Taylor Dunaway

Midterm Reflection
10/09/14
Connie Douglas
UWRT 1101
As a Daybook keeper I think Ive done pretty good as far as effort goes into
each entry. However the work that I have done could be better. For example, some
daybook entries that I have done I went above and beyond on. Some I was so
interested in I decided to type them so I could say more. While on some I didnt put
in as much critical thinking like I would have liked to. If I had to give myself a grade,
I would say that I deserve a C+. Because not all of my work is above average, but a
good portion of it I think is. I want to do better and write more and go into detail. Its
something that I need to work on.
As far as participation goes, I do not participate as much as I would like to. I
did enjoy doing the slam poetry. I felt that it was fun getting to go in front of the
class with my friend and do something that Ive never done before. I dont have a
problem talking in front of people, its just apathy that sometimes prevents me from
answering questions like I should be. Ill know the answers to questions but
sometimes Id rather just let someone else answer it. As far as attendance goes, Ive
done a good job. I havent missed a single day yet and I havent been late either.
Every day I get there ten to fifteen minutes early to prepare for class. I like to feel
prepared so I go ahead and do everything I feel that I need to before I leave my dorm
room. My involvement in small group discussion and work is also good. I like going
into the small group discussions because I feel like they can be more productive,
especially for peer review. Sometimes my attitude for the class isnt the best. It is
something that I have been working on. But overall as far as participation goes, I
believe that I do a good job staying an active member in class. If I graded myself on

Taylor Dunaway
Midterm Reflection
10/09/14
Connie Douglas
UWRT 1101
this aspect of myself in class I would give me a B, because I am an active member of
class.
With my literacy I am not at the best spot. I do enjoy reading, and have read quite a
few books of different genres. I really enjoy reading poetry when I get the chance.
And sometimes even writing some. What I like about poetry is that you can interpret
it however you want it. What you think of something doesnt have to agree with the
next person and when you write I feel a release. Its nice having something to vent
with after a long day. However poetry isnt the only thing that I read. Right now I am
reading the book Washington by Ron Chernow. The book is a biography of George
Washington. Its something that Ive wanted to read for a while, and its 817 pages
long. I dont know how long it will take me to read, however I am enjoying it. Books
of nonfiction are surprisingly appealing to me. I have also read Night by Elie Wiesel,
and The Diaries of Anne Frank. As far as issues in my literacy go, I think that my
writing can be weak if I dont put in adequate time. I dont think that I have any
questions about literacy at this point. I want to expand my literacy. I want to use
new words that I havent before and keep reading book to become stronger in my
English.
Up to this point, I would consider my performance to be a B. The reason for this is
because my work is above average I feel. I feel like on some assignments I have went
above and beyond, although on some I feel like I havent done much. For the end of
this semester, I would like to see a high B on moodle. I know that right now my work
isnt capable of producing that however I am going to start working harder and

Taylor Dunaway
Midterm Reflection
10/09/14
Connie Douglas
UWRT 1101
boost my grades. For the rest of the semester I actually hope that we write more. I
enjoy writing and I feel like thats how I learn a lot about myself and my peers. I also
would like to do more peer reviewing. Getting in a small group and talking about
each others work is something that interests me. I like being able to help people
with their paper and tell them things that they could work on and change. Lastly, the
only big concerns I have for this class are the e-portfolio. Ive never done an online
portfolio and I am kind of stressed out that what I do will not be equivalent to the
rest of the class.

Daybook 1:
1.
The earliest encounter I remember involving written language was when I
was a kid in preschool. I remember going to a day care called First Assembly and I
remember we were taught to write in cursive. Which I still struggle with today, but
am getting better. Each student of the class gave their names to the teacher and she
wrote them on the board. Then everyone in the small classes copied what she wrote,
the way she wrote it. It was a way of learning everyones names and learning to
write in cursive. After that we practiced our name and on all assignments. Our
names were always in cursive and werent allowed to be different. Forcing me to
dislike cursive writing from a very young age.
2.
Now that I think back I remember when I was very young in elementary
school and I couldnt pronounce the simple th sound in anything. I just replaced it
with an f sound instead. My teacher noticed when she asked me what the answer
to 9 divided by 3 was. I regretfully looked at her and said with confidence free. She
asked me to repeat it and of course I said free again. I remember being sent to the
speech teacher and she tried to help but it was just something I had to grow out of. I
also remember in classes like public speaking where I would never write down
anything I was going to talk about. I would just make it up as I went on. This gave me
a strange feeling of pride because unlike everyone else I could just improvise a
whole speech and it would actually make sense.
3.
I dont think Ive ever wrote anything intentional and wish that I hadnt but
throughout school I would care less about what I was writing. I would do the easiest

