Sample 1

Andrew Sample
Professor Raymond
UWRT 1103
8 September 2015
My Revelation
Throughout the course of a person's life knowledge is constantly being received. Humans
start the process of learning from the moment they are old enough to think. Reading and writing
are a staple to anyone who seeks knowledge and it is arguably a staple of life in today's world.
Some people catch on to the importance of reading and writing while some never grasp the idea.
I would not consider myself an early bloomer in this particular field but with such variety in
human intelligence and upbringings I do not believe that there is a standard. My revelation of the
importance of being able to read and write occurred in the 7th grade.
While I was in elementary school and middle school there was a program known as
Academically Intellectually Gifted or AIG for short; some students considered it an honor to be
in the program while others thought of it as being only for nerds. I was lucky to be among the
forty or so students per grade level that were accepted into the program. As part of the AIG
program, students were placed in advanced math and literature in order to challenge students.
Those of us that were inducted into the AIG program felt honored to be part of it while everyone
else thought it was for nerds. One of the assignments in the literature class was to read a book
approved by the teacher and then do a project on it, which would then be presented to the class.

Sample 2

It was nice being able to pick our own books but having to present a project was the bane of my
existence at the time.
It was after the second or third project that I saw that being able to read complex texts as
well as to communicate via writing since verbal communication is not always available held
much significance. Mrs. Carter, my teacher, was always telling me that I should be more excited
when I did my presentation because there are few boundaries on reading and writing; Her
statement confused me so I asked for further clarification. She explained that being able to read
and write effectively and efficiently would open many doors that may otherwise have been
closed. After a little bit of thought as to why this was true, I determined that being able to
understand or help others understand what was in the world around them would increase my
chances for success. I have never been very competitive by nature but having a chance to get a
leg up on competitors gave me a better chance at getting a dream job or whatever my young
mind was set on. I subsequently put more effort into my presentations, taking extra time to make
sure all my points were understandable and enjoyable. Mrs. Carter noticed the change as I
gradually received less criticism. This discovery has helped me tremendously with essays and
other literary assignments I have done over the past several years.
While I have never been a big lover of writing essays or reading books that are
considered classics, I have found that they offer much to the open mind. I also know that not
everyone has had the opportunities to expand their knowledge base like I have. I am thankful that
I was able to grasp the importance of reading and writing when I did otherwise things may have
turned out very differently.