Unit I: Student Essay Assignment

Personal Experience Essay

Choose one of the following essay assignments.

1. Describe a turning point (or significant event) in your life. Explain what happened using descriptive vocabulary and details.
   
   
2. Describe a person who has influenced you using descriptive vocabulary and details. Also explain how the person has influenced you.

First present the event or person then clearly explain how and why it affected you.

Self-check: Answer the questions while re-reading your essay. Make necessary changes in your essay to improve it. Hand the answers in with your essay.

1. How does your essay set the scene and interest the reader at the beginning? Do you feel your essay does these things effectively? Why or why not?
   
   
   
2. What is the controlling idea or thesis of your essay? Does this idea express the importance of the experience to you? Why or why not?
   
   
   
3. How do you reflect on why the experience is important to you?
   
   
   
4. How do you explain how the experience affected you and shaped your identity?
   
   
   
5. How many run-on sentences were you able to find in your essay? How did you change them to make them more concise?
   
   
   
6. How many fragments did you find in your essay? How did you combine them with other ideas to create complete sentences?