Anytime I am faced with a writing assignment, there are three steps I follow before I turn it in. I write a 1st draft, have several people read it and critique it, and I type my final draft. I try to type my 1st draft several days before the assignment is due. Although that forces me to do a little more work, I can get advice from other people. I know that by having other people read it, they can help my essay by giving advice. After editing, I type up the final draft. .
All throughout high school, my English teachers have expressed the importance of pre-drafting activities such as outlines, brainstorming ideas on paper, and charts. I never took the time to do them. I figured I could save time by sidestepping the outline and going straight to the essay. One of the pros about online classes is the ability to do all my work in the comfort of my own house and working in a relaxed environment. Not only that, but I won't have to re-arrange my schedule to take this class. I should have the time to go through the complete writing process and my writing will hopefully improve.
When I need to think, being in a quiet and lonely environment helps me think of the words to write. When others are around, I lose my focus. I feel like a host and I turn my attention to them rather than concentrating on the task at hand because I find it very fulfilling to help others. On the weekends, when I'm not at home working or spending time with my friends, I'm usually tutoring people at an elementary school or cooking food for the homeless at the Andre House.
In addition to this class, I am taking four other classes at Rio through the dual-enrollment program. Taking several classes simultaneously can be stressful. Time for an extra class can be difficult when my physics homework and upcoming calculus tests can already be overwhelming. Thank god for weekends. The upside to taking a lot of classes is that I have a head start in college.
