Thursday, January 15, 2015
Stop the Ride...I want to get on!!!!!!!
Greetings. I am so happy to be joining you in your learning process. What do you find are your strengths as an AP Language student? What have been your favorite assignments? What have been your favorite readings? What skills do you look towards improving during the second half of the year?
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I find that my strengths are my tendencies to be very blunt but truth and my lack of tact or social etiquette. Oh trust me, I can be very tact. But nobody likes that act. I only do that when I have to actually be nice to people. Anyways, I digress. I don't really write a lot of things that do not need to be written. I write what I feel is necessary. Everything else is just extra fluff that makes the paper feel fluffy. I don't like fluffy papers. I like papers that don't feel like a waste of time to read. In these blogs though, I write down exactly what is on my mind at that giving moment. It is probably difficult for readers to understand what I'm trying to say because it becomes me talking to myself basically. Everybody...just...try to keep up. Sorry my blog writing gets confusing. Alright next thing. My habit to just be very blunt can come in handy sometimes. This is again about not sugarcoat in something. I hate when people sugarcoat things to me. I just want them to tell it to me as it is. So onto the next paragraph.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite assignment was the logical fallacies project. In that project, I got to write as I talk and not use the fluffy words. My project came out very nice I thought. I also enjoyed it because it gave me a reason to put a picture of Mr. Spock on the cover. I like to throw out Star Trek references whenever I feel they are necessary. In this case with the project being about a lack of logic, I just could not resist. Also it helped me understand logical fallacies better. I was struggling to keep up with all the logical fallacies and what means what and I just wanted to scoop my brain out with pooper-scooper. But that project really helped me make sense of all the logical fallacies that were being presented to me at the time and I believe that's what also helped me end up passing ap Lang, which is always nice. But ok, I need to move on.
My favorite reading was probably Why I Love My Job by Rick Reilly. I just really connected with that reading because I do like watch sports in my free time and I always like to find relationships between sports and education. Like some mathematicians claim Lebron James wore number 6 while he was playing for Miami because it's the first perfect number and he was trying to be the perfect basketball player. That theory seems like a bunch of bogus. Well...I don't know. I hate him even if he does have a perfect number on his jersey. I love perfect numbers. If I played basketball, my number would be 8128. That's because it's the fourth perfect number, I love perfect numbers, and my favorite number is four. Or is it 8128? I don't even know what my favorite number is. Anyways 8128 would be the number on my jersey if I could play basketball. But I can't, so...moving on to hockey as that blog was also prime time for me to whip out my story about the Miracle on Ice. (For anybody who has not done so, it would be well worth your time to watch the movie Miracle. One of the greatest movies of all time right there folks.) Also it gave me some great advice on what to do while I am searching for ideas on a long term career. He says I have to do something I love, so I think I'm going to get into business or government. Mostly because those are two jobs where I get to yell at people, and I love to do that.
(Continuation)
DeleteI would like to improve my vocabulary. I feel my word selection is on a rather elementary level. More sophisticated vocabulary would be nice. But maybe that's just me. I feel like I'm the only one who doesn't have the word selection awesomeness that others have. I'll just go crawl in the corner and think about something else. Scratch that. I'm not going to do that till I finish. Maybe I'll never do that. I don't know. I'm getting way off track. Getting back to the original topic would be nice. But I'd also like to improve my speech skills as I feel I slack in that area. I get very nervous and start throwing and swearing (see famous speech project for example) I don't know if that's something that gets covered in this course but whatever. I think that's all I have for this blog. So I'll just end it now.
Nick, I think that your goal of improving your vocabulary is an excellent one. Especially with the SATs coming up for most of us, along with the much anticipated AP Exam, now is a good time to begin adding to our knowledge of words. Personally, I have always had a strange affinity for words in general, to the point where I would find myself almost giddy each time I would learn a new word that could be used in my everyday life. Last year, Mrs. Messineo once described me as "eclectic." I had never heard of that word prior to her mentioning of it, but when she told me what it meant, I agreed that that word was probably the most accurate description of me that I had ever heard. After that, I found myself using the word almost too frequently. Nonetheless, I do not think that one can ever have knowledge of too many vocabulary words, making the learning process an endless one. It is never a waste of time to improve one's vocabulary, as words will always be a part of our lives. When one possesses an expansive knowledge of words, the possibilities are endless. It allows them to better communicate with the world around them, and to use each word to contribute a part of themselves to that world.
DeleteMy favorite number is 12 because it has a lot of friends. And I really appreciate concise writing. That is what it is called when you only say as much as is necessary. Additionally, I should do the logical fallacies project because I get them mixed up ALL the time. I hope we can fit a Star Trek unit in, which I doubt, but I would like for you to explore the possibilities of using it in an assignment.
