I was excited to be starting fourth grade and elated to be in this new place where everyone looked prim and proper and girls made their hair and spoke proper English. ... I sat on my chair shaking, wishing the ground could open and swallow me up. ... Why did these people at my new school expect me to speak polished English? ... With time I developed a thick skin towards all the insults but most importantly, time touched my auditory ossicles, filling my malleus with vocabulary, my incus and stapes with syntax, until my cochlea and brain could properly interpret this new language. ...

• Word Count: 639
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Some of Carver's characters, like the narrator in, "Cathedral," are strong enough to follow the light and experience epiphany, while others just gave up and sat until "the room went dark," ("What We Talk About When We Talk About Love," Page 10)  too weak to get out of their armors and give it a try. ... Even the most desperate man, according to Carver, can find a new place and start again. ... Carver's early life presented him with a host of tribulations, but he gathered courage to try something new and take the writing class that completely changed his life. ... Carver's power...

• Word Count: 1139
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography

We all sat down with a sheet of paper and started writing. ... Teachers stand at the chalkboard introducing a new twist to write the same letters learned previously in school. The new loops, curves and slants can be confusing for some and intriguing for others. ... My connection to my brother shows how other siblings can pursue and push younger family members to succeed in learning and doing new things. ...

• Word Count: 1208
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

She sat still, was silent and put things aside that she believed were less important in life, just like Lopez suggested to people who want to keep the intimacy with nature. ... Every time we build a new building, it kills nature with every square foot. ... Nature still is being removed from our environment everyday we build something new or every time we decide to go and hunt another animal. ...

• Word Count: 969
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

When you buy a new desk and you can't put it together by yourself, luckily the manufacturer included a set of instructions that were enclosed in the box. ... As soon as I sat down to begin writing this letter everything just fell into place and the words just flowed from pen to paper with little to no hesitation. ...

• Word Count: 1002
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School