My Literacy Autobiography
Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2018 1:56 pm
My Literacy Autobiography
(1） As I grew older, my definition of literacy changed from the ability to read or write to something that is written to express one’s feelings and opinions. Literacy has always been an important part of my life. Growing up in an Indian household, my sister and I were fully aware that we weren’t raised like most children because of the different cultural values our family had. Our family had cultural literacy because we knew how to understand and function in both the American and Indian culture. Though our family was different and was able to speak in a different language, we enjoyed many pastimes a lot of our friends enjoyed. We liked to ride our bikes, play sports, write in our journals, and read occasionally.
(2) My first exposure to writing – which I remember was in the second grade—was when I was introduced to writing journal prompts. We second grader were given journals to write in, and we were encouraged to write about anything that amused us. This was a way for us to communicate and express ourselves while improving our writing skills. The only requirement was that we attempt to write in full sentences. We also had reading workshop days when we would read books that had a number sticker. The higher the number on the sticker, the harder the book was to read. By the end of that school year, most of us were termed “great readers” by our teacher.
(3) Every year when summer rolled around and we didn’t have any vacation plans, my mom would enroll my sister and me in the Library Summer Reading Program at the Normal Public Library. The goal of the program was to get children to read in the summer. A lot of children would enroll in the program because there were prizes given after a certain amount of books were read. Through these types of positive reinforcements (by teachers and the library), the habit of reading stayed with me all throughout elementary school. I finished many series such as the Nancy Drew mystery books in nearly two months’ time.
(4) Although I read mostly for fun in elementary school, I read mostly for good grades in high school. Throughout high school, there were many opportunities for reading and writing. We wrote mostly essays for speeches, narrative essays, research papers and short stories. Freshman year of high school was difficult because of the many reading assignments we had. It was already known by freshman year that understanding the reading material was essential to getting good grades.
(5) Although I was said to be a “great reader” in second grade, it wasn’t until junior year of high school that I felt my literacy was on another level. That year I took AP Literature and was introduced to manycomplex books such as: The Scarlet Letter, Their Eyes Were Watching God, and The Grapes of Wrath. Our teacher, Mrs. Thetard, emphasized the idea of reading for a purpose. The reason why we read American classics in that class was to understand and make connections using many contexts. We used those aspects to focus on the themes and main argument being made by the author of that book. The juxtapositions and connections we started to make as a class were eye-opening, and they allowed us to become critical readers and thinkers.
(6) As a senior I joined Journalism class. At first, I found the class dull and tedious, but I started to find writing articles interesting. The class also enabled me to distinguish between material that was fact or fiction and to report accurate information. I conducted interviews, reviewed materials, and wrote primarily to gain the audience’s attention in articles that were published in the school newsletter and yearbook. Journalism class encouraged me to write what I found was a current issue and/or memorable for our senior year. This enabled me to write for a specific purpose and to learn new techniques for connecting with readers.
(7) In college I decided to focus on science, and I am currently majoring in Biology. Many people may think that reading and writing don’t apply as much in a science- or math-related major, but they’re wrong. Writing and reading are still a major part of my life because of the research papers, assigned reading for chapters, and studying I have to do. Reading and writing are still emphasized in many other classes that are required for all of us to take because of the class discussions, debates, and projects in those classes that focus on making us more literate in each specific subject.
(8) My definition of literacy has become more complex as I have gained more knowledge on how we should express ourselves through writing and reading. My literacy has mostly improved because of the encouragement of my parents and the teachers that I’ve had in the past. My parents and teachers have helped heighten my writing and reading abilities while providing me with skills that allow me to express myself using critical reading and thinking. Though I am literate, I still have to improve in many areas of literacy and have a lot more to learn. I hope to learn from my mistakes and become more literate in the future.
(1） As I grew older, my definition of literacy changed from the ability to read or write to something that is written to express one’s feelings and opinions. Literacy has always been an important part of my life. Growing up in an Indian household, my sister and I were fully aware that we weren’t raised like most children because of the different cultural values our family had. Our family had cultural literacy because we knew how to understand and function in both the American and Indian culture. Though our family was different and was able to speak in a different language, we enjoyed many pastimes a lot of our friends enjoyed. We liked to ride our bikes, play sports, write in our journals, and read occasionally.
(2) My first exposure to writing – which I remember was in the second grade—was when I was introduced to writing journal prompts. We second grader were given journals to write in, and we were encouraged to write about anything that amused us. This was a way for us to communicate and express ourselves while improving our writing skills. The only requirement was that we attempt to write in full sentences. We also had reading workshop days when we would read books that had a number sticker. The higher the number on the sticker, the harder the book was to read. By the end of that school year, most of us were termed “great readers” by our teacher.
(3) Every year when summer rolled around and we didn’t have any vacation plans, my mom would enroll my sister and me in the Library Summer Reading Program at the Normal Public Library. The goal of the program was to get children to read in the summer. A lot of children would enroll in the program because there were prizes given after a certain amount of books were read. Through these types of positive reinforcements (by teachers and the library), the habit of reading stayed with me all throughout elementary school. I finished many series such as the Nancy Drew mystery books in nearly two months’ time.
(4) Although I read mostly for fun in elementary school, I read mostly for good grades in high school. Throughout high school, there were many opportunities for reading and writing. We wrote mostly essays for speeches, narrative essays, research papers and short stories. Freshman year of high school was difficult because of the many reading assignments we had. It was already known by freshman year that understanding the reading material was essential to getting good grades.
(5) Although I was said to be a “great reader” in second grade, it wasn’t until junior year of high school that I felt my literacy was on another level. That year I took AP Literature and was introduced to manycomplex books such as: The Scarlet Letter, Their Eyes Were Watching God, and The Grapes of Wrath. Our teacher, Mrs. Thetard, emphasized the idea of reading for a purpose. The reason why we read American classics in that class was to understand and make connections using many contexts. We used those aspects to focus on the themes and main argument being made by the author of that book. The juxtapositions and connections we started to make as a class were eye-opening, and they allowed us to become critical readers and thinkers.
(6) As a senior I joined Journalism class. At first, I found the class dull and tedious, but I started to find writing articles interesting. The class also enabled me to distinguish between material that was fact or fiction and to report accurate information. I conducted interviews, reviewed materials, and wrote primarily to gain the audience’s attention in articles that were published in the school newsletter and yearbook. Journalism class encouraged me to write what I found was a current issue and/or memorable for our senior year. This enabled me to write for a specific purpose and to learn new techniques for connecting with readers.
(7) In college I decided to focus on science, and I am currently majoring in Biology. Many people may think that reading and writing don’t apply as much in a science- or math-related major, but they’re wrong. Writing and reading are still a major part of my life because of the research papers, assigned reading for chapters, and studying I have to do. Reading and writing are still emphasized in many other classes that are required for all of us to take because of the class discussions, debates, and projects in those classes that focus on making us more literate in each specific subject.
(8) My definition of literacy has become more complex as I have gained more knowledge on how we should express ourselves through writing and reading. My literacy has mostly improved because of the encouragement of my parents and the teachers that I’ve had in the past. My parents and teachers have helped heighten my writing and reading abilities while providing me with skills that allow me to express myself using critical reading and thinking. Though I am literate, I still have to improve in many areas of literacy and have a lot more to learn. I hope to learn from my mistakes and become more literate in the future.