DeleteI definitely agree with you on wanting to improve speaking skills, Nick. I too get jumbled up and notice then I end up cussing under my breath.. Oops, not very lady-like as my grandma would say when hears me. I am also very socially awkward, so most the time my face is just beat red and I just end up getting really quiet or laughing for an extended period of time to avoid talking, which probably is not very good since i want to be a fashion marketer so I have to communicate with other human beings. I also really enjoyed the logical fallacy project. I used a lot of cats, which really excited me because cats are the best thing ever created.
DeleteI think that one thing that is my strong suit in this class is my ability to be open to anything. I have written about many topics in this class so far that would make most students uncomfortable. However, I think that my ability to be open with my reader and give my actual thoughts on a topic make for an interesting and honest paper. I also think that writing openly helps me enjoy my assignments and this class in general. My favorite assignments are the blogs because I enjoy the readings we are given and I like being able to write somewhat informally instead of the usual research paper or assignments of that type. I really enjoy writing in general because it gives me an output for my thoughts, feelings, and creativity. I have taken Creative Writing, AP Lang, and and many other English classes and have enjoyed all of these. I have a great love and appreciation for reading and writing so this makes this class very enjoyable for me. I think the biggest strong suit in this class is my sense of humor. My favorite saying as of late is, "If you're not laughing, you're crying". I think this positive attitude and humor has helped to remain calm under the workload of this class and produce assignments that I was truly proud of.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite readings so far this year has been Angela's Ashes. I really enjoyed the way it was written and the storyline of the novel. I also think that McCourt was able to tell his story in a way that made the reader feel like they were involved in the story and he made all the events very relatable. I carried the book everywhere with me during the summer because I was not able to put it down while I was reading. Another reading that I enjoyed was Steinbeck's Lessons on Love. While I hated the Grapes of Wrath, I loved Steinbeck's advice to his son about love. For me, it was just a short, heartwarming article that I thoroughly enjoyed. As I mentioned before, I despised reading the Grapes of Wrath. It was like watching paint dry, that's how boring it was for me. Also, at many points, I thought things were just so weird. Especially the end of the book with Rose of Sharon and the dying man. What was that?! I understand the symbolism but I was somewhat confused because the ending was so odd. I find many of the readings that we do in this class very insightful and have saved and reread many of them.
One thing I would like to do better at in this class is a broader range of vocabulary and developing more of a voice. I think I have a normal range of vocabulary but I would like to have more variety of words in my writing. I also know many of the other students in this class have a very distinct voice, but I feel like mine is very bland. I think that improving these two areas of my writing would make a large difference in my wiring ability.
The ending of Grapes of Wrath is super creepy. That is not a great technical term, but the only one that I find truly fitting. That being said, it is an important novel and I am glad you have that in your repertoire. And a sense of humor is an excellent attribute of an AP class and for life in general. Nothing better than a room full of weirdos who like to laugh! We will definitely be working on vocab and voice.
DeleteAbbey, this class has taught me to be open to new topics and ideas too. I may not like all of them, but I feel as if I have to give them chance before I decide this. Working on voice is a skill I need to work on to. I am never sure if the passive voice or active voice should be used in my papers. And, the end of the Grapes of Wrath was creepy! Why someone would end a book like that, I don't know! Maybe it was to show how Rose of Sharon evolved; sort of like a method of indirect characterization....
DeleteUnlike you, I struggle with being open about certain topics, Abbey. At times, I have certain ideas in my head that I cannot write out in a way that make sense to my audience without me feeling awkward. Other times, I cannot make a stance on a topic without finding myself going back and forth between the two sides of the argument. For example, when I was writing the synthesis essay about how much athletes get paid, I did not know how to say what I felt. In my opinion, athletes are overpaid, but when I was planning that essay, I was persuading myself otherwise and lacked supporting evidence in my own thoughts. I eventually got myself straightened out, but I am not comfortable saying what I believe. I need to be more open so my writing reflects more of my ideas, but that is unfortunately not one of my strengths.
DeleteAbbeyes, I wish I was like you being able to write passionally on many of the topics givin. I struggle with that very much, it is one of the main things I need to work on. I too loved Angelas Ashes. It was on of those books that made me forget about the world around me. I didn't put it down formore than ten minutes at a time. Books that really capture the moment and seem to stop the time around me are the ones I truely love. Developing my voice and more advanced vocabulary is something I need to work on also. I feel confident that we will develop these skills by the end of the year.
DeleteAbbey, I agree with you that Grapes of Wrath was one of the absolute worst thing I ever had to read in my entire life. Though I understand the symbolism behind the Rose of Sharron incident, it was weird and the final line made me very uncomfortable. I also agree that Angela's Ashes was a wonderful book and it really did touch my heart the way he was capable to get through each awful situation he was faced with. I actually asked my mom for the next book that he wrote for Christmas. I also enjoy your ability to be open to everything for that class, which I know can be difficult at times. I wish I was able to take things and run with them the way you do.
