When I was in first grade every morning we started the day off with a writing assignment called "The News." My teacher, Mrs. A. would write different topics on the board that we then commented on. She always encouraged us to go beyond her topics and write more. We were told to write what was on our mind, what was going on in our lives, and any news we had that we wanted to share. This was one of my favorite assignments and I always seemed to have a lot to write. I used to write seven or eight pages every morning, which was quite a bit more compared to most students two or three pages.

In order to encourage us even more Mrs. A. gave each student a nickname. I was "Writing Rachel" because I used to write and write and write. I remember my friend Dana was "Descriptive Dana" because she used to describe every little thing she did in her writing. There was an "Artistic Andrew" and "Neat Nancy" which reflected their drawings and handwriting. All of my classmates would get so excited when Mrs. A. would call us by our nickname and I really think it encouraged us all to work that much harder. By giving us nicknames Mrs. A. was connecting with us on a more personal level. Therefore, we all wanted her to be proud of us making us all work that much harder.

By: Rachel Workman, American University