Beckett's American Literature Blog

Prompt: After viewing your classmates’ digital posters and reading the feedback comments left on your work, what new ideas or perspectives did you gain about your poster? Reflect on how the feedback influenced the way you think about your creative choices and describe what you learned about the creative process while designing and presenting your poster. Prompt Response:  I found that many thought my poster was well organized and had good  expressive images. This shows me that my creative style is more appealing to others than I originally thought. The feedback I received boosted my confidence somewhat and I learned that there are many different ways people go through the creative process. Summary: Today in class we commented on each other's simile/metaphor posters. Reflection:  I found the feedback assignment to be quite fun as I could see what all of my fellow students did. I think that my poster holds up fairly well in comparison to some of the others I saw as well.

Prompt: Reflect on the simile and metaphor worksheet. Which topic challenged you the most when creating your figurative language, and why? In your response, explain what made that topic difficult and how you worked through the challenge (or what you might do differently next time). Prompt Response:  The topic that challenged me the most was definitely the one about how other perceive me and my appearance. It was just very difficult to put all of my thoughts and feelings into one sentence and most of what I wrote just didn't feel right. To get through it I just stopped with what I had and waited for the next day, in which I was able to write one that was satisfactory. Summary: Today we created a poster using our six similes and six metaphors. Reflection:  I found the poster to be a somewhat fun assignment as I was able to exercise my organizational and creative skills in an artistic manner. Even though I was unsure of my similes and metaphors in the beginning, at the end I was ...

Prompt:   Today you created similes and metaphors that reflect your struggles, growth, and resilience. In a well-developed paragraph, reflect on the process. What did you learn about yourself while writing your figurative language? Prompt Response:  I found that creating metaphors and similes was extremely difficult for me, with some of the ones I made being definitely better than others. I do however think that they helped me express some of the things I've experienced in a more creative way which was somewhat helpful in regards to understanding myself. I learned that I do feel some sort of pressure from society in regards to being "productive" but at the end of the day it is my life and I shouldn't let expectations define me. Summary: In class we started writing our similes and metaphors inspired by the poem we read. Reflection: I think that the assignment should be easier for me but I just can't come up with good ones for certain topics. Hopefully I'm able ...

  Prompt: Describe how you spent your time, any activities, traditions, travel, hobbies, or moments that stood out to you. You may also discuss something new you tried, something you learned, or how the break helped you reset before returning to school. Keep your response appropriate for a school setting and focus on experiences you are comfortable sharing publicly. Prompt Response:  Over the break I did a variety of things that helped me reset from school which can be more than stressful. For the first few days I did relatively little, playing games on my computer and going outside occasionally. During the middle I took a small trip up to North Caroline where I hiked and snow tubed. At the final stretch of the break, I relaxed and celebrated a family friend's birthday at my mom's. Summary: Today in class we started and assignment about a poem by Maya Angelou. Reflection:  I found the poem to be very evocative and powerful, summarizing the resilience of the Civil Rights M...

Prompt: If you had to describe how you show love using only three objects (for example: a playlist, a hoodie, a late-night snack, a long text message, etc.), what would you choose and why? Explain what each object represents and how it connects to your personality. Prompt Response:  If I had to choose three objects that represent how I show love, they'd probably be my hands, a frying pan, and a pair of headphones. My hands represent favors I do for people I care about, the frying pan represents how I cook with my family, and the pair of headphones represents how I listen to the same people I care for. The hands also represent how I like to act instead of overthink things, the pan represents how I can be hotheaded, and the headphones show how I am a good listener in general as well. Summary: Today in class we made poems for Valentine's Day. Reflection:  I think that it's important to show your family and friends that you care about them. If you take them for granted, it will...

Prompt: Now that you have completed the rhetorical analysis essay, reflect on your growth. Explain how this experience impacted your confidence as a writer and whether you feel prepared to continue analyzing complex speeches and texts in American Literature. Support your reflection with specific references to the writing process. Prompt Response:  I felt that writing the rhetorical analysis essay has somewhat improved my skills and confidence as a writer. I think that the outline definitely made it easier, as well as the brainstorming sections which I completed. I definitely feel prepared to continue analyzing more complex texts, even if writing essays isn't exactly fun for me. Summary: Today we wrote our rhetorical analysis essays. Reflection:  Writing the essay was difficult, but overall I think I did pretty well. I feel some parts are stronger than others, however I did try my best throughout it.