Taylor Dunaway
Midterm Reflection
10/09/14
Connie Douglas
UWRT 1101
thing to do, which is write the paper, not read it, and just turn it in. This would
usually end up bad. Teachers would read my papers and I would say things like and
and or repeat whole sentences at a time. I would repeat ideas, and reasons behind
things, and just act generally careless. Which in return I wouldnt get the grade I had
hoped for.
4.
In my family there are a few storytellers. With the big ones being my uncles,
who are actually twins. Theyre very funny and are accustomed to being the center
of attention. Well most of their stories are somewhat vulgar. So I will refrain from
sharing those. But they tell many stories about when they played football and I feel
like I can relate to those very well. Stories of them getting sacks, making tackles,
pancaking people and locker room stories filled my head. Those stories have
influenced me because I have always wanted to do things like that, and I feel like I
did a good job for the time I played football in high school.
5.
There are many rules of language that I have learned. One of the most
annoying rules that many of my teachers have disagreed with many times is the rule
that no sentence shall start with and. I usually try my best to refrain from starting
any sentence with and just because I feel like it is bad grammar, but I remember
getting points counted off on papers for starting sentences with and. I dont think
its right to say it in a paper, however when one teacher tells me to do it and I do,
then later get points counted off for it, I dont think thats right. But I guess thats life.
6.
Thats a hard question. There have been a lot of people that I could thank for
mending me to talk and write the way that I do. But some big ones are my parents,
my uncles, and my brother. These are all people who have helped me most. My
uncles gave me a good sense of humor, my parents taught me manors and how to
mend my sentences together in such a way to captivate and persuade people. My
brother was always very good in English and he has taught me a lot about the
language, as strange as that sounds. But I remember having writers block and
having no idea what to say next. I would go to him and just tell him I have no idea
what to say and he would make some suggestions and those suggestions would get
me through the rest of the paper.
7.
Well this is a hard question. When I first saw the question I thought of asking
girls out using poems. Which is something that isnt done often, but works
surprisingly well. I once asked a girl out in middle school with a poem. Which is
actually hilarious. I cant remember exactly what I said and Im sure the poem is
nowhere to be found but whatever I said worked. Our relationship lasted for a
couple weeks like most middle school relationships do and it served as a lesson for
me that poets always no what to say and are the best with their tongues.

Taylor Dunaway
Midterm Reflection
10/09/14
Connie Douglas
UWRT 1101
8.
Something that I treasure is a letter that my grandma wrote to me on my
birthday. It is very special to me and I will always remember it because my grandma
and I are very close. She wrote it to me on my birthday. If I have ever sent someone
something that they treasure it would have to be something to my mom. She has
kept a lot of the things that I wrote to her in elementary school for mothers day and
other holidays.
9.
I consider my literacy skills to be equivalent to most others. I dont think
theyre any better or any worse. When I say this I am referring to people my age,
which are freshmen here and at other campuses. I feel this way because I have
always liked writing, but its never really been my strong suit. I enjoy writing but I
find it hard to find the time to put something that Im thinking exactly into words.
However I have been trying to better myself and take the time to write things out
and explain myself more.
10.
Well I have used my literacy before to judge a person. It wasnt really the
nicest thing to do however it was for school and it worked so I think it was
necessary. I was the prosecution in a school case and I used my literacy to sound
much smarter and build up my side of the case. I questioned the witness and they
didnt have anything else to say so they started making up things, turning the whole
entire case around.
11.
Yes I think my literacy skills will develop and change dramatically. That is
because we are in a changing world. The worlds slang and ways they say things are
always changing. So yes, I do believe the way I speak will change. Also I am in
college, so I think that by the time I am out, I will sound much more sophisticated.
My cousin, for example, was very country when he went into college. By the time he
got out as a business major you never wouldve recognized him. He was completely
different and sounded much smarter than ever before.
Daybook 1 Reflection
I chose this daybook entry because it was a very long daybook entry that I did and I
put a lot of thought into it. This was one of the first few days that I did and I did it
August 22nd. It stands out to me because of the length, and how I tried to go into
detail on each answer. I tried to give real world examples on some questions and
make myself sound as credible as I could. Take question number 11 for example, I
talked about my personal life and how the way we speak is forever changing. I also
gave an example from someone that I knew.

