Liz’s World

So, did you figure out a better way to write this?

The most important thing to me now that my children are all grown up is to have good relationships with my children, who are away in several places far from me. Read the rest of this entry »

Sometimes, when I write, I get so involved in trying to pick out a really good word or a really pretty way to say something… well, I either get stuck, or it turns out sounding too formal or just wrong. It’s hard to figure out.

One thing Mr. Williams taught me is that good writing sounds natural. It doesn’t sound formal or forced… so whenever I feel like I’m just getting caught up in a bunch of words, I sit back and ask myself… what do I really mean? What am I trying to say? Then I try to say it like I think it, as simply as possible.

Here’s an example of something I wrote when I got all caught up in the words…

The most important thing to me now that my children are all grown up is to have good relationships with my children, who are away in several places far from me.

It’s just too long, isn’t it? Or something. I have to think about what I really mean, and then rewrite it. How would you rewrite it? I’ll let you know what I did next week.

Here’s the timed GED essay I wrote, using this practice question:

What is one important goal you would like to achieve in the next few years?

In your essay, identify that one goal and explain how you plan to achieve it. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge to support your essay.

Now here’s my essay:

Much of my life has been about caring for other people. I cared for my husband and my children. Now, I am on my own. I need to care for myself and think about who I am. The GED is my first step toward my goal: finding something meaningful to do with my life.

This goal is not as clear-cut as goals like becoming a nurse or a pharmacist. However, defining what the goal means is part of the goal. The first step I will take is to try to understand what it most meaningful to me. Do I want to work toward a greater social good? Should I concentrate on bringing small pleasures to people?

Once I understand my priorities, I need to look for an activity that will work with my priorities. This may mean finding a new career, or it may mean finding volunteer work to fit into my life. Either way, the skills I’ve learned while studying for my GED will help me write a resume, apply for positions, and talk with people.

I look forward to using my growing skills in something that I find fulfilling. I am happy to have spent my life caring for my family, and I am equally happy to now have time to pursue new interests. Defining those interests is a journey that is just beginning.

Let me know what you think!

The thing about the GED test that I think was most scary was writing a timed essay. I like to have a lot of time to think about what I’m writing. So, for GED preparation, it really helps to time your writing.

I started out by using writing exercises, like the ones I’ve been talking about, and writing a little bit every day. Say, take 5 or 10 minutes and write the whole time. That helps you write faster, so you’re not stuck on a blank page, like what happens to me all the time.

Then, the next step is figuring out how to write an organized GED essay in just a little bit of time. Well, I guess it’s not too little. The GED test gives you 45 minutes to write an essay. You only need to write 4-5 paragraphs… so I guess it’s not too bad. But you don’t want to write just anything, so that makes it harder.

For the GED essay test, I tried to make a time plan. So, I thought, 10 minutes to read the question and brainstorm some ideas. 5 minutes to organize them. Then 20 minutes to write the essay. And 10 minutes to read it over and make any changes.

Maybe you need more time to brainstorm, or more time to write. But you’ll only know that by practicing. So, after you’ve been freewriting for a little bit, try a timed writing practice for the GED test. Here’s a GED practice question to get you started, from the people who put the GED test together:

What is one important goal you would like to achieve in the next few years?

In your essay, identify that one goal and explain how you plan to achieve it. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge to support your essay.

Give this test question a try, and see how it goes.