Sample Essays & More

Students in Essay Writing class are doing a great job this year. Attendance is good, and everyone is writing a lot and creating some very nice essays. Let's take a look at some student writing so we can understand better what other people in class are doing. I am just using the students' initials so they won't be embarrassed!

My Special Thing: My Cell Phone
by S.K.

My special thing is my cell phone. I started to want my own cell phone when I was a schoolchild. I couldn't get a cell phone at that time, so I borrowed my mother's cell phone. I continued to use her cell phone while I was home, so she couldn't use it. She stopped letting me borrow it. Then I started sending mail from a PC. But many friends had their own cell phones when I was a junior high school student, so I wanted my own cell phone, too. My sister also wanted her own cell phone. We asked my mother to buy a cell phone for us. Our mother said, "If you can improve your grades, I will buy you cell phones." We studied very hard and helped our mother. In the end, I couldn't improve my grades, but my sister could. I was upset. However, our mother said, "I will buy you both cell phones because both of you studied very hard." I was lucky, so I will try to take care of my cell phone.

Recently I found that cell phones are useful when an earthquake hits. I was on a train alone when the earthquake hit, so I worried about my family and my friends. But I was safe and I got the earthquake information by my cell phone. so I could be relieved a little. And now everyone can make charitable contributions from their cell phones, and I can leave messages to victims to cheer them up.

My cell phone is the most important communication too for me. I am shy, so I can't talk face to face with people easily. So I use e-mail and blogs and so on for good communication. Recently, I am not so nervous to talk face to face. I also like listening to music and watching TV on my cell phone. I think that having a cell phone is indispensable to me.


Rice is Better than Bread
Comparison essay by K.F.

Rice is better than bread. First, rice is healthier than bread. If you have a staple diet of rice as well as the dishes that go along with rice, you can get all essential nutrients easily. And the dishes that go well with rice contain nutrients that prevent lifestyle diseases. If you want to keep healthy, you should have a staple diet of rice. However, you have to make sure that you have a balanced diet.

Second, rice is more enjoyable than bread. There are a lot of dishes that go well with rice. For example, pickles, natto, Chinese food and so on go well with rice. And there are various ways to eat rice, such as a rice ball, a bowl of rice topped with chicken and eggs cooked together, mochi and the like. So you can enjoy having rice in many different ways.

Finally, rice makes you smarter than bread. There are three reasons. First, rice contains a lot of lecithin, which improves memory and concentration. Second, rice is more firm than bread, so you have to chew it well. To chew well makes your brain active. Third, rice keeps you going longer than bread, so you can concentrate longer.


Article Link:
Here's an interesting article and video on CNN about the seniors in Japan who are willing to sacrifice themselves to work on the nuclear power plant. These people deserve our admiration and appreciation, so let's learn more about them.


Today we will begin a new essay called a "How to ..." essay. You can see sample essays by students from last year if you click on the link below.

How Not to Be Late, by F.S.
How to Be a Great Guitarist, by Yuta

If we have time today, we will blog and prepare for the "How to ..." Essay by writing a one-point advice on How to Make Someone Attracted to You. Please write your comment in the box below. You don't have to write your name, but you can if you want to.