Between college apps, extracurriculars, and just school in general, this semester has been a whirlwind of activity. At least for me, it felt like things were in constant motion and everything seemed to be changing. However, one thing that I could always count on was being assigned to write a blog post every couple weeks.
At the beginning of this semester, the assignment felt like just that. An assignment. Another item on my to-do list, another chore that I needed to complete. As the semester progressed however, it became less of a burden and more of a way through which I could learn more about myself and others. I came to the realization that I could use the blog as a way to learn more about the things that interested me and even started to enjoy writing the posts.
I think I enjoyed writing the blog about the history of the Romanian language the most. Linguistics is a topic that interests me, but I don’t know too much about it so I enjoyed learning more information. The topic was also of personal interest and relevance to me because I speak Romanian at home. Before having the idea to write about the language, I had a very general understanding of the context through which it was developed and in some ways, took it for granted. It was just the language that I spoke at home and the language that allowed me to communicate with my friends and family. Now after doing some research on it, I know so much more about its origins and why certain words are the way that they are. I had a great time learning and writing about it, and ultimately, I think I came away with a very interesting and informative post.
I was very glad to find out that others seemed to enjoy it just as much as I had enjoyed writing it. I had some interesting conversations with them through comments as well as in person.
Not only did I learn about other topics, but writing a blog also became a means through which to improve my writing skills. I’ve never thought of myself as a writer. I find it difficult to verbalize my thoughts in a timely manner. However, like with any other skill, the best way to improve is to practice and writing a post every couple weeks was a great way to do just that.
As a result of writing blogs, I believe that my writing stamina has improved (I’m able to write for a longer period of time) and have gotten a chance to explore different styles of writing as well. I’ve also gotten more opportunities to write in an informal tone. Every other English class I’ve taken has required a specific sort of academic writing, so being able to write these blogs has been a nice change of pace.
Besides being a way to practice my own writing, I have learned so much from reading my classmates’ blog- both about how to write as well as through the content in their blog posts. Reading other blogs and responding to them was probably my favorite part of the blog cycle. I think it was a great way to learn more about other people, especially since the freedom of assignment allowed us to write about any topic of our choosing so you could tell that they were excited by whatever they were posting. I love learning more about topics that interest my friends and getting glimpses inside their brains. What interests them? What motivates them? What do they value? There’s a lot that can be garnered from reading others’ posts.
As for what I learned about writing specifically, through reading blog posts, I was able to be exposed to different kinds of writing styles and structures- which was helpful when I needed inspiration for my own writing.
So what have I learned from this whole experience?
- Writing 600-700 words is not as horrible as I initially thought.
- I can connect with others through my writing, not just through reading other’s ideas.
- I am capable of more than I imagined
That’s all for now, I look forward to future blog posts and the new year!
Anna-Maria, I loved reading your blog reflection! I really enjoyed reading about how you have evolved your way of thinking and approaching the concept of the blogs; I agree, at first I thought it was just going to be another dreaded assignment on my hefty to-do list. By the end of the semester, like you said, I have also come to view the blogs as less of a burden, and have found them to be really enjoyable to both write and read! I remember reading your post about the history of the Romanin language, and thought it was really interesting. I didn’t know that you had an interest in linguistics, and I definitely learned a lot reading your post! I think that’s the beauty of these blog posts; you not only get to learn more about a topic that someone is writing about, but you also get a greater glimpse into who people are and what they enjoy. As a whole I have loved reading your blog posts, and look forward to reading more next semester!
Anna-Maria, I really enjoyed reading your blog reflection. I completely agree with your point on how the blog posts changed from just another assignment to something enjoyable and a break from all the other homework, which there is a lot of. I remember reading your blog post about the history of the Romanian language and loving it. I am also extremely interested in different languages and will always take another opportunity to learn about them. I speak Norwegian at home and take German at school, so languages and linguistics are something I truly care about. As to improved writing stamina from the blog posts, I also realize that I’ve gotten better and writing more and for longer. Whenever I have to write more than 600 words now, I just remember that I’ve done it multiple times for the blogs, and the task ceases to appear daunting. Overall, I loved reading your final blog post and am excited to read more next semester!
I didn’t see your blog about the history of the Romanian language, but it sounds like an interesting topic. I also liked the informal tone of these blogs. Not only the informal tone, but I also like how we were allowed to write about whatever we wanted for most of these blogs. While these were informal, there’s still a certain expectation of thought and effort put into them, and I think that contributed to the benefits gained by reading classmates’ posts. There’s a difference between knowing your friend likes something and reading several hundred words about why they enjoy it. I was initially surprised by the variety of writing structures, but I’m glad I was exposed to different structures I could incorporate into my writing. I agree that the 600-700 words were less than I expected. Usually, I struggle through the first 100-200 words, but once I get started I don’t notice how much I’m writing and can pretty easily make it to the recommended length. Even in this comment, I was hyperaware of my word count for the first few sentences, and then the next time I checked it had seemingly magically jumped to 150.
Hi Anna Maria,
I think you offered great perspectives on blogs through the course of the semester. If I had to talk about some of the most creative blogs in the class, I would most definitely point towards yours. Whether you were writing about your backpack or Linguistics (something that I find something super cool as well) your blogs always appeared captivating and interesting for sharing different ideas. I really agree with your viewpoint on blogging improving writing skills. As for myself, I found blogs to be an interesting way to explore my voice and tone in writing. I think something I enjoyed about the blogs was how much it improved my skills without my noticing. Unlike some other assignments, blogs were always something I looked forward to. Going into next semester, I am definitely looking forward to writing about some new ideas, and reading about some others as well.