Week 10 Blog Post

Goals

My main goal of this week was to finish my research paper and turn it in. Smaller goals that made that up were to incorporate the edits into my paper, add in some secondary sources, and finish my photocopies. My first task was to edit my paper because I wanted to make sure that what I had down was the best it could be before I started adding more. This went well, as I went through my paper, using Sarah's comments to improve my paper. Next, I began the task of putting more secondary sources into my paper because I needed them to fulfill the research part of my research paper. This was easy because I already had quotes in my notecards from Noodle Tools, allowing me to find quotes and put them into my paper. Lastly, writing my acknowledgements was actually so rewarding because I was able to look back on my writing process and thank everyone who helped me along the way. My goals for the next week are to lie in bed in the fetal position, catching up on all the TV shows I missed while writing the research paper. 

Activities

My activities during the week leading up to the weekend that will go down in history as "Research Paper Weekend", I spent my time in class and at home editing and refining my paper. On Tuesday, I took a day off, but on Wednesday, I incorporated Sarah's edits and on Thursday I took out as many 'to be' verbs as I could. The weekend was spent making sure everything was MLA and that I had everything I needed both in my essay and in the packet. 

Problems

The one problem I ran into this week was that Sarah realized that I was only using 3 of my 5 secondary sources. If unfixed, this error would have been problematic, resulting in likely a D grade on the essay. Thankfully, Sarah pointed out that I needed to reference all of my sources, allowing me to put more quotes into my essay, fulfilling the requirement. Using my notes on Noodle Tools, I was able to quickly find quotes from my other secondary sources. Because of that, I now meet the requirements for secondary sources. 

Reflection

It feels almost surreal that the research paper is done. The writing that I have worked on for the last 10 weeks is now out of my hands and into Sarah's hands, just like that. At first, I didn't really believe it, but throughout the day I realized that a great weight has been lifted off my shoulders. The paper that I have slaved over for so long is finished and it feels so good to know that my hard work has paid off in dividends. Looking back on the entire writing process of this paper, I have learned so much about writing and the formulation of a research paper. I am grateful for the opportunity to learn these skills and I cannot wait to use them on my next piece of analytic writing.  

Week 9 Blog Post

Goals

My goals for this week was to finish the introduction, conclusion and transition paragraphs along with editing my paper. I was able to accomplish the goals of writing, but I did not do as much editing as I had hoped. I finished my transitions relatively quickly on the first day of working, but my introduction and conclusion were much different stories. They took an incredible amount of thought because summing up my now eleven pages of writing in one medium sized paragraph is no easy feat. I was able to complete my introduction and conclusion over the weekend, feeling very rewarded. I was not able to edit my paper as much as I wanted to because I left my drafts at school over the weekend, an unfortunate turn of events. My goal for this week is to edit and refine my paper, perfecting it to my best ability. On Wednesday, I plan on going through my paper and removing every single 'to be' verb. It may be a difficult task, but it must be done. On Thursday, I plan on finishing my Works Cited finally, because I will now have the time. Throughout the weekend, I will work on incorporating the edits from the drafts that Sarah has given me to improve my paper. I will then look through my own refined paper and correct all the mistakes that I can find, making the paper something I can proudly turn in on Monday.  

Activities

I spent a long time of the week trying to figure out how I truly wanted to introduce and conclude my essay. The transition paragraphs came easily to me in on Wednesday as I began, but when I started writing my Introduction and Conclusion, I found that they took much more thought than ones I had written before. This was because the research paper is the most complex paper I have ever written, so the task of introducing and concluding these complex topics was not a light task. Happily, upon many different versions, I settled on an Introduction and Conclusion. 

Problems

The biggest problem I faced this week was that I accidentally left my backpack at Overlake on Friday night. When I went back on Saturday morning to retrieve my backpack, it was no longer where I had left it. I learned on Monday morning that it had been put in the lost and found in the Field House, but because of that, I did not have my laptop or the essential materials I needed to work on my essay over the weekend. I made the best of what I had, though, and I compiled the first and second draft by downloading them from Canvas and that allowed me to work on my essay over the weekend. I'm glad I was able to find a way around this and be able to work on my essay at home and I learned to make sure I always have my backpack with me when I leave Overlake. 

