27 April 2020

Portfolio Committee
Northern Oklahoma College
English Department
1118 West Hall of Fame
Stillwater, Oklahoma 74074

Dear Mrs. Davis,

I hope this letter finds you well! The four pieces that I have chosen to include in this portfolio
exhibit my writing in different stages. Some of my pieces are constructed well. Others are not so
organized and planned out, but they showcase more about me and the beginning stages of my
writing. This collection offers a mixture of a speech, an outline, and two personal narrative
essays.

The very first piece entered is my closing address as the FFA president to my body of members
and their families. This address was delivered to a group of about 125 people. I chose this
writing for two reasons. First, as a graduating senior in high school, this displays where my
writing abilities were at that time. For me, looking back at this writing, I see growth. Growth in
both my capabilities in expressing my thoughts on paper. My confidence has soared in the last
couple of years which is reflected in my writing. The second reason for choosing this address is
that it gives a glimpse into my life and displays where my passions were. Looking back, I see
some grammatical and citation issues. I also realize I did not give this piece a title. The next
piece that I have entered into my portfolio is my first essay in college English Composition I. It
is titled “So, No One Told Me Life Was Going to be This Way”. With this piece came an
enormous amount of anxiety. I chose this essay because it taught me how to reach out to others.
When I thought I was finished constructing this paper, I had it scanned and critiqued by three or
four other writers. I learned how to incorporate input, reach for more mature and descriptive
words to enhance my piece, and how a true MLA college paper should be written. What I notice
now when I read this piece is that I used many phrases over and over to compare the characters’
lives with that of my own circle of friends. My third portfolio entrance is an outline for a speech
I presented in my speech class at Seminole. I picked this outline because it showed my
organizational skills and my thought process. My speech instructor at Seminole had his own
format that we were to follow. Therefore, this outline is not in a common layout that I had ever
used. Here I also began to realize that each instructor would have their own set of expectations,
and that part of the game is learning to comply. Another reason I selected this example is
because I had never written an in-depth outline quite like this and have since utilized the practice
of starting each piece with an outline. My last and final entry is one I wrote in your class, English
Composition II. The topic was about empathy, and the title was “Do You Care Enough?” This
individual piece forced me to dig deep into my life experiences and upbringing to reflect what
empathy really meant to me. This example was probably my favorite because of how thought
provoking it was. I spent many hours reflecting as I stared at that blank piece of paper. It took
about three tries before I was satisfied with not only what empathy meant to me, but how it
should look coming from me to others. It not only was a piece to judge my writing skills, but it
felt as if it also displayed my character. Each of these examples were challenges I enjoyed
putting together, although I know each has room for improvement.
Coming from a very small rural school, the teacher turnover rate each school year was rather
large. I never had a strong writing foundation, so my writing ability seemed elementary to me
and my confidence was low coming into English Composition I. Over the course of this past
year, with each assignment it has become easier to put thoughts to paper. Each new assignment
presented new challenges that had me searching for new resources to fulfill the requirements.
Once I saw that first “A”, my confidence in my limited background of writing improved, and
with each piece approval by my instructors, I actually began to enjoy the journey.

I would say that the writing process for me has evolved as I have evolved. It has gone through a
metamorphic change. When I entered English Composition I, I was accustomed to a one attempt,
one review paragraphs. Sadly, they were acceptable to my high school instructors. Over the past
year I have developed some habits and resources from my “writing toolbox” that has made each
paper a process, not a quick fix. In my toolbox, I always start with the practice of making an
outline first. This has certainly taught me a way to pace myself and make sure I give each portion
of my paper enough meat. The second item that I have learned to utilize is a thesaurus. This has
become a must have when trying to find alternative words. Another resource is a citation
machine. I struggle with citations, but this has made the process simpler. Probably my most used
tool by far is “another’s eyes”. This not only helps with my editing but gives me confidence in
my work before it’s presented to any professor.

One thing I thoroughly enjoyed in English Composition II was the class discussions and how you
incorporated a mixture of essays, outlines, and letters. I specifically learned the most from
writing letters to people in my community. I feel the personal touch of writing letters is a lost art.
I have always tried to make my writings personable to myself, and sometimes that may be
viewed as a weakness. But in my opinion, it is my greatest strength. As I have mentioned
throughout this exercise, my weaknesses have always been grammatical errors, sentence
structure, and confidence. I feel much of that comes from my lack of strong English teachers
throughout my high school years. Thankfully because of your positive feedback, these
weaknesses are developing.

This particular assignment of analyzing the entries of a portfolio brought a whole new level of
reflection. I have enjoyed looking back and seeing how my skills as a writer have improved. My
work is still not perfect, but it has a definite, measurable evidence of growth. I now am looking
forward to what lies ahead and how my writing abilities will evolve. I will have many more
college level classes in my future; therefore, I am certain that my writing career is not over. I am
planning to become a teacher of elementary students. I feel sure that I will be teaching them to
put their thoughts to paper. I am certain that I will be updating parents and administrators with
weekly newsletters. Finally, I believe that I will be communicating with parents and students on
various occasions such as student parent meetings, meet the teacher night, and during school
activities. With these newfound skills, I am not afraid of the future challenges. Thank you for
taking the time to read my letter!

Sincerely,

London Shriver