DeleteI feel as though I have a lot of strengths in AP Language. One of the many, and most important, is my ability to work harder after I fall to a bad grade. I have gotten a couple of them throughout this class. (but hey, who hasn't?) Every time, after a minor anxiety attack, I am able to bounce back and improve on my next essay, project, ect., and see my mistakes. I also am very good at making awkward jokes to make people feel better when we are all stressed about our grade in this class. Some people may not find that important, but I honestly do.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite assignment in this class so far has been the portfolio and the memoir. I loved the portfolio because it was interesting to go back and progressively watch myself grow as a writer. It was also a wake up call to how awful I was as a person when I got angry. I blamed everyone, but myself, at some points in the year. I feel really awful now. I also loved the memoir because it was an opportunity to openly write about an experience that helped me grow and also allowed me to be creative in my word choices and writing style.
I actually loved reading everything this year, with the exceptions of The Grapes of Wrath and any piece of philosophy. I don't know what John Steinbeck's deal with dogs was, but does he have to kill every dog in every novel he writes? I could not deal with the any of the philosophy, not because I did not understand it. Rather, I had no motivation to read it sometimes. I had to push myself to read it every night and it put me over the edge.
This second semester my overall goal is to grow as a writer and to learn how to properly transfer my ideas onto paper in an organized way, so when I write papers it actually makes sense. I just want to improve and never stop going forth in my learning experience.
Jenna, I completely agree with some of your points. While we were reading those philosophy things, I literally wanted to kill myself every night. I just hated everything about the philosophy unit. When people speak philosophically to me, I just want to punch them in the face. I mentioned in my original blog that I didn't like using fluff words. I consider philosophical writings to be full of fluff. I just hate that. I also did enjoy the projects. They were very fun to do and they padded my grade, so that's good. And I also did awful on some things in this class. I believe that your response is what is important. The grade is not so important. You just have to be able to pick yourself up. So that is good you were able to pick yourself up. Well...that's all I have to say I guess.
DeleteJenna, I would just like to note that I also appreciate your ability, along with the abilities of many others in our class, to make the students laugh when the stress is overpowering. I completely agree that this is an incredibly important asset when attempting to deal with the constant anxiety that comes with AP Language. I know that it is a common occurrence to find the AP Language students laughing and making jokes regarding the class and the work that must be done. Jokes are a prevalent aspect of our endeavors to survive the course, which often results in the reduction of at least a small portion of our stress. It is important to have a positive attitude when dealing with the excessive workload, as this is truly one of the only ways to successfully complete the course. Spending our days wallowing in apprehension and self-pity will ensure nothing but a less enjoyable experience with the course.
DeleteWell I am glad you pushed through it because philosophy is the basis of all thinking. You will see it resurface a million times in your life. It is an excellent base on which to build a good solid philosophy and writing style of your own. Ingesting all of that information is so good for you! And I am certain you will continue to grow as a writer. It is a great way to express your ideas and to figure out what you think about things. It is also excellent that you have managed to cope with failing grades. You are not going to get A's on every assignment, and that is okay. Knowing that and being able to laugh about it is excellent!
DeleteJenna, I hated philosophy too! I felt like all the philosophers were the same, and learning about them seemed redundant. But, now that I look back, I feel have have learned a little bit of philosophy that may be important in the future. I just have to figure out where I can apply it! My favorite assignment was the portfolio as well, because it showed me how my hard work paid off. After doing that project, I felt that even though it had been hard at times in this class, I was really investing in my future. That kind of stuff is invaluable, and today I am so glad I did it! I can imagine that I will feel even prouder by the end of the year!
DeleteJenna, philosophy and The Graoes of Wrath were both making me tired. It was hard to get into the actually reading becaus there was nothing that caught my eye. In philosophy, I would mix up all the people and thier thoughts and basically k have no idea who had what thoughts. It was a train wrecked. I did like many of the points they made, but if you asked me who made them all.. I wouldn't have been able to tell you. I think the only one I truely remember is Machiavelli becuase we did the leadership project on him. Which helps me remember.
DeleteIn the past semester, I have become a lot more organized. I know when certain projects are due and am able to manage my time accordingly. This strength is important because there is no time to be searching for my papers when I have other work to be doing. I have a binder with sleeves in it for my handouts and notes, a folder for my graded assignments, and a place in my book bag where my book stays so I do not forget it. My attitude has also become one of my strengths at times. There are a few days when assignments seem too big or complicated to handle, but for the most part, I enjoy AP Language a lot more than some of my blow-off english classes in previous years. It teaches me a lot and makes me feel like I am leaning instead of memorizing.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite assignments is writing the synthesis essays. I like the essays in the book that provide sources and an interesting prompt. The topic about overpaid athletes was fun to write and made me upset when I read the articles. One reason that I love these essays so much is because I never knew how to write an essay that was not a standard, five-paragraph structured writing before this class, and it is fun to write in a different way.
