After weeks of writing blog posts and various assignments, I would conclude that this class has improved my writing skills. I want to reflect on my experience in this class, because it was a positive one. Although at first, it may have been seen as a chore to compose a blog post every week. After doing one every week, it became easier and I can tell my writing has improved. This process has made me more aware of my writing because it is published to the public, so I want to ensure that I make my writing as clean and entertaining as possible.
I had never written a scene before this English Composition I course, and I dreaded the idea of it. It wasn’t that hard after being taught how to write one, and practicing with my previous blog posts. One of my favorite blog post written about a scene was Composing a Present Scene with Dialogue and Symbolism because the picture of my dog really makes the scene feel more alive. I also like that blog post along with many others because I was able to write about anything I wanted. It is really easy to write about myself or what I experienced. Making a website was also fun because it made it more enjoyable to do the assignments because I like the aesthetic of my website. It gives it personality and shows the viewer the personality of the author of the website. I also like writing blog comments because I like seeing the feedback from my classmates and it helped me improve my writing. The idea of leaving a comment on a classmates blog was a little daunting, but I think it is nice and helpful to give others feedback on their writing as well. One of my favorite processes from class was listening to Lulu Wang’s podcast What You Don’t Know because it helped me write about a moment that had a negative impact on my life from a choice my parents made for my Narrative Project. Her podcast helped me add dialogue to my story, and sensory details to make the moment come back to life. She also provided context and delivered subtext to her story which played as an example for how I was going to write my narrative. Listening to another podcast Rewinding and Rewriting: The Alternative Universe in Our Heads also helped with that process and the second draft of my Narrative Project. For my second draft, I wrote an alternative and a “what if” counterfactual situation to change the story. Overall, I really enjoyed this course, because it made me become more creative with my writing. Even my ALP class which was right after this class was beneficial for me because I had more time to edit my work and had one-on-one time with Professor Mangini. One day during my ALP class, we discussed growth mindset. This means that no matter where we are in our writing skills, there is always room for improvement which can be accomplished by using effort, good strategy, and help. There is a gold standard to writing and I know I am not there yet, but from my experience in this class and what I have learned, I am moving forward in my writing to get to where I want to be as a writer.
0 Comments
For my introduction to my research project, I decided to write one of my journal entries from the "Week of Three Good Things". I decided to use this journal entry and make it into a scene in order to allow the reader to understand my feelings during the process. I wanted to capture my emotions and how quickly they changes after I pushed myself out of my comfort zone. I chose to write a scene in my introduction because I want to entertain and inform the reader on the research topic.
I also used this specific entry based on Martin Seligman's PERMA model on happiness. I reviewed my journal entries and found that most of my gratitude moments associated with the PERMA element relationships. I had written on Friday November 2 this scene that I was grateful for, and the process of writing this moment played a part in the improvement on my well-being. “Are you going to West Chester University this weekend for homecoming?” my brother asks. “I don’t know, I haven’t been up there in a few weeks” I respond, feeling a little anxious. I look down at my phone, wondering whether or not I should message my friend Megan who lives up in West Chester. I really wanted to go and I question myself, “should I ask to hangout, I don’t want to be annoying.” I am always fearful of what people think of me. “No, just do it”. I start typing out a text to Megan, “Hey what are you doing this weekend?” I push send and sigh with relief. Last time I visited I asked the same question, I hope she doesn’t think I’m bothersome. I then see three text bubbles, and start to anticipate for her response and prepare myself for rejection. A blue message finally appears on my phone, “It’s homecoming this weekend, you should come up!” She replies. “Whew, thank god” I tell myself. Now my stress had disappeared and I reply, “Okay, see you Saturday!” I found myself in the moment feeling grateful that I pushed myself out of my comfort zone. I realized that I shouldn’t be so worried about little things and I was so thankful that she invited me up to visit. After taking part in the “Three Good Things” gratitude process, I would use this whenever I am feeling down and need to boost my well-being. I would not continue this everyday but I think that Dr. Martin Seligman’s research was really beneficial for me, especially because of his PERMA model on happiness. This process made me realize that I shouldn’t take anything for granted and has made me appreciate the little moments in life that I may have not thought of before. Also, it has made me appreciate myself most of all, because I am my harshest critic. |
Chrissie FackenthallI will use this blog to write and post weekly assignments for my English Composition I course at Delaware County Community College Archives
December 2018
Categories
All
|