How to Write the Personal Essay-Conquer the College Essay with Style and Power!
What's included
4 live meetings
3 hrs 40 mins in-class hoursHomework
1-2 hours per week. Learners will be required to read an short personal essay for each of the four classes. In addition, each session has homework assignments that include: Writing Exercises, Extender Reading Essays (beyond the essays discussed in class) and a complete essay (250-650 words) to write for each of the four classes. Every homework assignment receives a nuanced and detailed written response from me.Assessment
All student work will be formally assessed with detailed written comments for maximum understanding and growth. Student work will always be returned in a timely manner prior to the next class so students will be able to absorb information to benefit their work and progress on the upcoming assignments. Please note: At the end of the sessions, if a formal written assessment of a learner is desired, I am happy to provide it. Please write and ask me directly.Class Experience
US Grade 9 - 12
Advanced Level
Kindly note: This is an ESL friendly class, CEFR level — C1, C2 (Advanced) Please feel free to write me via Outschool email with questions. *** HOW TO WRITE THE PERSONAL ESSAY--CONQUER THE COLLEGE ESSAY WITH STYLE AND POWER! IN A NUTSHELL: 4 Focus Essays Discussed in classes 11 additional essays sent for background reading 4 Essay writing opportunities with instant written feedback No Prerequisites No books to purchase Small intimate class size (limited to 6 learners) IF YOUR GOAL IS TO CREATE A FINISHED COLLEGE ESSAY (OR ENTRANCE SCHOOL ESSAY) YOU ABSOLUTELY CAN DO SO WITH THIS CLASS. I WILL GUIDE YOU TO A FINISHED ESSAY. I WILL ALSO HELP YOU TO BE THE WRITER YOU YOU ARE MEANT TO BE. Note: If a learner is currently working on a separate college essay or perhaps an essay for private school admission, I would also be happy to offer comments and response during this class. *** BECOME A CONFIDENT WRITER FIRST--THE COLLEGE ESSAY WILL FOLLOW NATURALLY The ability to communicate one’s thoughts clearly and succinctly, with elegance and flair, is one of the key skills every learner needs for success both in school and beyond. How to Write the Personal Essay-Conquer the College Essay with Style and Power! is precisely the class to do just that. In four deeply researched 55-minute sessions we will examine the essential skills to give every learner the confidence to craft both the personal essay and by extension, the college essay. The college essay—often considered to be such a daunting writing task—is of course a personal essay. But to write a great college essay isn’t a slap-dash multi-step process. Rather, it’s learning the skills to become a great writer though understanding yourself and what you are passionate about through the writing the personal essay. Become a confident writer first—the college essay will essentially write itself. According to a recent piece in The New York Times from June, 2023 the essay will become more important and the SATs less. Each class in How to Write the Personal Essay-Conquer the College Essay with Style and Power! will be comprised of: Class 1:Description—Focus Essay: A Thing Shared by M.F.K. Fisher Class 2: Style/Tone—Focus Essay: All You Need to Know to Start Skipping Stones Like a Pro by Julie Benda Class 3: Writer’s Voice—Focus Essay: Mother Tongue by Amy Tan Class 4: Being Yourself— Focus Essay: Indestructible Beetle by Lulu Miller In addition: these essential parts of an essay will be discussed over the course of the four sessions: class 1 Conversational Element Honesty, Confession, Privacy Contractions and Expansions of the Self Class 2 The Role of the Contrarian One’s Ego Class 3 Cheek and Irony Storytelling Movement from Individual to Universal Class 4 Quotations and Use of Learning Personal Essay as a Way of Thinking and Being HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS FOR EVERY CLASS: Writing Exercises Extender Reading Essays (additional reading essays that support the ideas of the lesson ) Four different essay prompts reflecting the essay skill discussed in that particular session Essays in this class include: Class 1: DESCRIPTION Focus Essay: A Thing Shared by M.F.K. Fisher Extender Essays: Seeing by Annie Dillard, Street Hauntings by Virginia Woolf, Ticket to the Fair by David Foster Wallace Class 2: STYLE AND TONE Focus Essay: All You Need to Know to Start Skipping Stones Like a Pro by Julie Benda Extender Essays: How It Feels to Be Colored Me by Zora Neale Hurston, In Praise of Shadows Junichiro Tanizaki Class 3: THE WRITER'S VOICE Focus Essay: Mother Tongue by Amy Tan Extender Essays: Goodbye to All that by Joan Didion, Two Ways to See a River by Mark Twain Class 4: BEING YOURSELF Focus Essay: Indestructible Beetle by Lulu Miller Extender Essays: Self-Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson, If You Are What You Eat Then What Am I? By Geeta Kothari, What Makes Me Happy Now by Helen Gardner Every homework assignment receives an immediate, nuanced and fully