matter how much you fight something, you are always going to have to understand that you must face it eventually. I was very cautious in choosing the words that I wanted to use to write this vignette because my goal was to use less words while making a big impact on the reader. However, I learned that what makes a bigger impact is choosing the right diction while keeping all of your thoughts organized.
The way you format an essay can make a very big difference on how the reader portrays the work. I found that if you write an essay where all of your thoughts and main points are organized and put together so that they flow throughout the essay, the reader will think that it sounds like a more professional piece of writing. For example, while writing my sonnet, instead of just trying to come up with each line one by one, I tried to think about exactly what it was that I wanted to talk about so that I already had an idea of what my sonnet would look like. Then, all I did was just transfer my ideas onto the paper. For example, I went from ‘he has ugly hair” to “his hair looks like wires” to “ Rusty old wires grow on top of his head”. It is also vital that your work makes sense and is not too hard to understand, because the reader must be able to analyze or figure out what you are trying to prove.
When you “analyze’ something, all you are doing is just carefully examining or picking apart a work in order to find the smaller details. Before I came into this school, I was never asked to analyze a piece of writing so deeply and take a look at every single detail to find the greater meaning behind it. That is why I found it so fascinating how you could find so much more information just by digging under the surface a little. A perfect illustration of this would be my Literary Analysis Paper, based on the book The Tortilla Curtain by T.C. Boyle. I feel that I was able to strengthen my analytical skills while writing this paper because it allowed me to come up with my own theory based on what I analyzed throughout the book. I also learned how to detect literary devices within a novel and become comfortable enough with them so that I would be able to come up with my own.
I can certainly say that throughout the year I have been able to expand my understanding on how proper wording can change a work, learn to collect my thoughts and ideas and fit them into my writing, and acquired the skills necessary to express and prove a point. All of the stress, multiple drafts, editing, critiquing, and revising that I have done to my work this year has made me realize that there will always be room for improvement in my work, and I am alright with that because I know that as long as I am able to express myself and have my voice be heard, It will all be worth it; and if I can improve on my writing while doing that, I do not see any reason as to why writing should be so monotonous. I am so happy to have been so fortunate to learn so many new ways to improve my writing this year, but I am certain that there is still an abundance of writing skills to be learned.
The main reason as to why I enjoyed writing this essay was because I got chance to look back at some of my writing from the beginning of they year and see just how much my writing had improved. Even my handwriting is different now. However, I did notice one similarity between my past and recent writing, and that is that i still have not exactly found my own specific writing style.