Since September, I learned a lot about proper writing techniques in this course. I have become aware of my bad writing habits and learned some ways to help myself get over those habits. I was faced with some difficult tasks, like poetry and articles which were the type of writing I was not used to and I had to take a step out of my comfort zone. The collaborative work taught me how to work in a group in a professional manner and although we faced difficulties we got through it by having good communication, and in the end we produced a good looking children's book. 


The prompts at the beginning of classes was a good was to get students into writing mood and also gave us ideas for short stories, or even to continue on free time. The writing festival some of us went to was a great experience to learn about different types of writing and meet professionals. The Writer's Craft course was a good way to learn new things you would learn from taking just normal English. In English we learn about dialogue but not nearly as much as in this course, same with poetry and non fiction pieces. 
Another thing that was useful was the slam poets that came in. They were enjoyable to watch and they really encouraged young people to try it out and come to open mic events. 

As a teacher, Mrs. Reidel really opened a lot of great opportunities for an example, poetry contests and chances to enter articles in the newspaper, these types of things would look really good when applying to College and University.

There isn't anything I can think of changing about the course, except maybe doing daily prompts. All together, this course was very useful and I am happy I took it. It was always a class I looked forward too and it will be a class that I will miss next semester. Thank you for being such a great teacher, opening so many great opportunities and improving my writing abilities. What you have taught me will stay with me through all my writing experiences and I will not forget the good times I had in this course.

Where did December go?

Christmas has changed a lot over the years. Because of the anticipation of running down stairs to see the presents from Santa under the tree, December would pass by slowly when I was a kid. Nowadays, December goes by quickly and next thing you know, its New Year's eve. 

When I was young, all I needed to worry about was putting out cookies and milk for Santa. In my family there are no children, therefore Santa is just a memory. 

Now, I need to find time to go to the mall and spend the limited amount of money I have on my family members. On top of the stress of finding the perfect gift for everyone, end of the year essays and other culminating for school push you to spend hours to work on them until they are perfect.

This is why the two week brake is necessary. Being a teenager, it is difficult to work on homework while on brake, so a lot of assignments are put off until the last moment.

While getting older, the festive spirit that once filled my thoughts and made me jump with excitement has disappeared. December goes by in a blur, all the Christmas treats disappear and next thing I know I'm in school studying for exams.  

It is sad that getting older effects the way we see Christmas and we can't make it the same as it once was. 

Journalistic Ethics

Former journalist Stephen Glass

Stephen Glass once was a successful journalist, but not all good things last. Although Stephen's news reports were supposedly phenomenal, they were all fabricated. Stephen went his entire career making up stories and publishing them, but one may wonder how he didn't get caught earlier - he went through great lengths to keep it a secret. Stephen would make up fake voicemail's, create fake websites, make fabricated business cards, and fill notebooks with interviews that were not real. Stephen was a journalist for over three years, and once he was caught it was discovered that as many as half his stories were fabrications. A writer for Forbes Magazine, Adam Penenberg was the one to catch Stephen. 

When Stephan was  caught, he apologized for creating false work, however apologizing would not take back his three years of continuous lies. One may not think his situation is worth imprisonment, however Stephen could go to jail for fraud. If not that, then it would make sense for him to pay back all of the money he earned from publishing false stories.

This case became known and there was a movie made called "Shattered Glass," where it plays out his life and what went through to keep up the fabricated stories. 

'Shattered Glass' movie poster

Poetry Analysis

"Tears"

By Linda Neff

love laughter and tears (page 28)

Linda Neff is a wife, mother and high-school teacher in Guelph Ontario, Canada. Her book love laughter and tears was published in July 2003 and it contained a series of poems.

      The poem topics included:

• Love and Friendship
• Grief and Suffering
• Mirth and Milestones
• Life Lessons

The majority of her poems mention Jesus and God. The poem I chose was about pain and relief from pain, this is clear when she writes;

"Hope for tomorrow,

Tears of relief,

Tears of pain,

Peace comes after

Drought, like rain,"

In the line "Peace comes after" it is clear that she is trying to portray that after all the pain and sorrow, happiness and relief comes after. 

Two more lines that prove this point are, 

"Flowing in a new direction,

Pain is a watershed place."

The word watershed means that there is an important transition between two phases, in this case the two phases would be pain and relief from pain. This poem caught my attention because it is short, sweet and once I read it I understood it right away. It really captures hope that after pain, there is peace and happiness.

Age Limit on Voting

In my opinion, the age for voting should be lowered to sixteen. A couple of years ago, there wasn't much information on the parties and candidates that really interested teens. Now, it is all over the news and in schools and we have student votes that prepare us for the voting process. On Youtube, there are ads on the candidates and what they want to change. 

Another point is the fact that sixteen/seventeen-year-olds are able to drive at the age of sixteen which could potentially cause people to lose lives. I've always thought that sixteen is really young to drive, but I don't feel that way about voting. Also, not all sixteen/seventeen-year-old's care about voting, therefore not all of them will do it. A lot of parents and teachers do a good job of letting students know about politics and what the right decisions are. 

Sixteen/seventeen-year-old's are more educated and trustworthy when it comes to voting.

The short video called "The Adaptable Mind" was shown and sparked a discussion about the five traits we will need to be successful in the future. The five traits are:

• Curiosity
• Creativity
• Initiative 
• Multi-disciplinary thinking
• Empathy

In my opinion, I think I have Creativity, Curiosity and Empathy.

Creativity- I have creativity because I take Writer's Craft, art and drama in school. Also, outside of school I am creative because I write and do art. In subjects in class I can sometimes think of creative ways to execute plans and presentations. Creative ideas seem to flow really well with me, getting it down on paper is a different story.

Curiosity- I have curiosity because I tend to ask a lot of questions. When things are happening in my friends lives, I always ask about it. In other cases, when we are learning new things in class that interests me, I always ask questions, either in my head or out loud.

Empathy- A lot of other people, as well as myself feel empathy. When one of my friends or family members achieve something big and positive in their life, I am happy for him/her. Same goes for when something tragic happens, I feel sympathy for them. Empathy is a common feeling for a lot of people. 

Education Is The Key?

People like Oprah Winfrey and Steve Jobs are people who were College/University dropouts and still made it to where they are today. So, is education the key? The answer is no, not all the time. There has been people who do not have a College/University degree and have trouble finding jobs. If education was the key to success, that would mean that people around the world who do not have access to education would be incapable of being successful; which isn't true. 

In other cases, education is key. If someone wanted to become a scientist, mathematician, etc. they would need to have a degree. A lot of people in businesses nowadays really depend on education, even if the person has has tons of experience in that field. 

Therefore, it depends on what occupation you would be pursuing.