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Writing a Reflection Paper A reflection paper can take on many forms. As the name implies it is a reflection from something you experienced like a movie, a story or a journey you took. You experienced something (the movie, the story or a journey) and then you reflect on it. You think about your experience and share your thoughts in a written form. Most good papers have at least three parts: a beginning (or introduction), a middle, and an end (or conclusion). In the opinion of your teacher the best process of writing a paper is like this: 1) 2) 3) Experience (read the story, see a film, listen to some music, travel by train, work in a shop, climb a mountain etc.) Allow yourself time (without pressure) to think about your experience. Create some form of mind map like a list or circles with arrows etc. For example:

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Normally this is better by hand than on the computer. It is not meant to be tidy. It is not meant to be well ordered, but rather it is a dump of the things that come to your mind. This can also be done as a long list or in any form you wish. 4) After allowing yourself time to think about the subject of your paper, and after creating some form of mind map, the next stage is the outline. From the start you know it will have at least three parts: a. The introduction b. The middle c. The conclusion I prefer to create my outline in the same document that I will write the paper and I prefer to distinguish the outline from the text of the paper by putting the writing the outline in upper case. So I will start my outline like this: (I dont yet know the title so I will just write title in upper case and change it later

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TITLE Sally Wang 2873297427 INTRODUCTION

MIDDLE

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Note that everything except for Sally Wang and 2873297427 are temporary and they will all be replaced as my paper develops. At this point I have my experience of watching the movie, my thoughts, my mind map and this start of an outline. Suddenly I get inspired with a title and I decide to give my paper a name. I modify my outline / paper as follows:

The Cherry in the Chocolate A Reflection Paper on the Film Forest Gump Sally Wang 2873297427 INTRODUCTION

MIDDLE

CONCLUSION 34 35

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Because I added a title, my thoughts have changed and I go back and make some notes on my mind map:

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Since I am not yet sure what I will write, I cannot start with writing the introduction so I look at my mind map and I get an idea for the focus of my paper. I decide to focus on the fact that Forest is a good man who is not very smart and I realize this has more value to me that a smart man who is not very good. I add some notes to my outline.

The Cherry in the Chocolate A Reflection Paper on the Film Forest Gump Sally Wang 2873297427 INTRODUCTION MIDDLE GOOD AND EVIL KNOWING THE DIFFERENCE GOOD AND EVIL A STRUGGLE THROUGHOUT HISTORY FOREST AND JENNY AS CHILDREN BOTH INNOCENT CHOICES IN LIFE JENNY CHOICES FOREST THE PHILOSOPHER FORESTS BEST QUOTES CONCLUSION

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As a result of my outline unfolding I have some ideas for the conclusion so I add them to my outline. I also feel inspired to write part of the introduction so I do that.

The Cherry in the Chocolate A Reflection Paper on the Film Forest Gump Sally Wang 2873297427 INTRODUCTION Last week I saw the movie called Forest Gump . To me the best description of this movie is that it is a simply movie about and important and deep theme. There are several themes in the movie, such as love, overcoming disabilities and dominating personalities but I want to focus on the interplay of what we normally call intelligence and goodness. In this paper I will show that if one must choose between being good and being smart that being good is the best choice for the individual and for society as a whole. MIDDLE GOOD AND EVIL KNOWING THE DIFFERENCE

GOOD AND EVIL A STRUGGLE THROUGHOUT HISTORY Throughout history man has struggled with good and evil. Some have concluded we are born evil while others believe that we are born pure and only become corrupted through the society in which we live FOREST AND JENNY AS CHILDREN BOTH INNOCENT CHOICES IN LIFE JENNY CHOICES FOREST THE PHILOSOPHER FORESTS BEST QUOTES CONCLUSION - GOOD IS BETTER THAN SMART PAST CHOICES IN MY LIFE FUTURE DIRECTION IN MY LIFE MY FUTURE AS A PARENT THE MOVIE EFFECTED ME DEEPLY

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While I am working on my paper I will leave the notes (the UPPER CASE parts) in the paper until the very end. These notes will help me to see if I am writing what I plan to write or not. It is important to note that some things are best left flexible until near the end of the writing process. As areas take shape you may wish to remove some parts and add others. 6) 7) After writing the paper I recommend printing it out and find a place where you can read it out loud to yourself. As you read, make sure you read carefully and listen to the words and thoughts. If you see problems circle them and continue reading. Time permitting, let the paper sit for a day or two and then read it again. Some of your thoughts will have refined and you will want to change your paper.