detailed written response from me. HOW DID THIS CLASS COME TO BE CREATED? In a sense every class I’ve written has lead to this one. Every child not only has a voice in my classroom - I am listening carefully to each individual voice. My goal is—and alway has been—to open students’ minds to possibilities, to give them confidence in their thinking, to allow them to express themselves fully. This class aims do give students the opportunity to do so in the essay format. Essays are provocative—they’ve changed the thinking of the world. Great essays are transformative. How to Write the Personal Essay-Conquer the College Essay with Style and Power! was created to follow my own Spar Lit Sr: Understanding Great Essays Through Speech and Debate and my own The Elegant Essay: Crafting Great Essays Through Power and Punch! While Spar Lit Sr. focuses on oral skills through understanding essays, The Elegant Essay gives a broad view of the power of the essay through analysis. They both lead to How to Write the Personal Essay-Conquer the College Essay with Style and Power! In other-words, here is the perfect opportunity for students to learn to write their own essential essays. NO PREREQUISITES FOR THIS CLASS Please note: Although both Spar Lit Sr. and The Elegant Essay are excellent preparation for How to Write The Personal Essay there are no prerequisites for this class. LIMITED TO 6 STUDENTS How to Write the Personal Essay-Conquer the College Essay with Style and Power! is limited to 6 students so all learners have a voice in the classroom. Learners have both the benefit of a small class and the interaction with like-minded students. NO BOOK PURCHASES NECESSARY FOR THIS CLASS All materials will be sent to learners in pdf. over the classroom page.
Learning Goals
*Learners will gain the skills both to write excellent and individualistic personal essays a skill that will allow them to also write a superb college essay.
*Will gain confidence in both creativity and organization for the essay format
*Understand all the basic ideas of communication through essay
* To learn to communicate effectively, think adroitly and respond fluently in writing
*To improve memory retention and organizational skills in crafting essays
*To expand vocabulary and word usage and phrasing
*To gain deeper understanding of the nuances of literature and the essay format
*To Improve basic grammar
Syllabus
4 Lessons
over 4 WeeksLesson 1:
The Power of Description
Each class focuses on:
Understanding the Personal Essay
Discussion of one of the key aspects of the Personal Essay: Description
class 1
Conversational Element
Honesty, Confession, Privacy
Contractions and Expansions of the Self
Focus Essay to support the Pillar: A Thing Shared by MFK Fisher.
55 mins online live lesson
Lesson 2:
Style and Tone
Each class focuses on:
Understanding the Personal Essay
Discussion of one of the key aspects of the Personal Essay: Style and Tone
The Role of the Contrarian
One’s Ego
Focus Essay to support the Pillar: All You Need to Know to Start Skipping Stones Like a Pro by Julie Benda
55 mins online live lesson
Lesson 3:
Writer's Voice
Each class focuses on:
Understanding the Personal Essay
Discussion of one of the key aspects of the Personal Essay: Writer's Voice
Cheek and Irony
Storytelling
Movement from Individual to Universal
Focus Essay to support the Pillar: Mother Tongue by Amy Tan
55 mins online live lesson
Lesson 4:
Being Yourself for both the Personal Essay and the College Essay
Each class focuses on: Understanding the Personal Essay
Discussion of one of the key aspects of the Personal Essay: Being Yourself
Quotations and Use of Learning
Personal Essay as a Way of Thinking and Being
Focus Essay to support the Pillar: Indestructible Beetle by Lulu Miller
55 mins online live lesson
Other Details
Supply List
No book purchase is necessary for this class-- all reading assignments will be sent via either link or pdf prior to each session.
1 file available upon enrollment
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Sources
The Norton Sampler: Short Essays for Composition by Thomas Cooley 8th Edition
The Art of the Personal Essay edited by Phillip Lopate
Please note: there are no book purchases necessary for this class.
Teacher expertise and credentials
Bachelor's Degree from The University of Michigan, 1982 Honors in The History of Art, Does not Expire
As a former book publishing professional who worked at Knopf, Random House, and Workman Publishing, I am proud to have also been a writing coach for the college essay guiding myriad students to success. Moreover, and in my longtime work as both tutor and teacher of both middle and high school students, I have guided writers of all ages and abilities to give each communicator the skills to think deeply, to cultivate an individual voice and style, and ultimately to discover true confidence to write well now and for always.
Reviews
Live Group Course
$200
for 4 classes1x per week, 4 weeks
55 min
Completed by 33 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 13-18
2-6 learners per class