M.+Course+Reflection

This year, oh this year! English 11 was by far the most important year of my English career. It helped me mature as a writer. I was taught how to write more interesting and detailed papers. This year I was definitely pushed. I had to do many things on my own, and for me this is the best way to learn. This year I learned how to take apart an essay. and write it piece by piece. Taking apart every essay helped me to organize my thoughts better. This was a major part of how I became a better writer.

This year we focused on introductions. Thank goodness we did, because I really struggled with how to hook my reader. After practicing and working hard, I finally understood the secret behind a good introduction. It does not have to be long; it just has to interest the reader. It could be a short story or include a word like, "bang" or "snap". Words like that, make the reader want to know what is coming next. With a lot of trials and errors I feel like I got over the hump of not being able to write a good introduction. I know that this year I definitely improved that area of my writing.

We worked on many papers this year. Some papers were difficult to write, and others were a lot of fun to write. There was one project that struck me the most. It was the Self-Reliance project. This was my favorite piece of writing because it was different then all of the other essays or projects we did. I did not just have to sit down and write a paper. I was able to use Glogster. Glogster made the project fun and easy to write. With Glogster I was able to use pictures that helped explain the quote I chose. Also, with my Self-Reliance project, I was able to tell my classmates a story that no one has ever really heard before. For this reason, my Self-Reliance project was my favorite piece in my portfolio.

This was my first year using wiki. I had always done paper portfolios in the past, and to be honest, I loved wiki. It was so easy to learn to use and keep up to date. Also, I feel like this was the first year I was prepared for turning in my portfolio. I owe that all to wiki. Wiki kept me organized; and I never misplaced one essay, like I have done in previous years. I think everyone should use wiki because it keeps your papers organized, and teachers as well as students, can access it at any time with any computer.

As my junior year comes to a close, I have become more and more thankful for my English class. I took English very seriously this year, even though I had my days of not paying attention. I feel I learned a lot from all the lessons we were given. I also feel that I matured as a writer. I am completely ready for English 12, and most importantly, college! Without English 11, I would still be a boring writer, and one who did not care much about learning or furthering my education of the English language.