RELECTION ESSAY TEMPLATE (400-500 WORDS)

I. Introduction
1. State what you are analyzing: (a passage, a lecture, an academic article,
etc...)
E.g.: “After reading (your given topic - academic article title), I gained
the knowledge of + general understanding of the topic…”)
2. Briefly summarize the work/ article (in one sentence)
3. Write a thesis statement stating how your subject has affected you.

II. Body
1. Main ideas of the article: = Summary of the article (in paragraph format)
select main ideas
paraphrase the selected main ideas (change words and sentence
structure/ combine sentences using linking words)
link the paraphrased main ideas into paragraph (s)

Note: Use author tag (the author (name/ he/she) mentions that/ states that/
confirms/ argue) -> at least 2 times

2. Reflection on the article: 

Suggested questions:
 How did the article affect you?
 How does this article catch the reader’s attention (or does it
all)?
 Has the article changed your mind about something? If so,
explain how.
 Has the article left you with any questions? = critical questions
(WH?) / Were there any unaddressed critical issues that didn’t
appear in the article?

3. Reference to your own experience:

Suggested questions:
 Does the article relate to anything from your past reading experiences?
 Does the article agree with any of your past reading/ personal
experiences?
III. Conclusion
- Tie all the ideas from your body paragraphs together
- Describe the feeling and overall lesson you had as a result of the
reading
*Note: Write in first - person singular - “I”
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 Article: Sibling Rivalry: Opportunity for Learning - by April Terreri

Sibling rivalry can often mean headaches for parents. But the good news is
that sibling rivalry offers a great learning lab for young children to develop
the skills to get along better with other people they will meet throughout
their lives. "Whenever you have a family with more than one child, there will
always be some conflict, which is absolutely natural," explains Dayna Jornsay-
Hester, community education coordinator at UPMC Children's Hospital of
Pittsburgh. "Sibling rivalry is the commonly used phrase for sibling conflict."
The manifestations of sibling rivalry vary from family to family and child to
child, explains Jornsay-Hester. Manifestations also depend on the ages of the
children, their temperaments, and their personal situations. "Kids, like
everyone else, demonstrate conflict when they are sharing space with others.
Kids are also vying for the attention of their parents and for autonomy."
The good news is these natural and inevitable conflicts provide opportunities
for children to learn strategies to resolve conflicts. "They learn how to get
along with others, how to share and take turns, and how not to be the center
of the universe all the time," says Jornsay-Hester. "What is important to
remember is how we as parents respond to sibling rivalry."
Parents should not get into the habit of interacting with their kids in a
negative capacity of becoming judge and jury, she cautions. "What kids are
often fighting about is an attempt to get their parents' attention. The focus
should not be on who started the conflict or who is right or wrong. The focus
should be on helping your children come to an agreeable resolution."
You can achieve this by separating the kids and allowing them some time to
calm down and cool off. "This is a good parental response," says Jornsay-
Hester. "These inevitable outbreaks can be used as ways to teach our kids
healthy and appropriate ways to resolve their differences. Nobody learns
anything in the heat of passion. So it's a matter of helping them cool down
and then figure out what went wrong to cause the problem. In many cases
you will find that after they have calmed down, they have already forgotten
what the conflict was all about."
Parents should not want to eliminate sibling rivalry. This is an unrealistic
expectation that overlooks the opportunities for developing skills to resolve
conflicts. Parents must set the ground rules for acceptable behavior during
disagreements – such as no hitting, yelling, name-calling, or cursing – and
enforce consequences if the rules are broken. But what happens when things
get out of control? "If siblings are fighting so severely to the point that it is
causing emotional and psychological damage to any member of the family –
or if it is causing marital problems – you might want to seek a family
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counselor."
Families should realize that many of the problems caused by sibling rivalry
are common issues. But if you are unable to manage them in a way that is
healthy for all members of the family, there are people who can help. "The
thing I tell parents to remember is as soon as you have a second child, you
immediately have sibling rivalry," Jornsay-Hester says. "The older children
realize they have to share the love, attention, and time of their parents."
Among some of the best ways to keep sibling rivalry in check is to do things
as a family. "Play games and have fun together. Sometimes kids will begin
fighting with each other just out of boredom or because they want their
parents to interact with them. Try doing things with each child individually
while your other child is at a play date."
By using these conflicts as opportunities to help our children learn, we are
acting as coach and mediator to help them develop the skills to resolve
conflicts that will last them throughout their lives. "Research shows that in
families where kids were taught to peacefully resolve their differences, they
ended up having closer lifelong relationships with their siblings," Jornsay-
Hester says.
For more information, you can reach Dayna Jornsay-Hester at UPMC
Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh at (412) 692-5325.