My favorite part of this class in general is turning in and getting back assignments. When I turn papers in I feel either relieved that the assignment is over or like a nervous wreck because of how unconfident I felt about my work. There are also two moods I have when I receive papers, and one is definitely preferred over the other. Getting back terrible grades is okay for me in this class, as long as there are a lot of markings and suggestions on them. It does make me upset, but it teaches me, and that is the most important part of this class. I love getting back good grades because it makes my day and I become very happy. There were a couple of times when I completely destroyed tests and essays, but as soon as I got a good grade back, I felt great. That suspense relief and suspense is exciting for me in AP Language.
I have never been a reading person and went through my elementary and middle school years reading crapy teenager books. I never read classical books and hated the summer reading at first. I suffered through Endurance and froze every time I picked up the book and put myself in Shackleton's position. Seabiscuit was annoying to me because I do not understand horse racing, but I did not mind it in the end. Aside from summer reading, I did not like the first unit philosophy readings. I did enjoy the meanings of the readings, but when I was reading them, I had absolutely no idea what was going on. That was way over my head at the time but if I read them again now, I might appriciate the readings and the points being made. Despite the few readings I disliked, I loved Angela's Ashes and the Grapes of Wrath. They made me feel terrible because people suffer unimaginable pains and I have life made out pretty easily for me, but they were so interesting and made me more open-minded about what books I read. The ways people survive when they have no other choice but death are amazing, and these books captured both high and low points in stories that might have happened for the most part.
The next semester will be challenging because new teachers come with some new expectations, but it will be productive and fun because our bad attitudes have gone away to an extent. I hope to develop a better understanding for other people's writings in the next few months. My vocabulary is not the best, and if I get better at that I might be able to analyze writings more easily. I also want to look at logical fallacies again because I still do not fully understand them and I am sure that I still use them. These concepts will make me a better writer with a better work ethic, and that is my overall goal in this class.
Time management is one of the many skills you will be thankful you learned when you enter college. And having to read critically is another skill that you will some day cherish. The more you do it, the better you will get. Keep at it. We will be working on vocab and as I told Nick, logical fallacies can be very confusing. We will work on it together.
DeleteGrace, I agree with you. I really enjoy getting turning in an assignment that I'm very proud of. Also, I enjoy getting assignments back and seeing where my mistakes are and where I could improve. I also enjoy the sense of pride I get after receiving a good grade on an assignment I worked very hard at. I also would like to develop a deeper vocabulary because I struggle when reading advanced material. I hope to be able to work at that so I can learn more and understand materials better.
DeleteGrace, I completely agree that this class has improved my organization so much. I now have a planner and a way my essays fall in my binder (however, I'm the only one who understands this orang animation technique.) I also can agree with the fact that I feel so much more challenged in this class as opposed to our past English classes. That was both good and bad. It was good in the way that I felt I was being pushed more and becoming a better writer and I was capable of reading more complex works. However, it was bad in the way that I did not know how to do real work or actually put effort into an English class before.
DeleteThis year's AP Language course has truly been a journey, and I think that it is safe to say that each student has grown this year in a unique way. Long nights full of stressful panic attacks and tear-stained essays are not nearly as frequent as they were at the beginning of the school year. Students no longer find themselves grumbling incessantly at the overload of homework, instead finding ways to work it into a schedule and manage the rigor of the course in a much more orderly fashion.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I have found my own strengths emerging as I worked to adjust to the intensity of this AP English course. I think that organization in general has definitely become one of my strengths as a student. Unlike with most high school courses, it does not suffice to come to AP English class with a simple folder and expect to be organized. To prevent this potential disorganization, I have found myself working to keep each of my papers in a separate section of my binder to ensure that I do not lose papers that could be of importance later. In addition, this is the first year that I have needed to carry a planner, but it has certainly worked to my advantage. I now find myself much more capable of scheduling my AP Lang homework along with my homework from other classes. This also allows me to decide when it is necessary to complete my homework one day early due to an out-of-school commitment in the near future. Finally, I think that it is safe to say that procrastination is not one of my weaknesses. I constantly find myself worrying about the next assignment, and trying to complete it as soon as possible so as to divert any complications that may arise in the process. I also find myself much more relaxed knowing I have completed what was required, rather than staying up until midnight on the night before the assignment is due. It gives me a sense of pride and accomplishment to know that I have successfully completed the work, and that allows me to enjoy life outside of school much more.
I would say that my favorite assignment thus far has actually been the portfolio that we have just recently completed. I really liked being able to look through the wide array of writings that I personally have completed throughout the course, and to reflect on the varying thought processes that accompanied each one. I also loved the creative element of the project, as we were required to pick a theme that reflected out writing, and to thread that theme throughout the portfolio. It was fun to choose pictures, fonts, and colors that correlated with the theme, and to add all of these elements together to create one finished masterpiece.
