Activity One

One thing I remember about writing as a child, is just trying to think of how and what to write for a sentence or paragraph. A lot of times in grade school, the teachers had you write short stories from your imagination or write about yourself. When I was younger, I loved writing short stories just for fun. As I got older, teachers had me write about certain topics that they chose for me. I found it difficult to write about something I didn't find interesting or something I knew nothing about. My teachers also started to strictly criticize my writing, which was discouraging to me.
I never really liked reading until I got into college. My high school teachers always picked old novels which were good for the literature aspect, but not for keeping students interested. College professors, that I have had so far, pick up-to-date and interesting books to read. I am more likely to keep reading a book if it keeps me interested. I enjoy reading novels that are suspenseful and keeping you wondering what comes next.
In my Humanities Literature class, I wrote over thirty poems. I started to enjoy writing poems. I find it a great way to express how I am feeling. It is also a good way to get different thoughts written down on paper. If I am stressing over homework or exams, I find writing poetry a stress reliever. I find it a good way to focus my stressful thoughts on something else. I send a lot of text messages, which is a completely different way of writing. I use abbreviations, misspelled words, and the writing is very informal. I send most of my text messages to my fiance' or to my friends, so I don't have to worry about writing formally. Since I am in college, preparing to find a career after graduation, I've started practicing writing cover letters and also formal emails. With both of those forms of writing, my grammar, punctuation, and sentences have to be formal standard English. Also, in my last English class, my professor had us write reflective letters. We had to write a formal letter to him telling him our thoughts about the class.
Growing up, teachers and my parents spoke proper towards me and corrected my English. By hearing how others use words and sentences, it helps learn to speak more proper. When I am with my friends, we often use slang when talking to one another.
When I think of an essay or assignment writing, I picture a question or topic being given to me to write about. This would include essay exams. I personally think it is more difficult to write an essay or assignment writing than a poem. I like to be able to pick my own topics to write about and express my thoughts.