Reflection

This week was an extremely hectic week, due to my extracurriculars ramping up as well as other classes and, of course, the research paper. Now that is it over, I am overjoyed that the entirety of my bulk work is finished, and now all I need to do is edit it until I feel like is truly presentable. The completion of my introduction and conclusion was challenging, but also very rewarding. I was able to see my hard work come to fruition and think about and epitomize the ideas that have been bouncing around my head for the last two months since I began the paper. I look forward to perfecting the paper 

Week 8 Blog Post

Goals

My goal for this week was to finish and polish my chapter one draft. I spent a good amount of time every day through the week working on it, making it pleasant experience. Because of Sarah's great help with my chapter sentences, I was able to refine my argument and make sure my individual topic sentences followed my newly refined argument. Because I had already finished Chapter 2, I knew where my argument was going, which helped my Chapter 1 make even more sense. My goals for the next week are to incorporate Sarah's edits to my Chapter 2 and then write my transitional, introductory and conclusion paragraphs over the weekend.  

Activities

This week, I spent the first two days working on my structure of my Chapter 1, looking to make sure my topic sentences and claims were still following the argument. After that, I worked every day turning my outline into actual text, using the helpful tips that Sarah gave us in class and on my Chapter 2 draft. 

Problems

This week there were no actual problems with my writing, as all I had to do was turn my outline into an essay but the main problem I faced was with other schoolwork along with soccer. Every day when I come home from soccer, all I want to do is eat everything and then pass out. I can't do that though, because I have homework every night but it does make it more difficult. Besides the lethargy accompanying soccer and school, there were no problems this week.  

Reflection

I decided to do my Chapter Two before my first chapter because I believed that if I wrote the end of my argument first, I would have a better idea of where I was going with my argument. This proved to be a fantastic strategy for me. While I was writing my Chapter 1, I knew exactly where I was trying to go and I made sure to get my paper there with the least overlap possible. With the most large portion of this project done and with still two weeks until the due date, it is extremely rewarding to see all my hard work really coming to fruition. The next two weeks will provide me more than enough time to polish and perfect my research paper until it is something I can be completely confident in.

Week 7 Blog Post

Goals

My goals for this week were to edit my outline and then finish the second chapter of my paper. When I got my outline back from Sarah, the biggest problem in my outline was that it did not seem like I was arguing anything. This was a big problem. I was able to see Sarah during tutorial on Wednesday and she was incredibly helpful with restructuring my paper and helping edit my Thesis and Chapter sentences, allowing me to formulate a good argument. Once I saw Sarah during tutorial, I knew the exact direction I knew I wanted to take my paper. With the additional amount of time Sarah gave us, I was able to space my essay out over the next couple of days, allowing me to spend some time with it. My goals for the next week are to make sure my argument is solid for Chapter One and then focus on that draft. 

 Activities

Now that we are in the writing stage of the research paper, all class and out of school time regarding English class is being spent writing and working on the research paper. On Monday, I received my outline back from Sarah and there were a significant amount of changes I needed to make. I decided to use Monday's class time and after school to work on a plan and a course of action to take with my outline. On Tuesday, I meant to meet with Sarah but that did not work out because of soccer. On Wednesday, I came to Sarah with my ideas regarding my outline and what I needed help with and we were able to greatly improve my essay. After that, I spent all my time turning the outline into an actual essay. 

Problems

The main problem I faced this week was that the outline I turned in apparently did not have enough of an argument. When the outline was returned to me, I was bamboozled by how much I needed to change my argument and I became afraid that I would have to rethink my entire essay. Thankfully, Sarah and I were able to find a way to turn the outline I had into an actual argument, saving me a lot of painful work I would have done otherwise.   

Reflection

This week was incredibly rewarding because it is apparent how close I am to finishign the hardest part of the research paper. After I turn in my other chapter draft next Monday, I will have finished the bulk work of my research paper, allowing me to spend the next week fine tuning my paper and making sure I am proud of it. Writing the second chapter first has allowed me to really know where my argument goes, and now I can focus on how to get it there even more. 

MVP of the Week

My dog, Zebree, because when I was losing my mojo about the paper on Sunday afternoon, he walked up to me at my desk and climbed onto my lap. I wrote the last two claims of the second paragraph of the second chapter with my own dog on my lap. Coincidentally, his love for me helped me explain and convey the love that White Fang and Buck feel for their respective owners.  

