Who would we be without the influence of other important people in our life? It's a scary thought. Who would we be without someone to admire or someone to learn from? It's hard to imagine for all aspects of my life, including my literacy.
To name one, single person that has impacted my literacy would be impossible! There are so many people who have contributed to my literacy... My parents read to me from a very young age. They always told me reading was important and encouraged my love for books. In seventeen years there have been countless trips to the book store! I have memories from when I was younger and they were surprised when I used a certain vocabulary word or I had knowledge about a particular topic. When they asked me where I had learned it, I would always say that I had read about it. I've always loved reading...I would even follow my mom around the grocery store while reading! I became an expert at navigating the aisles without having to look up from my book. My sister never liked reading as much as me and my parents often asked me to encourage her to read and recommend books to her. I've spent quite a bit of time kneeled in front of my book shelf trying to decide the one she would enjoy the most.
My older cousin used to hate reading but she had a teacher that totally changed her mind and then she was obsessed with it. She was always reading at holiday dinners and birthday parties! She recommended a book series to me and I too, became crazy about the series.
In 4th grade my teacher would read to us and I would always look forward to story time. She had really good taste in books and I often would buy the book myself and read it for a second time. She also had a great reading voice that would intrigue everyone in the class and keep us focused. This inspired me in 5th grade to read to my sister's third grade class each week. Other teachers have contributed to my literacy by making specific reading groups. When the books were too easy for me, my teachers gave me challenging and interesting books in small reading groups so I wouldn't become bored.
The crazy thing about being an author is books have the ability to reach so many people and as an author, it's impossible to know how the book has impacted every individual and shaped their literacy. My favorite authors have definitely contributed to my literacy and I am thankful for the books they have written.
You really found your way around a restrictive question; good job! I would have to agree that one single person can't be the only literary influence in someone's life. I think you should've talked more about your techers' influences. That was your strongest point.
ReplyDeleteI really liked that you didn't just pick one person. As Amy said in the previous comment about finding your way around a restrictive question I completely agree! I think this is a great blog, but you probably could have expanded on some idea's a little more.
ReplyDeleteSuch good points here--it IS so difficult to select the one person who has impacted our literacy the most, but I can name several who have had an impact. You've made me curious, though, in terms of your favorite authors--who are they? :-)
ReplyDeleteDanielle, I laughed out loud when I read that when you were little you used to walk around the grocery store reading and you didn't even have to look up. If it were me, I would have probably crashed into the cereal boxes or something. Also you also made a good point that there really isn't just one factor but a multiple of factors that contribute to our literacy.
ReplyDeleteI think your passion for books is clearly evident! If you can navigate a grocery store without looking up from the text--first, congrats, because that's hard, second, you must be really committed, huh? Great work!
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