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Areli Jaimes English 1101 Mrs.

Muesing September 11, 2013 Literary Narrative Essay

My influences in my literacy journey have come from many different areas. Some areas were much more enjoyable and quite entertaining. While others, were more a bore and seemed like a chore that needed to be done when I could be doing something much more enjoyable. Needless, to say I have enjoyed the many different experiences and influences that have shaped my reading and writing abilities. I could not have been more than 2 years old at the time. In my home town where my family lived my dad worked out of a home office and often was visited by many different clients. So, with my mother off at work tending to other matters, I would enjoy the time to watch some cartoons. My favorites being, Looney Tunes, Batman, and Superman to name a few. This I believe is where my journey began in learning to read and write. I would often ask my dad what a word meant he would explain and even write the word so I could see it. I was fascinated I believe more than other kids with the English language due to the fact that in my household only my father could speak it. I always admired my father so I wanted to learn how to speak and write it. Whether it was from following my dad on errands or watching cartoons I took every opportunity to learn a new word or phrase and later ask my dad about it. The next phase would have to be when I entered grade school. By then I was fluent in English but could not write it. As soon as my teachers begin teaching the ABCs I was one of

the first to learn them. Then came the AR readings we had to do in what was probably second grade. During this time I discovered that reading books was very enjoyable and a great way to past the time. Some of the readings were not enjoyable just simply because they were mandatory for the AR tests. However, I remember that my favorite series back then were the Boxcar Children books, I read those books all the way up to middle school. In middle school is where I consider my first serious exposure to writing. My eighth grade English teacher was a fanatic of writing but especially had a love for poetry. The odd thing I noticed was that he was a retired Marine and me having the stereotyped thought that was not very manly or marine of him. To my surprise he showed me that words are so much more powerful than an army as the saying goes, the pen is mightier than the sword. He introduced me to different speeches such as Abraham Lincolns Proclamation Emancipation or Martin Luther King Jr. famous Speech I have a Dream. Here is where I began to realize that writing was not so bad and could have an upside to it. Another, teacher during middle school that influenced me greatly was my seventh grade language arts teacher. She was always drilling grammar fundamentals into us during class and anywhere she saw us. She had the habit of never answering a question if said question ended in a preposition. Her reply would be, behind the preposition at, to a question that is common among students, wheres it at? She made grammar interested and created an interest in me to both write and speak English correctly at all times. My next great influence was during my sophomore year in high school. Where I graduated from, Asheboro High School, we have a separate campus at the North Carolina Zoo called the Zoo School where select students can attend and take all their classes in a project based atmosphere. There at the zoo school my English teacher for the next three years would

challenge me like never before. My English teacher, Ms. D, as we called her was a character. Enjoyed laughing, joking, and having fun with us, she was basically another student. However, when it came to teaching it was a whole other story. She was very unorthodox in her teachings, she was the only teacher to ever give me a C in a class. To imagine getting a C in a sophomore English class, it was unheard of. Well, Ms. D taught me to think critically when reading to analyze the reading from all viewpoints. To try and see why the author wrote what they wrote, why he or she, spoke, talked, and thought the way they did. Then, she also challenged me to analyze readings and writings from a cultural aspect. To see it from a Hispanics eyes, and tell her how it would be interpreted among Hispanic people. At the end of her class, I had the habit of carrying a thesaurus and dictionary in my book bag and a small notepad to write down words or phrases I liked that I could later use in my writings. Her influence on my literacy is still evident in my writings, which have improved after her classes. Also, at the zoo school I met my favorite teacher up until then, Ms. Soja, my science teacher. She was the typical dork when it came to science, passionate and eager to teach about it. Although, my favorite teacher, she was also the hardest teacher I had ever had in my educational experience. She taught through lectures but kept them fun like a good professor here at UNCC. She expected us to do our own studying outside of class because she did not believe in assigning homework. She made me into a better overall student and taught me how studying should really be done. She also, taught me how a professional science report was to be written. Up until that point I had never seen nor heard of a lab report in science. Any report I had ever done until then, was very basic and completed within thirty minutes. To my surprise the first ever report I submitted to her was a complete failure to say the least, I received a 45 out of 100. I learned my lesson quick and since then learned that a great science report consists of detailed information

backed by experimental data that is provided by credible sources. To say the least because of her teachings and the way she molded me into a better student it allows me to succeed in my science courses today at UNC Charlotte. Another part to my literacy experience entails me learning how to speak and write Spanish fluently. Growing up in a Spanish speaking household a person can quickly learn how to speak Spanish which I did. However, to write Spanish was a harder thing to do. Around the age of five years old my mother would get me up an hour before I had to leave school and give me lesson on Spanish grammar. Within the year of these lessons I was writing Spanish as if I had been in school back in Mexico. Another thing that helped in my Spanish language development was the influence music had on me. Since I could remember I enjoyed listening to music and watching musicians play their instruments, making some of the most amazing sounds I had ever heard. With me learning how to play music, it brought to my attention just how intricate the Spanish language could be and how one simple word could describe a million feelings that in English took an entire page of words. Overall, my literacy experience consisted of several factors and people who had a great influence on it. From my mother teaching me Spanish at a young age to my science teacher in high school who taught me how to write a professional lab report. They have all had a say and effect on my experience and helped shape me into the writer and student I am today.

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