Prompt: Today, you learned how to complete a rhetorical analysis planning guide step by step, from identifying the rhetorical situation to analyzing devices and effects. Reflect on one step of the rhetorical analysis process that helped you understand the process more clearly. Explain what you learned during that step and how it improved your ability to analyze a speaker’s message. Prompt Response:  The step that allowed me to understand the rhetorical analysis process easier has to be the brainstorming part of it all. The flow chart on the outline was the point in which I had to bring everything together, including the selection of my three topics to talk about on my essay. Without this step, I believe I would be pretty lost on the actual writing day, as I would have to come up with the reasons for my rhetorical appeals/devices on the spot. Summary: Today in class we discussed the outline for our rhetorical analysis essays. Reflection:  I'm getting a bit more nervous about wr...

Prompt: In the spirit of Valentine’s Day week, describe your idea of a perfect day spent with someone you care about (a friend, family member, or significant person in your life). Prompt Response:  I suppose the perfect Valentine's Day would be spent relaxing and watching movies/shows with my friends and or family. We would most likely play games and eat good food, reflecting on what we do for one another. I think Valentine's day is a good time to be thankful for you have with you and to show that you care about them. Summary: Today we started our prep work for our rhetorical analysis essay. Reflection:  The prep work seems like a lot of work at first glance, but I should still be able to complete a sizable amount of it tonight. I think the most difficult part will be finding good ideas for topic chart.

Prompt: What is the best piece of advice of that your parent or guardian has given you? Tell what the advice was and what prompted you to ask the question.   Prompt Response:  The best piece of advice that my parents have given me has to be to just give everything your best. Throughout my academic career I have always been extremely anxious about my grades and academics in general. One day (when I was relatively younger) I jokingly asked by mom what would happen if I failed. Instead of saying she'd scold me, she said that if I give it my best and studied hard and I still got a bad grade she would be OK with it. This goes to show that even if you're failing my one standard, you may be excelling my another, proving the innate relativity of our societal expectations. Summary: Today in class we completed an assignment revolving around a poem by Langston Hughes. Reflection:  I found the poem to hold a good amount of truth about the world we live in. It really is about con...

Prompt: What is the most challenging part of working in a group? Discuss a time when a group assignment did not go as well as you planned and how you learned from that experience.  Prompt Response:  The most challenging part of working in a group is getting the other group members to do their jobs well. For example, in 9th grade, I was in a literature class with absolutely none of my friends. When a project was eventually assigned, I was put into a random group who chose the topic "Family Guy." On top of this... less than thrilling topic I had to do all of the writing while many of them did nothing except shoot the video. Needless to say this experience taught me that not everyone is willing to put the work in and your group mates matter. Summary: Today in class we took notes on rhetorical situation. Reflection:  I found the notes to be somewhat engaging as well as informative. I like the idea of different writers having different styles based on their experiences and who...

  Prompt:  What is the most challenging part of writing an essay for you? Is it brainstorming, organizing ideas, writing a strong thesis, or something else? How do you plan to overcome this challenge? Prompt Response:  I'd say the most challenging part of writing an essay for me is finding my reasons for my thesis. I think this is because of how easy it is for me to make reasons that are too similar to each other. I often accidentally rewrite the same reason as another reason, leading me to have to go back later and rewrite more than I would prefer. I plan to overcome this challenge by taking more time on my reasons to make sure that they are suitable for a strong essay. Summary: Today in class we worked on our rhetorical analysis body paragraph. Reflection:  I think essay writing is a crucial skill that I hope to get better at. In college I know I'll have to write a lot of them and so I hope to get a better understanding of how to write them before then.

  Prompt: Describe a time when you had to speak in front of an audience. What were your fears? How did you handle them? What advice would you give to someone struggling with stage fright? Prompt Response:  One time in 7th grade we had to present a book report which we had been working on for several weeks. I had always been a nervous speaker, and so as the days approached I kept getting more and more scared that I would mess up or people would perceive me negatively. At the time I didn't really know how to handle them at all, and so when I got up I broke down and got out of presenting. If I was giving someone advice on the matter, I would probably tell them to not care as much as many don't really care about others. Summary: Today in class we completed our body paragraph of our rhetorical analysis. Reflection:  I had a bit of trouble today writing my paragraph. I got confused and thought we had to make another claim for a different rhetorical strategy. Good thing my frien...

Prompt: Describe a real moment in your life that felt like the beginning of a powerful story. Tell what happened, and why it felt like a turning point in your life? Prompt Response:  One moment that felt like a beginning of a powerful story was when I was saying goodbye to my 5th grade elementary school teachers at the beginning of the pandemic. At this time I was feeling very confused, sad, fearful, and hopeful at what could be next in my life, which could definitely be seen as the start of a story. If it was, maybe it could be a firsthand account of what the pandemic was like and the effects it had on my upbringing. Summary: Today in class we started writing our own rhetorical analysis essays. Reflection:  It took me a while to get started on the assignment, however I was able to get some sentences in. If I was given one more class period I could certainly complete it.