I began my freshman college composition course thinking that I was equipped with the knowledge, skills, and ability to write an essay effectively documented and well organized. In high school, I learned to create a traditional five-paragraph paper with an introduction to a thesis, an explanation of that claim through three sections peppered with supporting citations, and a conclusion reaffirming the author's reasoned statement . It was the prescribed formula that I had learned and become accustomed to using for book reports, compare and contrast papers, and research essays and, thanks to my high grades and praise, I had never thought to question or deviate from his model. . When I took my first writing class in college, I thought it wouldn't be difficult or challenging because I thought I knew the procedures and rules of writing. The course, loosely titled English 1A, was a general requirement for all students. attending the University of California, Riverside. I believed that I was well prepared to write on the topics assigned by the instructor and so I expected the course to be unchallenging and uninteresting. However, the curriculum that the instructor, Professor Cardinale, provided to the class was very different from the English lesson plans I was used to. I started to panic when I heard about unfamiliar methods like freewriting and peer editing that were going to be used in class because I had never allowed or required others to students read my work. The most disconcerting aspect of the program, however, was that students had to choose their own topics to write about for the three required assignments. I had absolutely no idea how I was going to choose my own paper...... middle of paper ...... learning about our world, evaluating what we learn about our world, communicating what we learn on our world” (4). I still use this writing process today because I think it helps me navigate, gather, and organize my thoughts about the topic I'm writing about. I now use pre-writing methods such as free writing and recreating memories to help me discover and form a writing topic. Although I do not use all of the writing tactics employed by Professor Cardinale, I believe that my current writing has undoubtedly strengthened through the processes I learned and now habitually apply before each essay . Works Cited Murray, Donald M. “Teach Writing as a Process and not a Product.” Crosstalk in Comp Theory: A Reader. 3rd ed. Ed. Victor Villanueva and Kristin L. Arola. Urbana: National Council of Teachers of English, 2011.