Journal Min 350 words
Welcome to your first journal entry! Each chapter of the textbook will have a related journal entry prompt to which you will need to respond. Journals are an opportunity for you to reflect on what you read and learned in the chapter and apply it to your own life. In each journal response, you should answer ALL the questions presented in the prompt thoroughly and thoughtfully. Journals should incorporate what we call the “4 E’s” in college success:
1. Experience: Your response is written from your own experience and perspective 2. Evidence: Your response includes evidence or support from the chapter or the course 3. Example: Your response uses examples from your own life 4. Explanation: Your thoughts or opinions are clearly and thoughtfully explained
Your journal responses should include at least ONE of the FOUR E’s, but I encourage you to use as many as you can. Journals will be assessed on thoughtfulness, thoroughness and writing conventions using the journal rubric on a 0-10 point scale. There is no minimum word or page count for these assignments, but you are expected to answer each prompt in depth. Please read through the Introduction, Goals, and Instructions below before beginning. You may submit your assignment as an attachment (Word Doc or PDF), or you can copy and paste your response into the Text Entry Box. To view the grading rubric for this assignment, click here.
Introduction: This activity will introduce you to the concept of self-talk, personal narrative, and how your statements about yourselves could be influencing you. This acts as a starting point for the work you will continue to do in more depth as you move through the book.
Goals: • Illustrate the concept of personal narrative and “living down” to a narrative. • Help you start to become aware of your self-talk. • Introduce the concept of identifying exceptions, which is further discussed in
Chapter 6.
Instructions: 1. Recall a time when you may have “lived down” to a personal narrative. 2. Complete a sentence that begins with “I always…” or “I never…”, using examples
either inside or outside the academic classroom. For example, "I always wait until the last minute to start my homework", or "I never am able to share my feelings".
3. Describe an example of when the sentence was true 4. Describe an example of when the sentence was false
5. Explain how the “I always” or “I never” statement could be disempowering you.
Because people are so accustomed to identifying times when things aren’t going well, it can be difficult to start practicing identifying times when things did go well, or when you DID NOT live down to a narrative. If you are struggling to remember a time when the sentence you chose was not true, try identifying a small win. For example, if you struggle with punctuality, celebrate a win if you got somewhere ten minutes late, rather than your typical half an hour. Progress is better than perfection.