Reflective Essay Writing Tips

Reflective essays can be a useful tool to help an individual

process something that has happened, deal with difficult
emotions, or organize goals. People who write reflective essays
should feel that they have room to explore without too many
guidelines hindering their stream of consciousness, but there
are some principles that can guide and organize the process. A
reflective essay should follow the same format as most academic essays: introduction, thesis, examples,
and conclusion. Using this format as a guideline will ensure a better change of understanding the key
issue being explored. However, since a reflective essay is more for personal purposes than for academic
candor, tributaries from the main flow of ideas should not be discouraged as long as they are tied in to the
overall thought process in a way that contributes to improvement of understanding.
Think of the word reflection. It means to look back upon a situation and present your findings. It is all
about your perspective, post-experience. Whether you are writing a reflective essay about an event in
your life, or you are reflecting on a poem that you were assigned to read, reflective essay writing is all
about composing your thoughts on the subject.
It is different from an informative essay, for which you may research a topic, or have to come up with
ways to support your conclusions. Instead, reflective essay writing is unique to the individual. There is
really no wrong answer. In fact, this is the kind of essay in which your teacher wants you to explore your
creative thoughts and really think outside of the box. Reflective essay is the reflection of your thoughts
and ideas. Reflective essay writing, as its name suggests, entails focusing on reflection, consideration,
etc.
To define context of an essay, include four parts in your essay. The introduction, the two body
paragraphs, and the conclusion.

I.

Introduction
A. Attention-grabber

B. Lead into thesis

C. Thesis Statement

II.

First Body Paragraph

A. Topic Sentence

B. Specific Supports (Details)

III.

Second Body Paragraph (repeat steps from First Body Paragraph

A. Topic Sentence

B. Specific Supports (Details)

IV.

Conclusion

A. Reworded thesis (Restate your thesis)

B. Clincher (tie this back to your attention grabber; give your final thought)