Your letter to your teacher or the reviewer is an important piece of your portfolio. Just like your other pieces, it will be judged and evaluated. In many ways, it is the most important piece because it is the first glimpse the reader of your portfolio will have of your writing style. The old saying You never get a second chance to make a first impression really applies here. In this first piece your teacher will read, take the time to communicate your thoughts clearly and concisely.
While you should understand now what a letter of introduction to your portfolio is, you should also keep in mind what it is not. For example, it is not
| a description of how to write or a description of the writing process |
| an opportunity to criticize assignments |
| a thank-you note to your teacher |
| a table of contents listing everything you wrote |
| a persuasive essay designed to convince your teacher how great you are |
| an answer to every question from previous pages in this lesson |
You've probably never seen or read a letter to a reviewer before, so it's hard to know what is expected of you. Examining a sample letter will help. Read the reviewer letter that Carter wrote to his teacher about his portfolio. Then click the Next button and answer some questions that will help you use it as a model for your own.
May 14, 2020
Dear Portfolio Reviewer,
I would like to begin by telling you that I am the greatest writer you've ever seen, but that wouldn't be exactly true. Instead, I am a regular 8th grader who has worked hard this year and just wants to show you how much I have learned. In my portfolio, you will see two pieces that show my sense of humor. When my classmates read my flash fiction piece and one-act script, I could hear them laughing out loud. Even when I didn't get to write funny things, I still put some of my personality in my more serious essays I also included. I know after reading these that you will see I have grown a lot.
My best work sample is my flash fiction piece called "Experimenting with Snakes." In it, I described how a boy designed an experiment for his science fair using snakes. As you can guess, things got really out of hand when he brought the snakes to school! I was really careful to talk about how the boy was thinking as he designed his experiment. This made the problems much worse in the story because the reader could guess where the boy made a mistake. I learned a lot by writing this story: I learned how to build suspense, I learned how to develop a character, and I learned how to organize a short story. Read it for yourself—I bet you have a good laugh.
Before I started this class, I didn't really understand the whole writing process. I would usually just grab a piece of paper and write the whole assignment at one time and turn it in. This year, I changed my habits. I started to understand the importance of brainstorming. I know that I need to do better in this area, though. Informational writing is hard for me because I don't really like those kinds of topics. It takes me a really long time to choose a topic and then the research bores me. Sometimes, my writing is kind of boring because of this. I have included my literary analysis essay to show you where I know I can improve. This piece was closer to the beginning of the year, so I can see a lot of changes I would make if I had to start all over again. First, I would do a better job of "hooking" my reader with the introduction. Secondly, I would give better examples using my own point of view. I kind of just said what I thought the teacher wanted to hear. So, my voice isn't in this piece very much. However, when you compare it to my second essay, "Why Suffrage Matters to Me!," you'll see I did a better job.
Even though I am getting better, I know I will never stop learning. I want to become an even better student in writing. I want to work harder to improve adding my own voice and personality in my writing. I am a really funny guy, but I sometimes joke around in my writing when it should be more serious. I know that choosing better topics I am interested in is really important, so I am going to focus on that. Spending more time on brainstorming will help me. That has been a weak area for me. I am getting better, but I can still improve.
I learned a lot by doing this portfolio. It had already helped me even before I finished it. This year has been really challenging for me. When I started this whole process, I can honestly say I didn't like writing very much. Most of the writing I did before was only stuff my teacher made me write. This year, though, I had a lot more choice in my assignments and I found out I can really express myself and entertain people with my stories.
Sincerely,
Carter Crawford
1. How does Carter show he reflected on his learning and work in writing?
2. Why does Carter consider "Experimenting with Snakes" to be his best writing piece?
3. What does Carter consider to be his areas of weakness?
4. What goals has Carter set for himself?
5. What has Carter learned over the course of this year?
| Your Responses | Sample Answers |
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Carter explains what readers will see in his portfolio and explains how they connect to his learning. |
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Carter explains that he learned a lot while writing it, including how to build suspense and develop characters in a story. He also explains how he used his voice and personality. |
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Carter knows that he needs to do a better job with brainstorming and researching his more serious writing. He also points out the weaknesses in his introductions and voice in writing some pieces. |
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He is going to work harder to add his voice in all his writing pieces. And, he is going to do a better job choosing topics that interest him. |
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Working on the portfolio taught him the steps in the writing process, and he discovered he can entertain people with his stories. |
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You Try It
This is your last chance to make a good first impression. Take the rough draft of your letter and put it through the editing and proofreading steps. Then write a final copy that can show your best writing skills.
