Composition 1
Portfolio Presentation
By: Courtney King
December 2000
Introduction
As a writer, I feel that my writing has greatly
improved over this semester. I have learned
many things; how to write an effective
summary, how to organize essays, how to
improve a thesis, how to express my feelings in a
way as not to offend, and how to write an
effective introduction.
I have experienced writing in such a way as
now I appreciate my writings and the works of
others.
Changes in My Writing This
Semester
I have learned to write an effective summary.
I know how to cite sources in my writing.
I have learned how to organize my essays.
I have improved the quality of my thesis
statements.
I have learned how to express my feelings in
such a way as to not offend.
I have learned how to write an effective
introduction.
I Have Learned to Write an
Effective Summary.
The essential points of writing a summary
include the thesis, the main points, and a
generalization of what the writing was
about. The example below shows what
the thesis is and a basic summary of what
the essay was about.
..\..\My
Documents\composition\Summaries.doc
I Know How to Cite Sources
Correctly in My Writing.
The style of citing sources I used was citing
electronic sources.
An example of this would be: Gilson, Ian,
Mary Busalacchi. “Medical Marijuana
Cures Hiccups.” Lancet.4Dec.2000
http://www.marijuanamagazine.com/toc/hic
cups.htm
..\..\My Documents\composition\medical
marijuana.doc
I Have Learned Four Ways to
Organize Essays.
The fours way to easily organize an essay are;
point by point, comparison/contrast, research, and
summary. I enjoy the comparison/contrast the
most as it lets you know how the author feels
about the subject.
Courtney King
Comparison/Contrast Essay
English 110 Comp 1

I remember coming home after a rough day; it
was cold and dreary out. I t had been a terrible
day. I come home and am greeted by friendly,
I Know the Essential Features of a
Good Thesis Statement
The features of a good statement are; it
must be clear and concise, it must grab
the attention of the reader, and it is best if
it is not in the form of a question.
One such example is: “The death penalty
should be abolished.” This is a good
example because it clearly states my
opinion on the topic, it is clear, and it
grabs the attention of the reader.
How I Have Learned to Express
My Feelings
The ways that I have learned to express
my feelings as not to offend anyone are I
have learned to control my writing and
not say everything that I mean to say that
might offend people.
I have learned that just because I may
feel strongly about something doesn’t
mean that everyone is going to feel the
same way.
I Have Learned to Write an
Effective Introduction
I have learned that an effective
introduction means that I need to give
more effort in getting the attention of the
reader, such as, including a short story.
..\..\My
Documents\composition\ComparisonCont
rast Essayrevise.doc
Writing Skill / Levels 1 & 2
Level One:
Expresses clearly thoughts and ideas in informal
writing contexts.
Composes structurally correct sentences in Standard
American English.
Generates well-developed, coherent paragraphs.
Level Two:
Processes information to produce writing that clearly
and accurately summarizes and/or reports.
Writes, well-developed, focused essays.
Searches for information and inserts research
appropriately.
Conclusion
I feel that I have successfully achieved
these skill levels.
I have generated well-developed essays
I have composed structurally correct
sentences
I am able to search for information and
insert research appropriately
I feel that I am capable of doing all of
these things after completion of this
semester in this class.