‘Something I’m Passionate About’

Purpose:

• Introduction to Personal and Reflective Writing

• Developing talk skills from S2S3

• Helps your class and teacher to get to know you

Personal and Reflective Essay

Solo Talk (Personal and Reflective)

PASSIONATE

Strong Emotion Great Enthusiasm

Having fire in your belly!

• Discuss 2-3 subjects you feel passionate about and the reasons why with a partner.

• Next pick the subject that you feel most strongly for.

• Write down at least 4-5 reasons why your subject is so important to you.

• Note down your feelings on the topic and why you feel this way.

• Explain why others should feel passionate about this topic and how you would convince them to feel this way.

Personal and Reflective

Reflective Angle

• Why is being passionate about something important in life?

• What has your particular passion added to your life, what opportunities has it given you, how has it changed or affected the way you are or the way you do/see things?

• How might your passion affect you in the future?

Task

Write an essay reflecting on a topic you are passionate about, remembering to include your thoughts and feelings.

If you are struggling to find one topic that you feel has enough scope to write/talk about then you could choose 2 or 3 of your passions but will need to make sure you link them together effectively.

Success Criteria

• Convey your passion (through thoughts/feelings/emotions) clearly and effectively to the reader.

• SHOW how your passion makes you feel through vivid description/use of the senses/imagery (DON’T TELL)

• Try to reflect on the significance of this passion in your life

• I will also use this first piece of writing to see what your strengths are in independent writing i.e.:

- Structure/Linking

- Technical Accuracy

- Expression

- Personality and Style

Show DON’T Tell

Direct Statement (telling)‘I was afraid.’

Indirect Description (showing)‘I kept looking behind me. I felt a shiver go up my spine. My mind was racing. Who could it be? A terrible fear swept through me.’

Your Turn…

Choose one of the feelings below and write a short description SHOWING these emotions:

Write about the feeling of being embarrassed.Write about the feeling of being nervous.Write about the feeling of being happy or overjoyed.

* Do not use any of the words in bold.

Fishing is an activity I feel strongly about. It is a hobby I have participated in for the last few years which I really enjoy.

Standing stoically in the murky depths of a freezing river at 6am on a Sunday morning may be most people’s idea of misery, but to me, it is something that I find exciting, enjoyable and even entertaining! The silence, the patience and mostly the anticipation as I wait for the pull on the rod and the occasional, very occasional, catch of a 4cm long trout after five hours of waiting, never fails to fill me with an immense feeling of success, pride and profound elation.

Example Introductions

Standing stoically in the murky depths of a freezing river at 6am on a Sunday morning may be most people’s idea of misery, but to me, it is something that I find exciting, enjoyable and even entertaining! The silence, the patience and mostly the anticipation as I wait for the pull on the rod and the occasional, very occasional, catch of a 4cm long trout after five hours of waiting, never fails to fill me with an immense feeling of success, pride and profound elation.

Alliteration. Also look at varied sentence structure.

Alliteration- climatic

Parallel structure – builds up anticipation/tension

Use of repetition – rhetorical device – building up the picture, emphasising how despite their lack of success at hobby, it is so enjoyable to them that any downside is soon forgotten.

Descriptive – suggests there is negatives to this hobby – however the use of but – suggests that despite this, this person’s passion for the hobby enables them to contend with these hardships

Use of a list: emphasises how strongly they feel towards fishing and states how passionately they feel in a more interesting manner.

Passion is that sense of enjoyment, and the feeling of satisfaction after meeting your objectives and defying all the odds. You have to use your body and mind in harmony to do this. Every single sportsman will tell you the same thing. Basketball requires this harmony if you want to be passionate, and this is the area I just crave. I hunger for the adrenaline rush inherited from constant observation, the speed you are forced to run and the exhilaration of scoring a basket from a distance. I am God. I know this because only he could feel better than me after a match.

Sitting on a stool in my bedroom, totally shut away from everyone else. I am completely still, completely calm and nothing can disturb. My mind escapes from the real world, and I am free to concentrate. When the silence breaks I am at one with the music. I am totally absorbed in the sound. It is this simple act of playing my Cello that makes me feel so relaxed. I can fade away to my very own place where it is just me and my Cello, and it fills me with passion.

My body feels completely burnt out, sharp pains are shooting though my calves and sweat is dripping down my tired face. My lungs feel like their going to give way and my breathing is getting harder and harder. My hands are tightly fisted, numb with the coldness from the strong wind. Something is burning inside me and I realise it’s the adrenalin. I suddenly get this burst of energy and realise how much passion I have for this sport. I hear the sound of clapping and cheering while I get closer to the finish line. I drive and drive, powering my legs and arms knowing that all the training, effort and the hard work has paid off.

Walking along the air-bridge, looking over the glorious shine of the paint job and the tail a red gloss gleaming in the sunlight, like the waters of the Riviera. Walking through the aircraft door like entering into another world. The four Rolls-Royce engines gently humming ready for full throttle. Walking past the galley towards seat 7A, sitting down in the seat preparing for take-off. The final announcement made and we are a ready for departure. Finally full throttle and then rotate. Soaring higher in the sky then any bird or balloon, looking threw the tops of the clouds reflecting the rays of sunshine. Looking down at the world as if it was your oyster, seeing the doll like houses and crowded streets.

Techniques you could use to engage the reader and convey your passion:

• Humour

• Hyperbole (deliberate exaggeration for emphasis)

• Imagery (similes, metaphors, personification)

• Alliteration

• Parallel sentencing

• Use of an anecdote to explain why the topic is so important to you

• Concentrate on senses – smells, colours, sounds, feelings, thoughts

• Reflective stance at the end

Possible Structure/Areas to Include

• Snappy Introduction which involves the reader in your passion straightaway

• Give details about what the passion is/what it involves

• Reveal where the passion came from

• Reveal your feelings and justify, giving reasons, why you feel so strongly about the topic

• Explain why you think other people should feel passionate about your subject too

• Conclude by reflecting on the significance of your passion in your life