Mikaelian !

Alexandria Mikaelian

Professor Batty

English 101

28 May 2019

Work in Progress

Growing up in America, reading and writing has been a part of my everyday life, whether

that be reading a menu or sending a quick text. The educational system has allowed Americans to

begin to develop such skills from an early age and improve them as we venture through the

school system. However, it is important that we understand that these skills can be utilized in

various scenarios. Throughout this semester, I have learned how reading and writing is an

important way to communicate thoughts and emotions both within and outside the classroom. It

has steered me in a direction to focus on the bigger picture and improve my skills throughout my

life. The development of writing, reading, and critical thinking skills should not only be utilized

within a classroom setting, but should be applied throughout one’s life and career.

Writing has allowed me to communicate ideas that words alone simply can’t express. I

am a sociable person and I tend to say what's on my mind, the same goes for my writing. One of

my strengths is that I am able to jot down the first idea that I can think of and continue with it.

This semester, assignments such as free writes have helped me improve this skill as I have

learned that it is important to focus on the idea and communicate a message. Another writing

skill I have learned to improve on is that writing takes time and there is always room to revise

and edit. Writing drafts and having others look at my essays and give their input has helped me

become a better writer. One of my weaknesses is writing topic sentences. My mind tends to go
 Mikaelian !2

blank when trying to come up with topic sentences. This class has taught me how important it is

to make an outline. I now include my topic sentences within my outline so that I at least have an

idea of what they will be. In the future, I would love to pursue a career in business and

eventually become a CEO of my own company. Writing skills can help me achieve this goal as I

would have to write business proposals for future partners, investors and/or cliental.

It is one thing to read, but another to understand what is being read. During this semester

the reading assignment I enjoyed the most was Still Water Saints by Alex Espinoza. The storyline

was interesting as well as the connections that are made through the mini stories. One of my

reading skills is annotating while reading. The reading journal assignment for Still Water Saints

allowed me to connect ideas and improve my overall reading and understanding of the book. One

of my weaknesses as a reader is that I tend to read too fast and skim over important ideas. Still

Water Saints has a lot of complex ideas that simply skimming the book would not allow me to

understand. This class has taught me to slow down and reread material to therefore have better

knowledge of what the story is trying to convey. Reading skills are important for my future

career as I am pursuing business and will have to read contracts, licensing forms, emails, and etc.

If I am unable to read and understand these documents, then that would halt me in becoming

successful with my business.

Critical thinking skills can help enhance one’s mindset and perspective. This semester’s

assignments that have helped improve my critical thinking are outlines and writing a three story

thesis. By doing these assignments, I was able to organize thoughts and analyze what I want to

convey. One of my weaknesses is being analytical. Three story thesis has helped me create a

strong and more developed thesis statement. Creating outlines have helped me analyze what I
 Mikaelian !3

want to write and ensure that my thesis is being supported throughout the essay. One of my

critical thinking strengths is being open-minded. During this semester, I have learned the

importance of knowing your audience. I kept an open-mind and made sure my writing can have

some sort of correlation to its readers. Critical thinking can be used in my future as in starting my

own business, I need to think outside the box and develop creative and effective ideas.

Throughout this semester, this class has helped me improved on skills that were taught

from an early age. These skills will be continuously used throughout my life and career. By using

reading, writing and critical thinking, it will not only help advance my education but relations

with friends, family and career wise. Continuously practicing these skills, and using the elements

I learned in this class can improve my writing over the years. This class is the starting point in

helping me achieve my dream career.