Reflections

Over the course of the nearly the last five months, I have experienced my writing take a transformation for the better. This semester had focused on various points in writing in a new and innovative manner that allowed me to work to my maximum potential. In pervious years I had always had an apt ability for grammar and literature, therefore I was enrolled in many Honors and Advanced Placement classes. This year, I entered at an intermediate level course so as to test the “English Waters”.
Upon entry into Miss Akeyla Silver's class I gained a natural awkward sense as not one soul made a peep. As a nervous instinct, I chose to sit in the seat farthest from what appeared to be the teacher's desk. Eventually I would learn that the class was hardly as strange as it appeared. With Miss Silver's kind and understanding teaching techniques I was easily and comfortably able to mold my writing ability into that of a formally loose fashion. As an artist, I am naturally always searching for a creative strategy to convey my feelings and thoughts. Throughout my High School teachings, there grew a constant theme of “Formally Acceptable” writing in preparation for FCAT, ACT's, and SAT's in order to pass and receive entry into a number of eligible colleges. At the time I had not known where I would like to continue my studies after High School which is why I chose to take as many above average Literature courses. Ironically the school of my choice does not require SAT or ACT scores in order to get accepted. So I ended up with an ample amount of knowledge in grammar and english without any true need for it. Or had I?
The fact that I had a surplus of knowledge in literature and grammar gave me a solid foundation on which I could build a more career oriented style. I could take the writing I already liked and transform it into something I loved! I had originally been hard wired to writing on topic's of normality and boredom. However this class provided me with material that I could easily relate to and build a much more personal understanding of the subject matter. The assignments were more oriented towards evolving as an artist while using writing as another tool for our expression. The First Formal Paper was basically to illustrate a an illustration in our own words, as usual. I was particularly fond of this paper as it was an exploration of my mind when I view art. All of us have our own interpretation of certain things and I was able to form these thoughts into words on a page. The majority of my previous assignments had been to interpret words from words, not words from images. This helped to stimulate and connect my visual and analytical aspects to function in harmony. The Second Formal Paper highlighted another favorable trait of the class; the ability to be flexible. The gist of the Second Formal Paper was a simple compare and contrast essay, however the subjects being examined were almost completely decided by the writer. Thats not to say there were not any guidelines that needed to be followed and objectives that must be met; it just opens the playing field.
To follow up on the theme of flexibility, there were also the numerous free writes that were thrown at us at the beginning of class to awaken our brains. Its similar to one who stretches before exercising so as not to injure ones muscles. The same logic applies here. The alluring part is that one may write on anything that strikes their urge to write. After the majority have finished and the minority have begun wrapping up we are brought together into a discussion on whatever is shared among us. This is extremely effective as both an interest booster and ice breaker. The freelance work was better than I expected, but I knew the text was going to be dry. Wrong. The text was in Convergences was vibrant, stimulating, and surprisingly modern. This made the task of having the will to learn the material into a natural vibe. My individual presentation was done off of an article on the movie Little Miss Sunshine, a movie I am extremely passionate about. A topic worth relating to is a topic well learned.
I have been able to express myself in writing more in a few months here than four years in High School. To me, and I am sure to many others, expression is the most important thing to an artist; and as an artist having the ability to express in many forms is essential. By practicing the art of communication in all of its forms, including writing, artists can excel to great professional heights. This course was crucial in the introduction of my expressions and the integration of the two skills.