Keeping an open mind allows for growth. (Jan 2000)
The pursuit of freedom involves change. (April 2000)
It is important to have a realistic view of life. (April
2001)
People can create their own reality. (Jan 2002)
People can be influenced by their environments.(June 02)
Certain experiences can mark the beginnings of maturity.
(Jan 03)
Our journey into the future begins in the past. (April 03)
Our views of the past change as we mature. (Jan 04)
Over the next two weeks, practice writing responses.
I've just marked your mock essays and there were several 6s but still far too many 5s, 4s and 3s!
Those of you writing fiction did a great job of using detail and rhetorical devices. The difference between a 4 and a 6 was maturity of voice. Those not achieving a 6 delved into melodrama--you attempted to achieve too much in a short space and you "told" your theme rather than "showed" the theme.
To prepare:
Think of a time when something personal happened. Not a great big event but a small one.
I remember a girl named Mona who had taken over my paper route. When her mother died, she asked me to do her papers for her and I refused. I have never forgotten that act of selfishness, yet, at the age of 10, that was my response.
I suspect you all have one moment in your lives that you might wish you could change or a moment you are still processing, attempting to understand it.
These moments make good compositions.
Of course, the details do not have to be true, but they need to be portrayed in such detail that the reader believes they are true--you get at the big truths through the small details.
Avoid commonly held ideas and cliched responses to life and you'll do really well.
Make sure that your piece deals with the prompt but only indirectly.
No need to repeat the prompt in your essay unless you can do so surreptitiously.
The poem section was done exquisitely for the most part. Yay.
The synthesis section needs practice. All you need to do is to ensure that you explain the significance of each example. Do not simply list what happened and assume that your reader will agree with you.
