Literacy Autobiography
The first children’s book I read entirely by myself was The Foot Book by Dr. Seuss. I remember carrying that book around with me everywhere I went, rereading each page until I figured out what all the words. When I finally finished the book, I was so excited. Every family member had to sit down while I read the book to them. From that point on, books became a big part of my life. Throughout my early years in school, including preschool, learning my letters and words was one thing that I can still remember today. I cannot remember learning how to add or subtract, but learning how to write my letters and learning their sounds is something that I never forgot.
As a child, I really enjoyed reading. My grandma was very influential during my childhood with my reading. She would always buy me new books to read and diaries to write in. Even though I rarely used the diaries on a daily basis, I did use them to practice my letters and to occasionally write about my day when I felt I needed to get it down on paper. Without this influence, I may have never written as a child in order to just write rather than for an assignment in school. The books I received may not have always been at my level, but I still loved to make up my own stories that I thought went along well with the pictures. Chapter books quickly became my favorite type of book. The Magic Tree House was one of my favorite series while growing up. In school I did many book reports using the series and I believe it was because of the information entwined into the story. Now I know this is called a faction book, and it is still my favorite type of book today. However, I do remember disliking any book I was forced to read. I liked to read books on my own leisure and at my own pace. A book that was assigned by a teacher and had to be read within a time frame took away all the enjoyment I got from reading. Reading is still a leisure activity for me, just like how it was when I was a child. Reading assigned texts is less tedious than in the past, but reading for my own pleasure is what I prefer most.
Outside of school, trips to the library were frequent for my family. My sister and I both found enjoyment in exploring the library for new books or books our teachers may have read to us. I enjoyed bringing the books my teachers read to us home to show my mom. We would sit together some nights and go through the books I picked out and read together. But, most of the time I read to myself. I liked reading silently because I was very shy and I was nervous about having to read quickly. I was very nervous in school when we did “popcorn” reading with the whole class. I would try to read ahead to look for words I didn’t know and would try to figure them out on my own before being called on. My findings throughout my education have defended my feelings towards this type of reading in the classroom and I will never put that pressure on my students in my own classroom.
I believe that overall my biggest influence in my love of reading has been my family. Education was always very important and my parents were always very supportive of our decisions in school. My parents were involved in homework time and would help us any way they could in making sure we comprehended what we were doing in all content areas. Each night we all sat down at the dinner table and had lengthily discussions about each of our day. It was never very formal, but having the opportunities to converse in conversations in an adult manor I believe was very beneficial for me and my sister.
We were also very lucky as a family to always have a computer with internet access since I was about eight years old. I have always had access to newer technology growing up and allowed me to become rather proficient in working on a computer. I was always the one to go online to do some research for school or for my parents. I learned how to type by the age of twelve and was doing most of my written homework on the computer by the time I reached middle school. I appreciate the importance of technology and the impact it can have on a child’s education, especially today when technology has become almost synonymous with education. I find a lot of enjoyment in looking for new websites online and exploring new ways to incorporate technology in the classroom.
Since I have started learning about the true meaning of literacy, my idea of it is continuously changing. Today I define literacy as learning skills and applying them to reading, writing, technology, speaking, etc. It is important to be literate in order to communicate with people around you. It may not necessarily mean you are literate in reading, but you may be very literate in technology and use this as a means of communication with others. This definition has broadened my view on what students should be able to do once they leave my classroom, and there is an unlimited number of ways to make students successful.
As a child, I really enjoyed reading. My grandma was very influential during my childhood with my reading. She would always buy me new books to read and diaries to write in. Even though I rarely used the diaries on a daily basis, I did use them to practice my letters and to occasionally write about my day when I felt I needed to get it down on paper. Without this influence, I may have never written as a child in order to just write rather than for an assignment in school. The books I received may not have always been at my level, but I still loved to make up my own stories that I thought went along well with the pictures. Chapter books quickly became my favorite type of book. The Magic Tree House was one of my favorite series while growing up. In school I did many book reports using the series and I believe it was because of the information entwined into the story. Now I know this is called a faction book, and it is still my favorite type of book today. However, I do remember disliking any book I was forced to read. I liked to read books on my own leisure and at my own pace. A book that was assigned by a teacher and had to be read within a time frame took away all the enjoyment I got from reading. Reading is still a leisure activity for me, just like how it was when I was a child. Reading assigned texts is less tedious than in the past, but reading for my own pleasure is what I prefer most.
Outside of school, trips to the library were frequent for my family. My sister and I both found enjoyment in exploring the library for new books or books our teachers may have read to us. I enjoyed bringing the books my teachers read to us home to show my mom. We would sit together some nights and go through the books I picked out and read together. But, most of the time I read to myself. I liked reading silently because I was very shy and I was nervous about having to read quickly. I was very nervous in school when we did “popcorn” reading with the whole class. I would try to read ahead to look for words I didn’t know and would try to figure them out on my own before being called on. My findings throughout my education have defended my feelings towards this type of reading in the classroom and I will never put that pressure on my students in my own classroom.
I believe that overall my biggest influence in my love of reading has been my family. Education was always very important and my parents were always very supportive of our decisions in school. My parents were involved in homework time and would help us any way they could in making sure we comprehended what we were doing in all content areas. Each night we all sat down at the dinner table and had lengthily discussions about each of our day. It was never very formal, but having the opportunities to converse in conversations in an adult manor I believe was very beneficial for me and my sister.
We were also very lucky as a family to always have a computer with internet access since I was about eight years old. I have always had access to newer technology growing up and allowed me to become rather proficient in working on a computer. I was always the one to go online to do some research for school or for my parents. I learned how to type by the age of twelve and was doing most of my written homework on the computer by the time I reached middle school. I appreciate the importance of technology and the impact it can have on a child’s education, especially today when technology has become almost synonymous with education. I find a lot of enjoyment in looking for new websites online and exploring new ways to incorporate technology in the classroom.
Since I have started learning about the true meaning of literacy, my idea of it is continuously changing. Today I define literacy as learning skills and applying them to reading, writing, technology, speaking, etc. It is important to be literate in order to communicate with people around you. It may not necessarily mean you are literate in reading, but you may be very literate in technology and use this as a means of communication with others. This definition has broadened my view on what students should be able to do once they leave my classroom, and there is an unlimited number of ways to make students successful.