A description with examples of React & Reflect type journal posts, for English II, a college writing course.

1. About React & Reflect Journal posts
Step1. React
As you read, notice your reactions. If you react more strongly to one piece, then that's a good
one for this type of journal response (and maybe for an essay). Take reaction notes in the book
or someplace else as you read. What? Really? I agree. That’s sad. Same happened here… Note
where you’re most curious, engaged, bored, amused, shocked, moved, angered, etc. Also
highlight phrases (or cut and paste for later), sentences and passages that spark reactions in
you, or just sound good.
Taking notes makes journal writing easier. Journal writing makes essays easier. At the end of a
reading session, write a one-sentence note about your overall experience. Did you enjoy this?
Did you want to keep reading, or was it a chore?
Step2. Reflect
Reflect on WHY you reacted as you did. What in or about the piece caused that reaction? Was it
the way it was put together (the style)? The mood (tone)? Or its message (theme)? Or did the
ending ruin / nail it for you? Did you like or relate to the characters? Be specific. Maybe it's hard
to pin down, but try. You may have to read or view it again.
If you feel comfortable, you can also write about what in you – your life, your personality, your
past reading – caused your reaction. So the reflect part can go analytical or personal, or both!
 Analytical – What in the piece's content or style caused your reaction? For example, if
you were on the edge of your seat, how did the writer do that? If you were moved to
tears, what part, what words, what tone, what moment or image did that? If you were
bored/bothered/angered, that's interesting. Try to pinpoint the cause(s).
 Personal – Why did you react that way? What in your life did this piece connect with?
Who did the characters remind you of? What worries, memories, hopes, passions did
this stir up? You can tell some of your own story, if moved to. The response journal is
private.
Don’t stress toomuch: Response journal writing should be first draft . . . thinking out loud.
No heavy revision needed. Range can be short (100 or so words) to quite long. It's good to have
a mix of ranges, to show engagement and spontaneity (writing freely, not cookie-cutter-y). If
you usually write short posts, try a few long ones. Go deeper. If you're usually long, try a few
short, wise posts. The main thing is – say something real.
From journal to forum to essay:As you post in the journal, be on the lookout for ideas,
reactions and opinions you can share in the forum and perhaps develop for an essay. When I

2. read your journal posts, I too will look for ways that your thoughts might be developed more
and tell you in my comments.
Three examples of React & Reflect type posts frompast semesters, used with
permission:
The Camel and His Friends
My initial reactionto the story was "oh,no, it's one ofthose boring stories with some kind of
message at the end". I actually left this one forthe last, since it didn't seem interesting to me at first.
Butwhen I finished reading, I really like the message it was trying togive. I heard similar stories, butnot
this particular one. The message being told is to be carefulwhoyou choseas yourfriends. Throughout
ourlives we all meet different people, andsadly some ofthose people are outthere touse us, especially
misuse. I am sure everyone at some point in their lives will comeacross that. I personally came across
someone, whouse emotions to get me to believe the lies until I caught upto it. Unfortunately,that
persondid that tomany otherpeople i know and in the end burnedall his bridges, I learned from that
experience and I'mvery cautiousof whoI trust.
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AsI wasreading BattleRoyal it onceagain reminded me ofthe hardshipsthe minorities in this
countryhadto overcome to achieve equality. The battle royal waswhenthey blind folded the young
AfricanAmericanmen and had them commencein a boxing matchfollowed by trying to pickup coins
ona rugwhichhadan electric currentrunningthroughit. Then the narrator had to read his high school
graduation speechto the highly intoxicated white men. Afterthe youngAfricanAmericanmen
endured all the events oneof them (the narrator) wasgiven a scholarship to the state college forblack
youth. Everything the white men had the youngAfricanAmericanmen do is now considered hazingin
today’s society and is illegal.
When I was reading the story, I reacted the way I did becausethe events that they African
Americanmen hadto endure resembled a little bit ofthe hazing that wasuncoveredupat PennState
with the whole trial regarding the death ofTim Piazza. Itis something I follow closely since my dad
actually knew Tim since he is a Vice Principalat the highschool he attended. What he had togo
throughjustto get into a frat wasunbelievable justlike how the youngAfricanAmericanmen had togo
throughthose events justso oneof them wouldreceive a scholarship.
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Most postswon’t be this long butfeel free. This student-writerused mushof this writing in an essay.
This week, I chose to react and reflect on IND AFF, by Fay Weldon. Since the piece fairly long
stories, I'm going to try to summarize my reactions for each paragraph of the piece so this doesn't end
upridiculously long.
IND AFF -Whenthe author first openedthe storyby saying, "This is a sad story.It has to be," I
was immediately interested. I wanted toknow whyit was sucha sadstory and whyit hadto be.
However,whenthe speaker went onto explain the twofootprintsthat are "Sarajevo's pride",
the assassination ofArchdukeFerdinand,andthe impact it left on the city and the world,I was a little
bored, butonly because I had learned aboutthis already this past year in history class. Asthe author
continuedto describe the abundanceofpeople on the streets, there wasstill nothingthat intrigued me.

