Write an expository essay naming what you are good at and explaining in detail how you do it. If someone wanted to try to do what you can do, what would they need to know and how would they do it?

By: Jackson

I am Good at Birding

       One thing I am good at is birding. I share this passion by talking about birds all the time. I read books like Birds of North America to learn about as many birds as I can. I like birding by the water close to shrubs or woods. Most birds can be seen in areas like that.
         I can tell what kind of bird it is by the sound, the looks, and the shape. If you hear a bird that sounds like this, “Cheat-cheat-cheat-cheater-cheater-cheater”, it is most likely a Song Sparrow. If you hear a sound that is a drill that slowly gets lower, it might be a Bald Eagle. If you hear a sound that sounds like someone mourning, or whaling, It is probably a Mourning Dove. If you see a bird with a red tail, hawk-like the body, and a brown back, it is most likely a Red-tailed Hawk. If you see a small yellow bird with a black cap, it is either a Goldfinch or a Wilson’s Warbler. I became good at bird watching by studying birds in the field and reading books about them. Would you agree that I am good at birding?

By: Natalia

Cartwheel

       I am good at cartwheeling because I practiced doing it a lot. Before doing a cartwheel you might want to stretch. How you actually do a cartwheel is you first take your stance in a star. Then you start tipping over while keeping your balance and one foot still on the ground. You will need to soon put one hand down then the next. You will need to let your foot go off the ground so then if you do it fast then you will kind of do a handstand for a split second. Then you put one foot down, then the other. Then you nailed it!
      It takes a long time to learn a cartwheel so just be patient and maybe get help from somebody that knows how to do it because you might learn faster with a little bit of help. When you do a cartwheel you don’t want to do it in a small space unless you're really good at it because even I don't even do it in small spaces, and I'm good at doing cartwheels! Good Luck!

By: Madelyn

Breaststroke

      Hi, today I am going to tell you what I am good at. I am good at breaststroke in swimming. Breaststroke is my favorite stroke! It is really fun to do. It reminds me of a frog swimming.
      Breaststroke is pretty easy to do. You just put your arms in front of you and pull back. Well, you are doing that, you put your knees together. Then you put your legs in front of you. Next, you put your feet together. Just keep repeating those leg and arm motions and you're doing it. You have to breathe every stroke. You lift your head up as you bring your arms to your sides to breathe. You go kinda slow but that is normal. Breaststroke is a fairly slow stroke.
     I can go pretty fast doing breaststroke. I also have a nice form when I am doing it. Breaststroke is my favorite stroke because you feel like a frog and just have fun. I learned breaststroke last year in the swim club. Ever since then I have loved it.

By: Hailey

Drawing

      I think I am really good at drawing. I really like drawing because it’s relaxing, independent, and really fun to draw different things. How you can get good at drawing is having someone teach you or just play around with all the stuff and make it your own. That’s how I learned. I could also probably teach someone too. There’s a lot of different blenders. There is also a lot of different pencils.
      There is B1 pencils and a lot of numbers until about B7. Then it goes to BH pencils. Finally there are H1 pencils to about H8 or something. I can’t remember. The B’s have a lot of graphite that comes off of it. It is really dark. They are easy to work with if you need to smear or blend because it spreads sooo good. The H’s are really light and not dark. I think they are for when you want to draw outlines and then do it over in black pen or something. Then erase the pencil line. Then you can erase it really easily and it doesn’t show as much. Even if you push hard on the H pencils, they still don’t look any darker because they don’t break down as much as the B pencils. A blender blends the B pencils for spreading your drawing to make it look better. There is a clay eraser that erases charcoal. It’s really cool! You can also use a blender to spread the charcoal more so it’s not chunky.
     I think I was born with the talent of drawing. I was good and then I just kept building on and drawing harder things. That’s how I learned. I was self-taught. I just look at a picture and then draw it. If you aren’t good at drawing that’s ok. If you want to become better here’s what you can do. You can start off by NOT pushing hard when you are drawing. If you do, it is a lot harder to erase. You can start practicing on the easy pictures. Once you get good at the easy ones, you can move on to harder pictures. Just keep practicing and you will get better. That is how I got so good. I think everyone should draw because it relaxes me so it might relax you or release stress. But if it frustrates you, then don’t do it. Drawing is the best!

By: Hannah

What I'm Good At (Sort of) 

       I like a lot of things (even though I’m not good at them). The thing I like to do the most is cooking (like I said I like a lot of things I’m not good at). My grandma taught me how to cook when I was 8 years old and I’ve been hooked since! The first thing she taught me how to cook was a pancake and ever since then, I have loved cooking! Cooking for me is like drawing because you create, but this time you eat what you create..sometimes.The thing I like to cook the most is pancakes! I don’t know if this is weird (I do but I don’t wanna admit it) but when I cook pancakes I have to make the perfect circle or else I will not eat it for some reason. I know I’m weird don’t rub it in. Now that I have told you what I’m good at will I will tell you how I do what I’m good at (sort of).
       The first thing I do is get my ingredients which are pancake batter, and milk…...look ok if you don’t like how I do it, do it yourself! Then after I get my ingredients I get what I also need which is a bowl, pan, spatulae, and a spoon. Once I have that I pour pancake batter into a bowl. Then after that, I pour the milk into the bowl as well. After that, I grab my spoon and stir the milk and the pancake batter until I get a lump-free sort of thick substance. Then I turn on the stove and wait till it gets hot enough. After the stove gets hot enough I put the pan on the stove and wait till the pan is hot enough. After the pan is hot enough I start pouring batches of pancake batter into the pan and make sure they’re in a perfect circle! The trick to cooking pancakes or my trick to cooking pancakes is waiting until I see bubbles in the middle of my pancake then that lets me know when it’s cooked on that side. Then I grab my spatulae and flip the pancake and do the same thing for the other side. That is what I’m good at, and how I do it!

By: Andrei

Viola

      One thing I think I’m good at is playing the viola. Here’s how you can start playing the viola/violin too!
      First, you have to think about the most important thing. Do you have time to practice, at least 30 minutes a day? If not, you won’t be able to progress very far in playing your instrument. Next, you have to rent/buy an instrument. Figure out what size fits you best.
      If you don’t have a teacher, you might not be able to go far. Having a teacher is very important for learning techniques, like posture, holding the bow, etc. You can learn from videos, e.g. Youtube, but if you do something wrong it might not be corrected and become a habit. If you have lessons with a teacher, they can correct your mistakes.
      Next, you need a music book. All of the students in Wrangell use the Suzuki books. Without music to play, there isn’t a reason to have an instrument! That goes for all instruments.
      The final point I want to make is that you need to practice every day. If you only practice, let’s say, once a week, you won’t be able to progress much, and you might have to relearn things you have already learned. So, practice every day.
     That’s how to get started on the viola or violin.
      P.S. There isn’t a way to be “good” from the start. The only method to progress is to practice, as mentioned.