My Literacy
By Liam McManus
My literacy development began as soon
as my parents began to read to me.
While I do not remember my parents
reading to me, they assure me that I
often requested that they read one of
my favorite books: Dinosaur James.
My earliest memories that I can recall
that truly developed my literacy was not
through reading books but by reading in
video games. Particularly, when I was
around four or five years old, my dad
got me my first Game Boy Color, and
my first game, Pokemon Yellow. It was
a whole new world for me, and I
relished the chance to ask whatever
adult was near what certain words
meant so that I may progress in the
story.
In most of elementary school, I deigned
not to read books for fun or outside of
class (or even in class)it was all
Game Boy or computer games.
As such, in first grade, the school
thought I had a low literacy level and
placed me in a reading class. They
discovered that my inability to read and
answer questions was not due to lack of
skill, but as they called it, laziness.
Once they assessed my actual level,
they took me out of the reading class
after a month or two, which was spent
motivating me. For each book I read I
received some sort of small reward
such as cool pencils, small toys. My
parents continued the effort spent,
reward given at home for both school
and chores for a time.
It was not until sixth grade that I found
the true joy in reading for pleasure. One
day, I got a fight with another student
that resulted in me getting two weeks
worth of lunch detention. During these
two weeks, I was told I could read
books. I had never bothered picking it
up until then, but I was gifted the first
Harry Potter book. I devoured it. It
sparked a love of reading in me that
has never leftall due to one of my
favorite book series. From that point
onward, I was always taking books out
from the school and public libraries. My
class grades increased overtime and
became a higher performing student.
As I delved deeper within my books
and school work, I became more shy
and introverted. One type of literacy
that was hardly scratched was my oral
literacy, to me, the ability to orate my
thoughts concisely and coherently
My Literacy, contd.
As I delved deeper within my books
and school work, I became more shy
and introverted. One type of literacy
that was hardly scratched was my oral
literacy, to me, the ability to orate my
thoughts concisely and coherently. It
took until a twelfth grade law class for
me to be alone in front of other and give
a presentation. I was so nervous. My
legs were shaking the entire time, my
voice faltering, I read straight from my
essay. After this however, it was all
uphill. I had to do this several times for
that class, and because the teacher
supported a safe and trusting
environment among myself and my
peers, my confidence grew.
My written literacy was usually
assessed as average to above average
for most of my secondary school career.
During tenth grade, I think I really
improved due to several teachers. One,
my Social Studies teacher, made
learning and writing a fun and engaging
processeven DBQ writing. This was
one of the first times I felt I received
regular essay/DBQ like assignments
that allowed me to develop my skills.
Another teacher taught an English
elective called Writing at the
Threshold. There was a creative writing
unit, and she posed amazing prompts
that elicited something in me I thought I
never had. While I never continued to
develop my creative writing skills past
high school, I though it contributed
greatly to my writing ability.
One example assignment from that class
was to simply choose an image and write a
story about it. I chose a scenic image from a
video game and ended up writing like I
never wrote before; this assignment helped
me plan my writing better, and develop it
with rich details.
In college, all these skills continued to grow,
but none more than learning to annotate and
engage in texts. Furthermore, especially in
history classes, my writing improved in
organization and analysis, due to, I think, a
specific focus on historical skills.
My experiences have shaped how I
approach various facets of literacy in my
own life and in teaching. In my own life, I
continue, time allowing, to read for fun and
be a reflective reader; I mostly stick to my
roots when reading for funfantasy and
science fiction, despite my interest in history.
Which leads me to how my experiences
influence my pedagogy. Firstly, I like to
consider the various literacies my students
bring to the classroom and offer an array of
readings and activities that might interest
them. They could be class materials and
assignments thats appeal to different types
of learners, or even suggestions through
informal conversations. Next, I would like to
impart on my students content specific skills
that are also, at times, applicable to other
content areas and facets in life. Finally, I
would like for my student to gain experience
with skills such as public speaking,
collaboration, and technology to better
prepare them for college and for life.