This I Believe Personal Essays

Sample Statements for “Corners” Activity

#1
Your friends are the most important influence on your philosophy of life.
-OR-
Your family is the most important influence on your philosophy of life.

#2
Random events that happen to us shape our destiny.
-OR-
Our destiny is the sum of every decision we make, large and small.

#3
We make our own attitude by the point of view in which we choose to frame our
experience.
-OR-
Our attitude is the sum of chemical reactions in the brain and body and genetics.

2. Journal Pre-writing Prompts: The students will take the information they gathered from the prior exercise and write it down in their journals to refine their own opinion.

3. Going to Computer Lab: Students will visit a computer lab to read “This I Believe” essays from NPR’s website (www.npr.org/thisibelieve) to give them an idea about the format in which their essays should be written.