Reflections
Poetry: I enjoyed the poetry unit very much. Poetry is a writing stlye that I've always wanted to write more of, but have never had the chance and the inspiration. My English classes up until this point have been mostly devoted to essays and prose, not poetry. I enjoyed writing so many poems, and choosing certain ones to be in my portfolio. There was a big lesson in that: not everything is right to share, and not everything should be published. It also taught me how to edit by removing some of the things I loved most. I also really liked my response group and their feedback was very helpful.
Narrative: I also loved the narrative unit because writing narratives is what I do best. I love narratives and write them often. I do wish I would have been allowed to write science fiction because that is what I love writing. My favorite pieces I have written were science fiction, and I feel that Yellow Flower would have been interesting with a science fiction element in it. But, I did love the narrative unit. I feel that I learned about dialogue, and I appreciate being forced to use it. I would not have otherwise. I wrote about amnesia because I think the act of getting inside someone else's brain is very interesting, especially if that brain works in a way that is completely alien to the average reader.
Essay: The essay unit was by far my least favorite. I don't like writing essays, but tis one was more enjoyable than most because I had the opportunity to write about what I chose, not what was chosen for me. I feel that my essays were quite good, and I particularly enjoyed writing about space. My response group was also amazing. Overall, this was still my least favorite, and that was reflected in my portfolio. I feel that if I had been able to appreciate essays more fully, I would have been able to put more work into the portfolio. I learned that essays can be enjoyable and I need to approach them with a more open mind.
MGRP: I loved the MGRP. I feel that I was able to be more creative. Plus, I loved writing about space! Space is my passion, and I loved being able to learn more about it and write about it. I also liked the individual, self-driven aspect. I was able to write at my own pace and do my own thing. I would have enjoyed fewer deadlines and more individual time. I feel like I learned about citing my sources and the proper way to paraphrase. I also loved seeing other people's projects and seeing what they did with their MGRP. There was a wide variety of topics and I feel I learned something about all of them.