Week 6 Blog Post

Goals

One of my goals for this week was to look back through the notes and annotations in White Fang and The Call of the Wild.  My second goal was to work on my works cited and improve it for the revision. I spent the entire break on the East Coast touring colleges and I was able to use the long plane rides as well as the car rides to work on these goals. I was able to look through all my annotations and notice parts of the book that I had missed originally. I was not able to work on my works cited as much because I did not have my corrected works cited with me (my fault) but I did everything I could without it. My goals for the next week are to begin my Chapter One on Monday, work on it during every class time and after school and have Chapter One in good condition by Friday. 

Activities

Because we did not have school this week, the activities I completed this week were not as structured or as rigorous as a normal week of activities. One activity was looking through my book of The Call of the Wild again on the plane on the way to New York City. A repeated activity was working on my works cited a couple of the evenings in the hotels we stayed in. A final activity was looking through White Fang on my way back to Seattle. 

Problems

The main problem I had this week was that I never collected my corrected works cited from the substitute teacher on Thursday, so it made editing my works cited more difficult. This was my fault, though, because I was preoccupied on Thursday looking for my backpack. I have made arrangements with Sarah to pick up my corrected works cited so I can add those corrections into it as well. 

Reflection

This week's reflection is shorter because it was less of a productive or active week than the others, considering it was Mid-Winter Break. This week was a good week of recovery and relaxation before beginning the hardest part of the entire research paper process: actually writing the thing.

Week 5 Blog Post

Goals

My goals for this week were to finalize my works cited while also initiating the outline and structure of my essay. I was able to finalize most of my works cited, turning it in timely. I was able to edit some of my works cited but not all of it, causing me to not have a fully correct works cited. Once Sarah returns my Works Cited, I will immediately begin working on the edits. My goals for this week are to finish my outline and begin thinking more about the essay and possibly begin writing. On Monday, I plan on working completely on my outline because it is due on Tuesday. On Tuesday, I plan on turning in my outline and begin working on my first chapter. On Thursday, I plan on working more on my first chapter and assessing what I plan to do over the break. 

Activities

This week was mostly spent in class work periods. Usually the class begins with Sarah giving us helpful information about the assignments we are working on and then we spend the rest of the class working and talking to Sarah for additional help. I spent the work periods this week mostly formulating my outline and the ideas I want to center my paper around. 

Problems

This was a huge homework week for all my classes along with the fact that I had the ACT on Saturday, meaning I had to study the ACT extensively in addition to my schoolwork. This resulted in my revised works cited not being completely corrected and the progress of my outline being delayed. I tried my best this week and I used a long amount of today for my outline and made major progress on it. 

Reflection

This week was not as successful as others before it because of all the stress I was under but I believe that I tried my hardest and I made sure today to make up for all the work I had fallen behind on. I will set a long-term goal from now on to put the Research Paper before my other homework because of the huge impact it has on my final grades and how much work is required to make it good. 

Week 4 Blog Post

Goals

This week, I planned to finalize my notecards and my works cited and begin working on the general outline of my research paper. I was able to finalize most of my notecards, but I still want to look into my printed book, From Naturalism to Nature more for more information. As for my works cited, I still have a couple of small errors to fix but the big problems have been fixed. As for my outline, I have been working on it all weekend and I think that I have settled on some good ideas. My goals for this week are to work on my outline and finish everything else that I need to. Monday, I will work out all the problems in my works cited and then work on my outline. On Tuesday, I will begin collecting the quotes I will use. And on Thursday and Friday, I will continue to compile quotes until I finish

Activities

During this week, I worked on my works cited and my notecards in and out of class. I was able to fulfill the requirements for the notecards and I fixed the biggest problem in my bibliography, one of the Facts on File articles. This week was a successful and efficient week. 

Problems

I did not have any large problems this week but I did have a couple small ones. First, two of my sources did not have individual page numbers even though they said which pages of the books the articles were taken from. I have decided that I am going to talk to Sarah tomorrow and figure that out so I can properly use my notecards. Another problem this week was that my works cited was not shared with Sarah so I almost lost a lot of points. Thankfully, Harrison showed me how to share the works cited. Lastly and the most problematic: the Hawks lost. :(

Reflection

This week was a solid amount of progress and growth for my paper. With my work on my sources and my notecards completed, I can now completely focus on the structure and ideas of my research paper. 

MVP of the Week

Harrison Mickle for showing me how to share my works cited with Sarah.