A great deal of reading was done throughout the year, and it is hard for me to pick just one to single out as my favorite. I did, however, enjoy reading The Grapes of Wrath over Christmas break (Of course, I did not like the fact that we had to read it over Christmas break...). It was so interesting to see Steinbeck's portrayal of the Great Depression from the perspective of the Joads. As in most books, I found myself really becoming attached to the characters, and feeling for their pain and suffering as if it was my own. Steinbeck's depictions were very vivid as well, aiding in my positive perception of the book.
Throughout the duration of the second semester, I hope to develop my skills as a writer in general. Writing has always been something that I have loved. However, I am a firm believer in the notion that there is always room for improvement. I hope to find myself much more adjusted to the course than I was in the first semester, and to use this preparedness to focus on my own individual writing skills, and what I must do to improve them. I hope that through this course, I will gain a more definite understanding of the concept of writing in general, and to use this newfound knowledge to make decisions about my future career path.
Excellent. Often in regards to courses that are rigorous, time management and organization are essential. And it is so exciting that you are on the cusp of choosing a course of study for your future. Often times, writing about a lot different subjects helps to establish your interests. I am thrilled to be a part of it.
DeleteThroughout the course of this class, I have struggled to grasp many of the concepts that were being taught, as many of you know. I do not think that I could personally pick out a specific strength of mine for this class. I know that I have tried very hard to understand these concepts, but it is still very overwhelming to me. I am sure that I have come a long way since the beginning of the year, however, but I do not think that I have a specific strong suit in this course.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I might not have a specific trait that stands out, I do have a favorite assignments and favorite readings. One of my favorite assignments would have to be the Portfolio that the class had just put together instead of a midterm this quarter. This project really took me for a spin. It reminded me of how terrible I actually was at composing just about everything. I also really enjoyed writing the "How to Survive AP Lang" essay. This essay made me feel like I could actually help someone who was entering this class. This whole combine project was by far the best one of the year. My favorite reading this year has to be the reading that we did on anxiety for the blog. I really enjoyed all of the theories that the author had proposed. The ways that she talked about the past, future, and present really got to me. Also the points that she made about thinking while one is doing something really made a connection with me. I love the concept about how one can never really be doing something because they are always thinking about something else. This was by far was my favorite reading.
I have many skills that I would like to work on throughout the rest of the year. I would like to work on my sentence structure a little more. I notice that I cannot bring a paragraph together very well like it should be. Some things that I write do not even make sense in a paragraph. I would really like to further my writing skills in the second half of this year.
It is a good sign that you are working towards the future! Typically people who thrive in art do well with writing and reading. We have to focus on the process you use to create a piece of art and translate it into writing. Now along with "arting" you will also enjoy "writing". There is an author in there, I just know it! I look forward to working with you.
DeleteI agree Buchs. The class was a bit overwhelming. I have found though that my attitude towards it has gotten better since then. I think that is how people have to look at it. It could be very much worse. But it isn't. The workload has basically plateaued so that has given me a chance to catch my breath. I expect it may increase again. I pray to God hoping it does not. But if it does, I'll be ready and willing to meet that next challenge. And also Buchs, I believe everyone has a talent. I'm pretty sure you have a talent, you just have to dig and find it. And I actually disagree with you about one of your points. I hated doing the porfolio. Just...I wanted to throw my computer out my window. Many of you know I throw it when I get annoyed or stressed. I just wanted to kill everyone...ugh. Whatever. That's all I have to say I guess. I'm glad you enjoyed doing the project.
DeleteRaeAnn, I agree, concepts in the beginning of the year were not easy to grasp and write about because it was philosophy. Philosophy requires us to think in ways we did not know was possible or in manners we were not used to. I also struggled. I remember reading the philosophies and asking my parents if they understood what concept was trying to be portrayed and even they sometimes did not understand either. As we moved out of the section of philosophy I look back and reflect on how much I did learn even though at the time, I was confused and flustered. Even though I struggled with philosophy, I feel as if it help set the way for all of us, and opened our minds to different types of writing and also helped develop our own voice.
DeleteAP English language has really opened by eyes about what it means to be a good writer. Before this class, I did not have a well developed voice, even though I had good content and ideas in my essays. But, the more I have written, the better voice and perspective I have achieved. The hardest part of this class was learning how to write formally. Before this class, I wrote in a combination of the first/second person. But now, I know how to write more formally in the third person.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of writing in the first person, I remember Mrs. Messineo telling us that we are going to write argumentative essays soon. I am kind of excited to do that, but I feel like it can be hard to express your opinion without using "I." I am interested to learn how to express your own ideas without saying the ideas yourself. (If that makes sense)
At the beginning of this class, I struggled to see the value in it. I used to love writing, but after doing it so much, I was tired of it. I began to think that the only that should take it were those who wanted to be English majors! But after being it for a little while, I realized that the skills I learned will helpful in writing lab reports and formal papers in college. I had always struggled with these types of writing in the past, but now I feel a little more confident going into them.
