Journal writing experience!...what an experience

Getting started with Journal writing was like trying to start an old 
rusty banger on a frosty December morning... After reading the 
reflective practices reader a few times and getting to grips with the 
fact that journal writing is more about our learning rather than a 
piece of work for assesment (de-icing the windows), I wrote a few inserts rather freely. The 
most honest entry in my journal to-date came out of feeling quite 
frustrated with the fact that I'm not a natural writer, I'd much 
rather record my thoughts and feelings in a visual, audio or 
kinasthetic way. I guess it highlights to me what kind of a learner I 
am!
 
Account of a particular day/event!

I chose to journal about a particular event as it required a lot of
planning which I was able to record and reflect upon. I chose to
journal about the few hours when I filmed a section of my new showreel.
I wrote about my thoughts and feelings the day before which helped me
to plan and prepare well. Part of this was making lists of the things
I would need, writing scripts, interview questions and preparing
resources.
At the end of the day i went back to the tools for reflection we were
given in the reader and began to write about this particular event. I
found it really beneficial to look back on the unexpected events, this
isn't something I'd usually do... If something goes wrong or something
unplanned happens I tend to deal with it on the spot and move on!
However having the opportunity to reflect made me think about how I
can plan for the unplanned.
One unexpected event occured because I had forgotten to ask the relevant person to
bring radio mics and ended up filming everything with the boom (so i'm
hoping the sound quality is of a good enough standard to use).
Working with two children, highlighted the unpredictablitiy of working
with people. At one point i thought one of the twins I was working
with was going to be too shy to take part in the planned activities.
This would've meant a major last minute change as the whole concept revolved
around a study of how alike identical twins are! This is something I
definitely wasn't prepared for, but would've improvised if neccessary!
Fortunately it didn't come to that.
I wrote about the event from this little 9yr old girl's point of view and
enjoyed putting myself in her shoes.
Here is a short extract.
'Eventually a man i'd never met before arrived at school, his name
was Christian, i began to feel a bit shy. Then another strange lady
came, her name was Viv- i think. She had a camera, it was huge! I
hadn't expected it to be so big and i became more and more
nervous' (Adeyinka-Burford.J- Journal.. Another point of view, 2010)I guess it's invaluable to consider others feelings in potentially
high pressured situations.
Writing a detailed account of a particular day is definitely something I'd do again as it's not until 2 weeks after
the event and my initial reflection that I have re read my journal and
been able to comment. There are without a doubt elements that i would
have otherwise forgotten or not turned into a 'learning experience'
had I not recorded the event in such a detailed manor. I leanrt a lot about

myself from this experience and have reaped the benefits of a deeper reflection 

on my actions and everyday events.