Entry #4

The first passage is an example of personal writing. The author conveys the journey her took to Guatemala and how it affected her as a person. Once the whole story is gathered, we learn that because of this experience she has decided to start a NGO. Through the context of this passage the reader is able to learn about the help that is being given to Guatemala. Because this passage opened with an experience and that experience was later reflected in the writing it is a perfect example of personal writing. The second passage is an example of academic writing. The author focused more on research using specific evidence to back up the argument that he is trying to convey. It seems like it was written with a very formal tone compared to the first passage. The audience also seems to differ between the two; the first author seems to be speaking to a general public, as where the second author may be trying to engage people that are well-educated on his topic. The last passage is public writing because it seems to be trying to make something happen. The author was asked to debate about the poem and show people her view. This passage seems to be geared towards a well-educated audience like the second passage was. It was hard for me to distinguish between academic and public writing at first but I believe that by reading through the explanations of each and having to find examples it really helped me gain a better understanding of the differences. It is important to focus on the context and audience when you write because it will help make your argument stronger or it will help you get your point across.

Entry #5

I have just started to try to develop my topic for project one. I have narrowed the topic that I want down to three questions, two dealing with the language being spoken in the United States and then one dealing with the lack of interest shown by teenagers in public affairs. To me the ideas dealing with language would be easier to write about; however, I find it fascinating how Americans could get so riled up about things in the 60’s during Vietnam, and how today with the War in Iraq there seems to not be as much of a stand. I’m not sure how I would work that into an argument, I was thinking that I might argue how young adults these days are “too nice”, they have no desire to challenge anything that is being said to them. Before I totally commit to a topic I would like to get more research to see what would be the best choice to write about. I would like to be farther along in the process of project one, having a solid working thesis was a goal of mine, but with my main argument still up in the air I believe that my paper will benefit more from me thinking about the topic I want to write about, making sure I am passionate about it. I am not too concerned about project one, it all seems to be laid out very well and it’s organized. Due to this though I may have some trouble meeting the deadlines, I usually don’t write only two pages of a paper, stop, and then continue working on it. With my writing style I’ve found that I enjoy sitting down and knocking the whole thing out with one punch. I believe my progress is right on track, but like I said above I really would like to have a definite topic right now. If I have any question I plan on using Professor Holmes as a resource as well as other professors I have come to know around Elon. I have also met some knowledgeable peers that I feel could help me with this project. For the remainder of the project I am going to try to follow the deadlines as closely as possible and really try to dig deep into whatever project I decide to explore. My biggest goal for this project is to stay focused on one subject and try to develop a clear and interesting argument.

Entry #3

Before taking this course I thought that my writing skills were well above par. I always got decent grades and my professors never said anything too negative about any piece of work I threw together. However; after examining my writing skills I have come to realize that I could utilize many more aspects and strategies of writing than I currently am. Instead of using strategies and skills I feel that I just sit down and spew out words. Due to the fact that I feel that I lack writing skills a goal of mine is to obtain more skills that can help me develop and write a strong paper. I never take the time to really plan out what I am going to discuss in any given paper. I recently discovered that I am a heavy reviser by definition. I like to sit down and just write; however, a heavy reviser also writes multiple drafts and has other people check over their work. Now, I do not write multiple drafts but I do constantly go back and make changes to the structure of my paper. I feel that if I had others look at my paper and help me with structure and organization of thoughts that it would help to elevate my writing. Aside from solely revision I hope to gain more knowledge about strategies because I cannot name one strategy off the top of my head. I am sure I know a few strategies but the fact that I cannot name one probably means I am not very familiar with it. Through this course I believe that I will develop strategies and be able to use them effectively, or at least that is a goal of mine. Some other goals of mine include to get a lot of practice writing and to write bits and pieces of my paper instead of writing them the night before they are due. I would also like to become a better revisor not only for my own benefit but for other people's gain as well. I feel that if I can help others become better writers than that can only ultimately help me out in the long run.