My favorite project that we have done so far is the portfolio. So many people in the class went back to revise their essays, but I did not. I felt that correcting it all would not show how I improved as a writer. I wanted to show my good, bad, and ugly. Correcting everything would not show how I have grown! My least favorite parts of the class have been the memoir and philosophy unit. For me, philosophy was confusing and boring, and not a topic I had much interest in. The memoir was hard for me to write. It took me forever to choose a topic, and when I wrote about it, it was hard. I did well on the memoir, I just did not want to write it. Some people love writing about their past. But, I like writing about the present and what I want to happen in the future. I think that it would cool to write an essay on what we think our future will be, or how we feel about the present. It seems like those are topics no one ever writes about in English class! But, I feel like Mrs. Messineo will have some pretty interesting topics for us to write about in the future! I cannot wait to see what she has in store for us!
I disliked the philosophy unit as well, Olivia. I loved what they were saying and agreed with most of their ideas, but the readings were not easy. It might have just been the fact that it was the first unit and we were all closed-minded and confused, but when we talked about the philosophers in cultures class last week, I remembered every philosopher and their ideas. We must have picked up something in our time of confusion.
DeleteI had a hard time writing in third person at the beginning of the year, but I definitely improved in that area. I still struggle with tense at times and find myself switching back and forth, but writing without saying "I" and "you" has become normal after practicing for so long. We did not write many argumentative essay and I am interested to see if I can stay away from those words when arguing a point.
Olivia, I was the complete opposite in the view of writing. I never enjoyed writing essays unless they were research papers on a topic that interested me. I never wrote for pleasure, I wrote because it was homework. I believe that I viewed writing this way because I never truly wrote many essays until this year. I started to enjoy reading and writing about topics and writing in general. I started to enjoy the feeling of writing and the accomplishment of having my own work, not the accomplishment of finishing my homework. I believe this class as truly helped me become and better writer. As you have mentioned this class prepares us as juniors to write college essays and reports that will be written in the future.
DeleteI am really looking forward to doing this project as well, Olivia. I love the idea of arguing in papers, but doing it in third person will be a whole new playing field. Since we all know the gist of third person, once we get started on the project I am sure that all of us will grasp the concept of it.
DeleteI also noticed that it became easier to write papers in other classes once this coarse got started. Before this class, it took me around two to three hours to write two simple pages, and now it takes me about half the time. In AP Chem this year, I have had to write tons of lab reports, proposals, and other works of the sort. AP Lang has really helped me to structure them so they make sense. It takes me a lot less time to write them than it would if I did not take this class.
AP Language and Composition truly helped me discover my strengths and weaknesses. This discovery allows me to focus on the weaknesses and brush up on the strongest areas of my writing. I feel as if my strengths are my creativity and abundant ideas and my ability to put forth effort and manage my time. When writing essays, I am constantly be filled with new, creative ideas on what to write. With all of these ideas I have to decide which idea best suits the essay, and this where my second strength begins to appear. In the beginning of the year I often found myself spending hours writing essays and working on projects. I would be up in the late hours of the night and cramming in the last bit of the assignment. However, as the year went on, I began to develop my strength of time management. Now, by saying time management, I do not mean I have an hour to do this and when the hour is over I am done. What I mean by time management is, when given an assignment I decipher how long it will take me, and based on the length of time I look at my calendar and other classes to see what is coming up. Based on what is coming up I make my self time slots. I also manage my time to avoid late nights, therefore, I will look at the syllabus and work ahead if possible. When I began time management I found that my outlook became even brighter, the anxieties and fears in the very beginning were diminished and replaced with high hopes and goals for myself as a writer.
ReplyDeleteThroughout the year we have been assigned bookwork, essays, projects, and more. Some which I loved and others I just accepted. There were a few that stick out in my mind which I really remember enjoying. One of my favorites was the Famous Speech Project. For this project I chose John F. Kennedy's Civil Rights Amendment of 1963 because I love hearing and watching stories of the civil right movements in the early 1900s. Also because am I fan of John F. Kennedy. I believe the reason I enjoyed this project was because I was able to research and engage in the situations happening and why this speech was written in the format. I was to find rhetorical strategies and fallacies throughout the speech and determine why they were used and what context these strategies were used in. After all of the research and written work, we were to present our project to the class. I was able to use my creativity to create a presentation and step out of my comfort zone and speaking in front of an audience. I remember the time I put in because was enjoying it so much. Along with projects we have also been doing a number of readings. My favorite reading was a reading for our blogs called Perspectives on Fear. I just remember reading the article and thinking this is me one hundred percent. I loved how one reading could relate to you in ways would not expect. Another favorite was the Grapes of Wrath. We read the Grapes of Wrath over the Christmas break and I enjoyed sitting down and imagining myself in the situation of the Joad family. I really enjoy readings where I contemplate in thought, such as Leviathan, and books where I can insert myself and imagine what it would be like in different situations. The readings and writings correspond with one another because if you have an understanding for the reading, the writing will flow much smoother.
