Goal Setting and Reflection Template

Unit: Name it here (College and Career Readiness, for example)

Goal Setting: Please list three goals you would like to work towards for this unit.

Take a look at the rubric(s) provided for this unit. What are three areas you’d like to grow in for these
assignments? Try to make your goals as SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and
time-based as you can).

Example: I want to improve my participation grade for this 4 week unit by at least 5%.
I want to use at least 4 complex-compound sentences with strong images in my personal statement (to
score a 3 in the structure standard).
I want to make sure I am integrating my quoted evidence into my writing at least three times in an essay.

1. I want to make sure I include at least two sentences of quality analysis for each piece of
evidence

2. I want to have at least 4 quality paragraphs that properly articulate my thoughts on the novel in
relation to the prompt

3. I want to make sure I use direct evidence from the novel to back up my theories for the prompt.

Planning: What steps will you take to reach these goals? What do you need to progress?

1. Articulate my thoughts properly in my head and review my work before moving on to make sure
it’s up to my standards.

2. Plan for at least two paragraphs including direct evidence + analysis, along with the into +
conclusion paragraph

3. Use my notes and annotations from the end of each chapter to properly back up my thoughts.

Reflection: At the close of the unit, write a narrative that reflects on your progress.

Here are some questions to help you reflect. You don’t have to do all of them but pick at least 4.
1. What was easiest for me to accomplish this unit?
2. What was most challenging for me in this unit? Where did I get stuck?
3. Were the strategies and skills I used effective for this assignment? Elaborate.
4. How did my mindset affect how I approached my work?
5. What have I learned about my strengths and my areas in need of improvement?
6. How am I progressing as a learner? How can I tell?
7. What can/should I do next?
8. How can I best use my strengths to learn?
9. What steps should I take or resources should I use to meet future challenges?
10. What do I need to keep growing in my goals? How can my teacher help?

The most challenging part for me in this unit was trying to articulate and describe the tones and social
commentary messages throughout the novel. I was able to understand the messages Hosseini was
trying to convey and project through the characters and events of the novel, but I had difficulty trying to
connect those messages to a “bigger picture.”
I have learned that I need to elaborate more on my thoughts and analyses when it comes to
 Goal Setting and Reflection Template
Unit: Name it here (College and Career Readiness, for example)

dissecting textual evidence to prove a point. In my in-class essay, I was able to provide some analysis
for all of my textual evidence, but I need to work on further dissecting it and the meanings behind each
of those interactions in the book, rather than just trying to work on connecting it back to my main point
as quickly as possible.
When approached with a future challenge, I will be sure to ask for help if needed (which I don’t
usually do) in order to fully understand the requirements and what is needed/looked for in my
responses. I often try to figure things out myself and am reluctant to ask for help, which often just leads
to more confusion. I will make sure to ask my teacher and my peers for any help or guidance when I
get stuck.
In order to keep growing to meet these goals, I will need to practice analyzing literature pieces and
focusing on understanding the deeper, hidden messages rather than taking the story in at surface level.