I began the definitions assignment by selecting a term in my field (Physics) commonly referenced in everyday life. The concept of weight came to mind, because it is often confused with mass. Defining a scientific concept to the layperson was interesting. I found that, when defining weight, I relied on other physics concepts that would most likely not be known to the layperson. Thankfully, I was able to rely on parenthetical and sentence definitions within my expanded definition to clarify secondary concepts.

The peer review assignment was, in my opinion, the most useful task thus far. As I helped my classmate with her document, I felt I was learning how to improve my own writing. I saw many writing and formatting techniques that I could adopt. Alternatively, finding errors in my peer’s document made me reflect back on my work, had I committed the same mistake? I also found that reading my peers’ work gave some insight into how they structured their ideas. Perhaps, regular peer reviewing of teammates’ work could help improve communication?

As for my self-editing strategies, I have not changed my process. I still think the best way to self-edit my work is to read it out loud. I find this technique is helpful to avoid awkward-sounding and/or long sentences.