Mentioned earlier were my strengths and with strengths come weaknesses and areas for improvement. Though I have developed greatly I still have areas in need of improvement while also improving my strengths. In this second semester, I hope to develop a broad span of vocabulary and to understand when certain words can be used. I believe that with having an increase in vocabulary will help improve my style. Another area I wish to improve on are the in class essays. This is a subject in which I do not succeed as well as I wish to. I am looking forward to this upcoming semester to see how much further my skills will improve.
Sydney, I agree that the blog assignments are always very real. The writings Dr. Pam gave us to read and comment on were always easy to relate to. I know that when I read most of them I was able to remember at least one personal experience that related to the topic. In this way, I really enjoy blogs. Some people see me as a notorious academic, and blogs are a chance for me to step away from this persona. Commenting on my personal experiences is a way for me to relate to others and show that I am more than a homework obsessed nerd. I also feel as though sharing experiences connects the class. We are all in the class and it is good to know that we all have other things in common. In this way, our friendships develop as we learn more about one another.
DeleteI also agree that some assignments have asked me to step outside of my comfort zone. One particular assignment was the memoir. Writing about my hearing loss was highly personal, and giving to to Dr. Pam to read seemed foolish. It was one of the first assignments we did, and I knew almost nothing about her. However, I continued to write about my loss, and Dr. Pam was very understanding. My memoir turned out very well, and writing about my experience helped me further understand it. Without stepping outside of my comfort zone, I could never have accomplished the memoir.
When I first started this class, being an AP student was new to me, just as it was for everyone else. I can diffidently say I have found my stronger and weaker points. Sometimes I feel the weak point stand out way more than my strong points, but it might be because I focus on them more. One of the strongest points I have is projects. They get me so excited and allow me to put my own creativity into them. When Dr. Pam had us do the Famous Speech project, I was astatic. I spent almost everyday reading many of wonderful speeches. The hardest part was picking the one I felt the most connection to. The Logical Fallacy project also gave me the chance to really be creative and think above and beyond for the project. It not only was a fun project, but it taught me what all of them were and explanations of each. I also love essays that I can relate to on a personal level with many experiences. The memoir was my favorite piece of work all semester. It gave me the opportunity to write about a personal experience that really changed my whole life.
ReplyDeleteThe book work homework never really made me excited to do unless it was looking at photos and looking into the meaning of them. These really caught my attention and I would sit at the kitchen table with my family that night and show them the picture and explain what I thought. Those activities really made me think, which I loved.
One of the main difficulties I have is trying to write a paper I have no connection or passion to wright. These are the papers I tend to stress out about. It's almost like I panic more rather than reading information and going the extra step in order to figure out what to write and how to make connections. That is one of the main issue that I need to work on in order to become a better AP language. The other issues I seem to have is using more simple words rather than advanced vocabulary. I am a simple person and honestly don't know very much advanced vocabulary. I know in order to be a good AP Language student I need to widen my range of vocabulary. Improving in these concepts over the rest of the year will make me feel better in my writing. I am really looking forward to the rest of the year for making these improvements.
One of the main topics I want to develop is putting my own voice into my writing. Dr. Pam help me with thins but I still feel as if I need major help in this aspect. I want my crazy thoughts to be embedded correctly that way my essay flows nicely along with thoughts. I feel by the time the end of the year comes around, all of these topics I have issues with will soon be fixed.
Madison, I enjoy doing projects as well. I think that when one has to make something that requires a significant amount of time and effort, it becomes important to them. They will do everything possible to make the project something special because of the time they spent on it. I get excited when I am able to spend my time working on a project for these reasons. I also believe that projects are some of the best ways to learn. A large project forces a student to research the subject extensively. I often find myself learning more from a project than from any actual teaching I receive on the same subject matter.
DeletePassion is an important part of expressing oneself, which is a big part of what writing is. Writing is easier to do when one is excited about the topic. Without passion, writing is a terrible task. It can be done, but the result will not be as good as it would be if the writer was interested in the subject.
I also disliked the book work. Nearly every night we received an essay to analyze in some way. I did not like doing some of the same assignments over and over, just to have them presented again to me the next night. These assignments helped me practice my analytical thinking skills, but I wish there was a better way to accomplish this task.
Maddie, I agree with you because I struggle when I have to write about a topic that I am not fully connecked to. I believe this is why I struggled so much in Unit 1 with philosophy. It was very hard for me to write about something that I really could not appreciate. I also was not the biggest fan of the book work, I just did not get anything out of it. However, this is just my personal opinion. I really liked almost everything else we did in this class. I also really enjoyed the speech project and the other speeches that we made to the class.
