My first few essays were okay, which meant I was finally learning the concept of five-paragraph essays. Ms. Mercado, my expository writing teacher, suggested that I write down my ideas for my essay first, then revise my ideas in organized sections of the essay, and then correct any grammatical errors. I've learned that proofreading my content after writing it will help me find spelling and grammar mistakes. My expository writing teacher also gave us novels that interested me, such as “The Glass Castle” and “A Thousand Splendid Suns.” After reading, our class held literacy circles where everyone expressed their opinions about the book and their theories about the author's purpose. Through literacy circles, I learned to consider the author's purpose from different points of view and to have different opinions rather than fixating only on