Spring District Writing Assessment

Author's Note: In this piece I have strived to add voice and make connection. When I wrote this piece I was thinking about an annual camping trip that my family and I take every June. I thought that this would be a great topic that I could connect to easily. I wanted to show case what I can do in the voice.

"Gosh, you have so much luggage," my dad stated. "We are women and we are going away for a week." my mother replied. As my sister and I make, what seems like, one hundred trips up and down stairs. After about one hour of loading the car and double checking that we have everything, my mother says, "I think that we can all get in now." After we are all buckled up and ready to go, we start on the road. I cannot wait to experience our annual family adventure.  

We arrive to a nature park right outside of Baraboo. None of the children really know where we are at first; all we know is that it is beautiful.  We are finally stopping to make ourselves lunch in a pavilion in the outskirts of the park. It is colder now then when we left. Goosebumps attack our bodies like infants would attack sweets. We sit down; all 9 of us take up all of the tables at the pavilion. My whole family is together. My sisters, mother, father and then our closes family friends are with us as well.  For the sake of a conversation I ask, "So, where are we exactly?" My dad replies, "We are at Devil's Lake State Park," as if I should have already known that. I think to myself 'I wonder why this beautiful park would have that kind of name?'

 After I finish lunch my dad goes out to the water to search for some good fishing spots. Our mom's stay and inform us that we will be the ones to clean up lunch. After we complete our chore, our mom's come back and help take everything back to the car. Once all of the food is packed into the car, we decide that we should take a walk along the beach, which is about a half of a block away from the car. As we are making our way out to the beach, we spot a café with a little gift shop inside. Our mom's tell us to stay right outside and that they would be out in a minute. After about ten minutes they come out with Girl Scout patches for my little sister's Girl Scout vests'. We are all full of energy and are getting antsy.

My sister's and I all turn our heads and look at each other with the same eager thoughts in our minds. At the same time we break out into speeds that we thought were unimaginable. We run straight down the shore line and stop before the water can touch our toes. Our mothers are so far away. We all plop down on the sand and wait for them to catch up. The littlest of us is only 3 years old and just wants to keep running but my energy is out. I stare at my mom with eager eyes, without having to say a word they know that my desire to go into the water is growing as my body is getting warmer and warmer from the running.

As mother finally arrives I jump up and ask eagerly if my sister's and I can go in. She tells me to roll up my pant legs and then gave me permission to go in.  As our toes touch the water the temperature sends chills up our spines. We are now cooled off and ready to go when from a distance we hear our dads calling. They have found this trail that leads into the woods. They say the scenery is breathing taking. We dry our feet of the best we can with napkins and slip on our flip flops and run over to see what they are talking about. As we enter the trees provide a canopy over us. We stand at the entry way eager to start the adventure.