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REFLECTION SAMPLE
1.(introduce the topic) In the family, the emotional bond is always a special
thing of the sibling, however, it is hard for them to become a close friend at all
times, conflicts are inevitable which is called sibling rivalry. 2. According to April
Terreri, there are still positive signs of sibling conflicts, which are lessons, she
had explained/ analyze in her article “Sibling Rivalry: Opportunity for Learning”
(main idea of the article). 3. This essay will summarize the article in addition to
that I will also show my reflection about the points of agree, disagree and the
lessons I learned from the point of view of April Terreri.(thesis statement)

In her article, Terreri states that in families with more than one child, "Sibling
rivalry" is a common and frequent occurrence. The manifestations of rivalry
between brothers and sisters often differ depending on their circumstances
and the characteristics of their personalities. But experts have found that the
positive from sibling rivalry is the opportunity for children to learn and develop
problem-solving skills, harmony, and sharing with those around them.
The important thing is that parents do not eliminate conflict between siblings
in the same family or judge accurately about the right and wrong of the
children. They should give the children empty space to calm down and help
them find solutions.
The author continues her article by mention that, the cause of sibling rivalry
events is often the children want to draw attention to their parents, for
example, the first child realizes he has to share his love and time with the
parent to his younger sister. So, parents need to try to create intimate family
spaces like all their children participating in play activities.
Terreri confirms in her concluding words that because affection between
siblings is so important, and the conflict between children usually doesn't last
too long, parents should also send their children to see a psychiatrist if the
consequences of the fight are out of control.

Regarding to my reflection, on the one hand, I agree with the point of reading,
the rivalries between siblings really often happen so children and parents
should take advantage of the opportunity for children to develop skills . Children
need to start solving problems by releasing their personal emotions, bringing
themselves into equilibrium. They also need to learn to speak up, discuss the
causes of arguments, and be willing to admit mistakes if they are wrong.
Coupled with children, the parent will become the trainers and the coach to
guide them on how to see the issues, tackle with positive thinking, and having
calmly status when facing similar rivalry.
On the other hand, I don't think kids want to get parents 'attention through
Sibling Rivalry, they can be a sense of unfairness of their parents’ treatment.
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The parents have to be careful with what they do because the children are
always so sensitive. For example, he sees their mother whisper to their sister
about his previous party and sees their father and younger brother go out to
play football without him or similar actions of their parents. Their souls are
vulnerable due to the lack of parental delicacy. Parents may feel much love for
a child in the family, but smart parents are the ones who don't show it out and
give their kids a sense of security and fairness in sharing family task as well as
love for their siblings.
I have an experience of sibling conflicts that also took place in my family. In
traditional Vietnamese families, it is the responsibility of the older brother to
guide his younger sister in learning. Because of the difference in awareness, as
well as the ability to teach, I quarreled with my brother, tense rather than
indifferent, and kicked him out of the room. My parents were very surprised
and decided to separate us by sending me to my grandparents' house. After a
week of not being with my brother, I missed him so much, thanks to my
grandmother's encouragement and support, I apologized to my brother and we
got close. Adults play a huge role in the learning and skill development of
children, they need to take a positive view of controversial issues and I propose
an opinion to minimize the consequences of rivalry sibling that parents,
grandparents, and adults become a positive advisor. They can teach children to
love, tolerate and even apologize as soon as necessary.
A lesson, as well as a piece of useful luggage for me on the journey to
becoming a parent, is to always be my child's companion. It is not about solving
the problems for them but sitting down and calmly acknowledging and solving
the problem together.
In this text, the author demonstrates the positive meanings of sibling rivalry
and shows how parents can minimize the problem’s negative consequences. In
addition to expressing positive and dissenting points of view, and suggesting a
suggestion for parents to solve problems, I realize the lesson of calmness is
very important. Solving a problem while in a bad temper can easily lead to bad
results. No matter how stressful an argument maybe, we need to stay calm and
seek advice from an older person.

TOTAL WORD COUNT: 831

REFERENCES:
http://www.guidetogoodhealth.com/Articles/ChildrensHealth/SiblingRivalry.as
p

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