3. Infact,the informationseemed a little irrelevant to me. However,whenPeter begins to complain
aboutthe he factthat the rain makes the footprintslook like puddlesis whenthe authorgrabs my
attention again. The authorstates that'sshe loves him, whichpuzzledandshocked me. Did she love his
as in she was her favorite teacher orin a romantic way? When she said that he thoughtshe didn't have
a first-class mind becauseshe had a feeling they weren't goodin bed, I realized the demeanor ofthe
relationship andkind oflost soem respect forthe author.
She then begins to discussthe location ofSarajevo and their plans, whichbecomes boring
again, until she's mentions Peter's wife, whereI am again shocked, confused,andlose some more
respect forher. The authorcontinuesto speak aboutPeter's decision between her andhis wife.... After
that, whenthey decide togo to lunch,their conversationand details bore me the until they begin to
discussPrincip,the assassin to ArchdukeFerdinand,andhis role in starting World War 1.However,
onceit it noted that he is no longer listening and begins to talk abouttheir food,whichI personally
think is justto keep the story movingalong, rather then actual contentthat is essential to the story,I
begin to lose interest again. It is only whenthey start talking about Peter'sattributes that I become
interested and engaged again. Whenhe is first introduced,wedon'tknow anythingabout him expect
forto fact that he is married andis a college professor,so I was curiousabouthim. She then shifts from
Clare to her sister, whichI thoughtwasinteresting and caughtmy attention. She begins to speak in
length about how marvelous her sister's life is and how she cannot competewith her.
Asthe piece continuestoshift between telling the story of whathappened in Sarajevo decades
ago withthe assassination ofArchdukeFerdinand,I begin toget confusedasto whythe authorchose
to set upthe storyquite like this. I foundmore ofthe information about their lunchto be rather
uninteresting and usedto simply carrythe story along, with a few important sentences sprinkled in
between. However,as we continueto read, and the contextshiftsback to the author'sconversation
with Peter,I finally understandwhyshe shifts between the thoughts.When Peterasks her whatshe is
thinking about,she says how muchshe loves him and the archduke'sassasination, so I believe upuntil
then, she washaving thoughtsabouttheir lunch,the assassination, and her conversationwithPeter.
Their disagreement about whathappened in Sarajevo in 1914begins to clearly frustratethe author
after Peter clearly diregards her opinionon the matter andbelieves whathe said is right becausehe has
a "first class mind", whichmakes me very curiousas to whathas suddenly shifted in her mind. She
quickly wentfrom saying how muchshe loved him to getting frustrated at him. All ofthe suddenshe
juststands upand tells Peter she's leaving, whichshockedme considering how affectionate she was
towardshim adnhow muchshe said she loved him.
There were parts of the piece that were boringto me, that didn't really have todo with her
relationship orthe assassination, whichis whyI think I wasn't as interested. I think her personal
connectionwithSarajevo and the assassination helps make her message more powerfulandeasier to
understand.I think I also connectedona personal level with the authorand her attempts to out doher
sister. Having an older sister whois smart, athletic, artistic, personable, and hardworking is incredibly
hard to keep upwith. It also doesn'thelp that weend up taking all the same classes (obviouslyat
different times in ourlife), play the same sport,and go throughmany ofthe same things.It is extremely
hard notto compare myself with her, especially in the classroom andon the softball field. Not only
does the speaker feel like 2ndplace in her family, but she also feels that way in her relationship with her
professorwhohas a wife. Overall, this was a piece I wasable to react tobased onprior knowledge of
the assassination andsimilarities between the authorand myself.
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