100 Reflective Essay Topic Ideas

6 Tips for Writing Reflective Essays

You can choose from the following topics.
Describe the experience to make it more relatable for others.
– This will be your thesis.
– Use the questions to help you write the body to your paper.
– Use an analogy or summarize what you have learned.
For examples of essays and step by step instructions, check out my article, “How to write a reflective essay”.

Connection
It is in relationships that we feel our strongest emotions. This makes it easy to write about and explain. Reflective writing can be a great way to understand and even resolve our emotions.

– An angry conversation.
– The time you were afraid.
– The time you felt alone.
– A memory of misunderstood times.
– When you are disappointed or discouraged by someone’s words.
– A decision made by you that was opposed to by another.
– A person who is proud to be around you.
– When you know you are in love.
– When your family members were first introduced to you.
– Adoption or birth of a sibling or child.
– Witnessing a loved one get dementia and lose their memory.
– Telling someone you are sorry.
– An embarrassing moment.
– When someone confronted you with a lie or you tried to hide it.
– When you want something that belongs to someone else.
– An argument with a boss, teacher, or other authority figure.
– If your parents have unfairly punished you.
– When you were able to cry and someone comforted or you helped someone else.
– When you were a kid, playing with your friends.
– The moment you felt the closest to a sibling or brother.
– When someone helped you or another person.
– Family reunions or meeting relatives that you don’t know.
– A trip that you share with someone special.
– The moment you had a great time laughing with someone.
– If you didn’t know your grandparent (or coach) well.
– When you are asked to speak or read aloud.
– You spend time with friends without the supervision of your parents.
– When you told someone something you didn’t know.
– When you were made to feel scared by someone.

Nature Topics
Moments in nature often inspire us to see life as more profound and meaningful. It could be a tangible memory or a fictitious experience.

– Sitting on the beach with your feet in the sand.
– A sunset view.
– Looking out over a valley from the top hill.
– A bird in flight.
– Smelling flowers.
– Picking berries.
– Walking through the forest.
– Climbing up mountains
Playing on the beach sand.
Swimming in a Lake
– Looking out across the water as you cross a bridge.
– Going downhill on a hill while the wind blows in your face.
– Running outdoors.
– Hiking on a trail
– Mud play.
– Walking in rain.
Walking through sand dune.
Hiking in the desert.
– Mountain Backpacking
Going up a rock face with ropes and harnesses.
– Hunting.
Walking through a historical battlefield
– You can sit or walk through wildflower fields.
– Watching birds make a nest.
– Seeking out a spider, snake, and other insects.
– Meeting a wild animal or deer.
– A zookeeper watching the animals.
– Playing games with your pet, whether it’s a cat, dog, or another animal.
– Watching for a hurricane, storm or tornado.
– Witnessing an earthquake and other natural disasters.

Significant Places
Sometimes, a place can evoke strong memories and emotions. These places can be great topics.

– Your bedroom growing up, or your room now.
– The place where you were born.
– The school or lunch spot you went to with your friends.
– Your favorite store or the mall.
– Where you worked or are currently working.
– Your grandparents’ or a neighbor’s house.
– A coffee shop or bookstore.
– Your car, your bus, train, subway or ferry. Or maybe your bike or skateboard.
– An amusement park.
– A ballpark, playground or other place where you have played sports.
– A skating or ice skating rink.
– The restaurant you ate at the most, or one that was memorable.
– A place you’ll always remember.
– Your place of work or your home where you do your work at home.
– All your online spaces, including social media websites, web pages, and blogs.

Important Events
Both regular and exceptional events make great topics for reflection papers.
It can sometimes be helpful to look back on something that is recurring (like a birthday), to consider its meaning in your life. But, there are also once-in a lifetime events that can make for good essays.

– Holidays such as Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving and Valentine’s Day.
Visiting museums or zoos.
– Daily activities like washing the dishes, getting dressed, and walking the dog.
– A birthday party to celebrate you or your loved one.
– Remodeling your apartment, house or street.
– When the electricity and water didn’t work.
– A severe snowstorm, flooding, or other adverse weather event.
– An opportunity to spend time with your neighbors or host a party in the neighborhood
– A concert, award ceremony, or play.
– To offer food or support a person who has lost a parent or is sick.
– Going on a worship service or to church.
– Going to a vacation or on a holiday.
– Moving to another city.
– Finding a job or transferring to a school.
– Get your first car, first paycheck, and your first job.
– Marrying or getting engaged.
– The time you felt lost.
– A thing you are proud to have done.
– A sport event that you were a part of or watched.
– A special date.
– A surprise gift you made to someone or something that was given to you by others.
– A gift you didn’t expect.
– You eat something you don’t like.
– Going to the dentist, hospital, or being sick.
– Your most memorable nightmare or dream.
– If your computer crashes or you lose something that you value.
– The time you were robbed of or were victims in some other way.
– When you stood up for someone else’s rights.
– When your school or workplace was closed for the day or you play “hooky” without being able to complete your regular responsibilities.
– When you were running for office or voting your first time.
– The time when a song brought out your emotions. It helped you feel.
– Your dream and what you did.

Questions to help you develop your reflection essay
The following questions will help you develop reflective elements in your essay. The thesis is the answer. Follow-up questions can be used to provide details for your paragraph.

– Which emotions did you feel? Why?
– What was it that I noticed? What did I notice that I didn’t see before?
– What does this experience mean? How can I find out?
– Did I notice something surprising? This is what happened?
– What was my lesson? What are the changes that I should make?
– Which past experiences are similar? What is the difference between this experience and previous ones?
– How can this help me to think about the future?
– What have I done to make this better? How? What is the good and bad of this?
– What made this such a pivotal moment in my life?
– What could you do differently?
– Does this analogy refer to another? What similes or metaphors do you have?
– What can I do to make this an advantage for someone else?
What actually happened? Is this different to what I thought was happening at that time?
How do I put what I have learned into my career or life?
– What skills have I learned through this experience?
– What are the questions I was prompted to ask by this?
– How was it possible to challenge my thinking about social class, race and gender?
– How have these changes influenced my way of thinking?

How is reflective writing used?
Reflections essays may be about real life experiences or fictional ones. These essays help you learn from and use experiences in your daily life. Here are a few examples:

English class might ask you to write a reflection essay. It will be about a novel or poem.
– History classes may ask you to reflect on the meaning and significance of historical events.
– Nursing and medical students can write about their experiences treating patients in order to gain more empathy for the needs of those they care for.
You may be asked to write a reflective essay in a religion or psychology class. This will help you understand yourself better and improve your belief system.
If you keep a journal and record the events, it can also be used as a way to reflect on them.