Entry #2

As with many other colleges around the country Elon requires an introductory English course, in this case English 101. While many of us have been taught how to write in high school this course is suppose to help us gain a more “sophisticated writing process [which includes] invention, peer responding, revising and editing”. This will in turn help our writing to be clearer and more effective. I believe that this first course objective dealing with revision to help make ones writing stronger is a very important aspect of this class. Since I have little experience in revision I believe that my writing will benefit most from this objective. Without learning this I feel that writing for other classes throughout my years in college will be extremely difficult. The second objective of this course is aimed at teaching different styles of writing that may need to be used in varying academic situations. This will be very useful for me because I am biology major and have never really worked on any scientific writings, so I hope that one of our projects incorporates that. Also, since I am trying to get all my prerequisites out of the way I am taking a wide variety of courses that require different writing styles. In high school we solely focused on MLA format so I am hoping to gain some more knowledge of APA format which I have found that the sciences tend to use. The last course objective of appreciation seems like the class ensures that we are not wasting our time by writing. I believe that this course will really help to show ways that writing can be used in everyday things we will encounter.
Although this course seems that it will be very beneficial, I do not believe I would have taken it if it was not a requirement. I do not enjoy writing papers and I feel that I could get by in most of my classes with the knowledge that I already possess. However, I intend to get the most out of this course and am very excited to learn different ways to edit, approach, and understand writing.

Entry #1

Everyone who has attended high school will tell you that they cannot wait to be a senior. Classes are supposed to be a breeze and the year is meant, for many, to be a “last hooray” before separating from friends that have been around since elementary school. However, at ThunderRidge, the administration makes it a point to ensure that seniors are crazily busy up until a week before graduation with the dreaded senior projects.
What do these senior projects have to do with writing one may ask? For a mere outsider this question is completely valid, but for those of us who have had to suffer through the process, we know that if you do not complete or pass your senior project than you cannot graduate. Gasp! And who wants to stay another year in high school when college is just around the corner?
There are two main components to passing the senior project, an oral presentation and a research paper that must be six to ten pages long. Six to ten pages may not sound like a big deal but when you are only a high schooler it seems like a near impossible feat. Not only does it have a long length requirement, there must be at least six sources cited within the text.
Being like many students I was not too worried about my paper, until the due date started hurtling towards me. I realized that I had way too much information and no direction in which to head, to make matters worse, I had put off the paper until the last minute and had to frantically work nonstop to complete ten pages of writing that would decide my fate. This story ends happily because I ended up pulling an A on the paper and graduating; however, it was a very nerve racking and stressful experience.
From my senior project paper I learned that I need to plan more in advance when writing lengthy research papers. As a writer I would like to say that I have completely stopped procrastinating and gotten my papers turned in two days early; however, I still suffer from procrastination from time to time. I always tell myself to not procrastinate and in the future I believe that I’ll work on my papers bit by bit. I feel that if I take 30 minutes to just write down some quick thoughts that I will be able to produce a quality paper by the time its due. To go along with this philosophy, I have found that if I write a paragraph about some research that I have just found, that it makes it easier for me to get my thoughts together later when I sit down to write a first draft. I believe this is because I force myself to get the important information from the research and the parts that will be relevant to my topic. Also, with this paper I forced myself to share my writing with teachers and peers because I wanted it to be good enough to get me my diploma. Even though I haven’t implemented this strategy yet in college I do believe that having two heads is better than one and I plan on utilizing my peers to improve my papers.

About Me

1. Biology or Exercise Sports Science
2. Highlands Ranch, Colorado!
3. Bowtie pasta
4. The last book I read was Water For Elephants. I enjoy reading and since we were in winter term I decided I had enough time to sit down and explore what I heard was a good read.
5. I play basketball and in my free time I like to be outdoors being active. I also enjoy listening to music.
6. Australia and Ireland.
7. Tommy Boy
8. ....