Taylor Dunaway
Midterm Reflection
10/09/14
Connie Douglas
UWRT 1101

Daybook 2
Chapter 15
3.
Im not one of the people that listen to music while writing. Its not something
that works for me. I love music, just as much if not more than most other people.
However when I am writing and listening to music I find myself singing along or
thinking of what comes next in the song. The only way I can listen to music and
write at the same time is if the music is very slow, or if there are no vocals in the
song at all. So just instrumental music. Listening to Television is not helpful at all,
especially if youre really trying to focus. In my Psychology class the book stated that
a television show that youre not interested in is not as distracting as music that you
have heard before. I could agree with this because like I stated before, when I know
a song Im singing along with it in my head. And then I just get lost in the music and
lose my thought for the paper.
4.
The thing that helped me most with writing papers is the location. When I am
at home on my computer there are so many distractions going on. My parents
talking, the TV blaring, the dog barking, a neighbor mowing the grass, and the list
continues. However when I am at somewhere like the library at school I can do work
very easily. With slow Wifi, I am not tempted to get on the Internet and check my
email while listening to music and looking up videos of how to focus in college.
Everyone around me is doing work and I can really get stuff done. That is my
favorite place to get things done. Ive never done on-line collaboration so my
opinions on it are scarce. To help others write, you have to learn to be honest. You
are on a professional level and must learn constructive criticism.
7.
1) Focus on how you want your writing to sound. The reason for doing this is
so when youre done, your paper wasnt everywhere. For example, if I am writing a
paper and I begin talking about a family member dying and how I was affected, I
shouldnt go off on a joking rant about the food at Crown. Although thats very easy
to do.
2) Include yourself in what you are writing. If you are writing and are
running low on sources then dont be afraid to throw a personal experience in there.
It adds a lot to your paper and makes it more relatable.
3) Dont write above your ability. Dont try to impress your audience with big
words that are completely unnecessary. Theres no need to sound like a scholar
when writing about why you think the zombie apocalypse will really happen. Youll
probably end up looking crazy and have words that do not fit in with the text.
Daybook 2 Reflection
The reason I chose this is because I liked it and it made me look at where I write and
how I write. It made me think of my decisions for where I try to do my work and

Taylor Dunaway
Midterm Reflection
10/09/14
Connie Douglas
UWRT 1101
how I like to do it. Sometimes when I am writing, I try to listen to music and that is
something that just doesnt work for me. However, I try to do it a lot. When I go
back and read over what I wrote, it doesnt sound good and is all over the place. This
daybook entry was questions in the daybook that we had to answer. I liked how it
talked about our writing techniques because it helped me understand that some of
my writing techniques are quite counterproductive.
Daybook 3
Chapter 1
5) There are a lot of different times that my parents and my own memories have
been different. The most common difference is between my dad and Is. My dad has
a tendency to over exaggerate everything that he is talking about. My mom and I
always point out that he does it but he always denies it. Hell talk about snakes being
three times as long as they were and things that he done that sound a lot cooler than
they were. It affects my life in a funny way. It always gives my mom and I something
to talk about.
6) One time in high school we had to work on a group paper. It was very interesting
because we all voted on what we agreed and disagreed on. For example, one person
may have said they were republican, and another person democrat. Those two
people were paired together and had to write a paper talking about the differences
and how they were similar. This was an amazing activity because although you kind
of hated the person you were working with, it taught you how to listen to them and
accept what they are saying, all while keeping your opinions on paper.
9) I took studying for exams and related it to football practice in high school. I hated
football practice, but I loved the games. I suppose its the same way with studying. I
hated studying, but I studied so that I could do well on the exam. Using metaphors
and similes are a good way to compare things and understand that hey, maybe
things arent as bad after all.
Daybook 3 Reflection
The reason I chose this daybook entry is because I liked the examples that I gave in
it. When I write, I give a lot of examples from my own life. The reason I do this is
because it adds a personal touch to things, which is something that I like when I am
reading other peoples work. I dont like reading something that I feel like a zombie

Taylor Dunaway
Midterm Reflection
10/09/14
Connie Douglas
UWRT 1101
wrote. When I read something with things I can relate to, I feel much more
connected and into what I am reading.

Daybook 4
Poetry Slam Responses
Shrinking Woman
This Poetry Slam was about not eating. I think I liked it because it talked about
how the men in her family would get bigger as the women would get smaller. Im
kind of confused about it though. She wasnt very loud but could that have
something to do with her shrinking size? Maybe if at one point she wouldve gotten
louder and louder as she talked about growing. Maybe I completely missed the point
of it. She was hard hitting however. I liked how she said genetics were accidental,
and how she picked up habits.
21
This man was talking about different ages he was at and what was happening at that
age. He starts out at 21 talking about his father dead in the street and how he didnt
cry. Ive never had a parent or close family member that has struggled with alcohol
abuse however this made me think about my life if I wouldve. This was a very good
poetry slam and the way he delivered it was phenomenal.
Rape Poem to End All Rape
Wow. That poem hit hard. It was interesting how they started it. I think the language
was appropriate. How they called it a Damn Rape Poem wasnt them. It was more
what the people in the audience wanted to call it. Its hard to write about this but the
delivery was the most important part. It sticks with you and rings in your head after
youve heard it.
Daybook 4 Reflection
I chose this because I really enjoyed listening to the Slam poems. Hearing these slam
poems made me think. I think that this daybook entry displays a good amount of
critical thinking. It stood out to me because I really do enjoy listening to slam poetry.
Its the thoughts of people being communicated in a very affective way that
everyone listens to and can enjoy. I really listened during this assignment and tried
to take as much from these slam poems as I could. Thats another reason I chose this
assignment.