This assignment is intended to simply give you an opportunity to use writing as a creative outlet to reflect on your year. Turns out expressing yourself through art (and yes, writing counts as art) can be really fun, rewarding, and cathartic (look it up). This is classic narrative reflection writing.

Skills: Write narratives to 
  • develop real experiences or events 
  • using effective technique, 
  • well-chosen details, 
  • and well-structured event sequences

Requirements: 
  • Some element of descriptive or sensory language
  • A plot (even if a short or rough plot... think beginning, middle, end of events)
  • A focus, or overall point. This can be explicit (literally tell me) or implicit (leave it to be shown and understood, but not directly stated)

Student Examples

The idea here is NOT to just answer one of these questions, but rather to use a story or narrative to illuminate your experience of one of these ideas. (e.g. instead of saying "My favorite parts of the school year were going to the sporting events and going out to coffee in yearbook class," you should tell me a story using one or both of those ideas. 

Here are some example reflection questions that might get you started included:
  • If you could go back in time and restart the school year, what would you do differently and why?
  • What were your favorite parts of this school year?
  • What one word would describe this school year? Explain why you chose the word.
  • What was your favorite non-academic activity or event from this school year?
  • What was the best day you had this year? What made it the best?
  • What was the most interesting skill or topic you learned this year?
  • What was something that was difficult for you at first but is now easy?
  • What did you accomplish this year that you are most proud of?
  • What essay or story did you write that you are most proud of?
  • How prepared do you feel for next year?
  • What is a goal you have for next school year?
  • What one piece of advice would you give the students who will be in this grade next year?

Requirements:
  • ​ Sensory details/description
  • Element of story (think plot, things happening, a beginning, middle, end)
  • A clear ‘focus’ (could be explicit or implicit)
    • Finding a place
    • Gratitude and appreciation of what we have

Here's a short example (~200 words, I'll want you to write ~400-600) of what I want you to do:
    That first day of school. My hair started to uncurl, people pushed passed endlessly in the dimly lit halls as we all ran into our designated classrooms. I was lost and did not know a single soul. By the end of the day, I was exhausted emotionally, and mentally. I wanted so badly to just crawl up and die. I went home and cried in my laundry basket, in my closet, with my dirty laundry. 
    Four years later, I can look back on this and only smile. The changes I have experienced are mind blowing. High school has allowed me to really find who I am as a person and excel into the future. I have met my closest friends, mentors, and even my future college roommate within the walls of this hectic school. Of course the years started off rough, but I would never want to change a second of my journey.
    For anyone reading this, I hope you realize things always have a brighter side if you just wait it all out, and to all the seniors: it was truly a pleasure, thank you for the best four years ever.

Some things to notice:
  1. The specifics, the details added to place a reader into the author's point of view
  2. How the writing builds to an overall point, still using a powerful lead to draw readers in. 
  3. Make this personal; this is for YOUR personal yearbook project, so the more you actually take time to reflect, the more meaningful it will be.