before and after

Before this class it had been 8 years since I was in a classroom so I had forgotten a lot of proper writing rules. My main weaknesses before this class were proper citations and alternatives to beginning sentences. I may have started every sentence prior to this class with The, She, He. . . etc. . . Now I recognize that each sentence needs a new introduction in order to not sound redundant or monotonous. I have also become stronger in the area of punctuation. . . constantly reminding myself of the rules and using them over and over has helped greatly.