DeleteOver this first semester of AP Language, I feel like I have developed many strengths. One strong skill that I have is in writing essays. Many of the essays I wrote received high grades, and as the semester went on, my voice developed. My essays improved after that, and I was able to express myself in better ways. Before my voice developed, I usually quoted sources more often than necessary because I did not know any other way to support an argument. Now I am able to use my own ideas as my main form of support, and the sources become complementary support for them. Another important skill I have is the ability to use my given time in a productive manner. I think this helps me write in class essays. When an assignment needs done, I do it in the most efficient way possible. I do not like to devote unnecessary time to assignments that are easily completed. I also do not like to procrastinate. I make sure everything is done before the due date so I do not have to rush to complete it. I would consider these strengths in this class because of the severe workload.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite assignment so far was the portfolio. It allowed me to see how my writing progressed through the semester and gave me a great feeling of pride and accomplishment. I also enjoy writing synthesis essays. Using different sources to support my own argument and piecing them throughout my writing is something I enjoy. On a different not, I enjoyed the Forest Walk, although it was not technically an assignment. I enjoyed doing something that was not strictly analytical or logical. I enjoyed taking a break from the stress of the class in order to truly express myself. Writing in this way was a pleasure.
My favorite readings are those that present me with new ideas and concepts. Many of the authors that we read from in class talk about controversial topics, and this ensures that they are interesting. Following their arguments is a way for me to learn how to argue productively, and learn more about the topic they argue about. One of the best topics we touched upon was education. A memorable essay I wrote was about the failure of the educational system, and I included the material we read as support for my argument. The purpose of education and the current educational system are covered extensively by various authors, and I enjoy reading their ideas. I also found the authors of foreign nationalities to be very interesting. Seeing the world and other situations from the point of view of someone with different values than those from our country enabled me to view certain situations in a different way. I would like to read more about other controversial topics as the year progresses.
During the second half of the year, I hope to improve my analytical and critical thinking skills. I hope that by the end of the course I will be able to accurately analyze and understand a composition. Because of this ability, I hope to be able to write clearly and accurately about the presented topic. I feel as though the first half of this course was a great way for these skills to develop, and I hope to continue that process.
I agree with you, Ashley, that this class has helped develop our writings to include our voices. I used to foolishly use full quotes everywhere, but I have learned to just use parts to strengthen my argument instead of actually taking away from it. I also love controversial topics. I think it would be cool to have more and maybe have some debates. I think debating is an important skill for English students to learn because not only are we formulating arguments, but we are actually articulating and trying to convince other people.
DeleteThroughout the past semester, I have developed my skills in AP Language and Composition. I have learned to develop my skills and recognize my weak points. My favorite papers in this class have been ones I am able to express my sense of humor in such as "How to Survive AP Language" or my memoir because I was able to express myself in it and talk in a more poetic way than I could in other papers, which I enjoyed. I also really enjoy the blogs because the informal writing is a nice break and it gives me full reign to express my opinions and feelings on the given topic. My favorite project was our speech project. I loved it because it really gave me a chance to express my passion for feminism. I picked a speech by Emmeline Pankhurts titled "Freedom or Death." With the speech, I got to share with the class the how the inequality for the female population is still a problem. I am very passionate about feminism and raising awareness about the economical and social inequalities between males and females. Another strong point, although I have not really utilized it much in this blog entry, is using an enhanced vernacular. I have always excelled in vocabulary classes and the vocabulary sections on tests such as PSATS.
ReplyDeleteOne weak point I have come to recognize is writing about topics that do not interest me and I am not passionate about. I struggle because it is hard for me to pick a side, develop a voice, and not sound like a robot throwing out big words sporadically. Although I loved the speech project and raising awareness, I am a very socially awkward person. One of my weak points was speaking in front of a class. Speaking in front of groups of people or to even a stranger one on one makes me really nervous. Although Doctor Pam said I looked so confident, I was scared out of my pants. I would like to be able to articulate my thoughts better without feeling awkward.
Although I have had problems and have previously regretted signing up for this class, I have come to terms with the fact it has helped me improve and will be a benefit to me in the long run. I previously felt my grade in this class defined me and determined my future. I thought I would not have one, but I have realized no number grade can represent how much I have gotten out of this class. It will better prepare me for college and teach me to improve my writing skills.
I agree with you on several points Lauren. I loved doing the speech project and the blogs. I also dreaded speaking in front of everyone. I hate speaking because I always feel like I am going to screw up. However, everyone always says that I am really good at speaking, which does not make sense so I think that they are lying. I get so nervous when I go to speak that I have to be playing with something in my hands. During most of my presentations many of you might have noticed that I am messing with a kneaded eraser. I do not know why but it really helps me focus and not be so nervous when I have something in my hands. Other than the speech project, I really like the blogs. I love how everyone gets to express their opinions. Everyone gets to develop their voices when writing a blog. Blogs let us have the freedom to say whatever we want.
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