Essay # 1: literacy narrative

Complete a 3 (full) page literacy narrative in which you reflect on your own experiences as a student, particularly in terms of your reading habits and the ease with which you are able to pay attention. Use the following questions to guide your response. Please answer the questions in  Parts 1, 2, and 3 and Number the Parts.Make sure the three parts are at least one  page each.

Part 1: Did you relate to the literacy narratives written by Rodriguez and/or Graff (Chapter 1 pages 24-36) in From Inquiry to Academic Writing? Use the answers to the four questions on page 20 in From Inquiry to Academic Writing in Part 1.

Rodriguez and/or Graff Narratives:  http://christianpatlan.yolasite.com/resources/Rodriguez%20and%20Graff–1st%20Reading.pdf (Links to an external site.)

Part 2: Reflections on Reading Habits (You can choose to answer one or more of these questions. You might focus on one turning point / one moment of recognition or lesson learned, or you might choose to describe your overall journey as a student to this point.)

• Do you find that you have an easy or difficult time paying attention in school?
• How is reading for school different from reading for pleasure? Do you find that you are able to pay closer attention to one vs. the other?
• Can you recall a time when you first began to read? Was reading easy or difficult for you?
• What are the main types of reading you do? Why?
• How would you describe yourself or characterize yourself as a reader?
• Is there one moment that encapsulates who you are as a reader?
• In what ways has reading changed you for the better? For the worse? 
• Have you ever learned something important from reading, only to discover later that it wasn’t true or sufficient? Explain. 
• What helps you to pay attention when you are reading for school?
• Generally speaking, when you are in class, what helps you pay attention? When do you feel happiest, as a student?

Part 3: Reflections on Writing Habits: (You can choose to answer one or more of these questions. You might focus on one turning point / one moment of recognition or lesson learned, or you might choose to describe your overall journey as a student to this point.)

• Do you like to write? Why or why not? 
• How is writing for school different from reading for other purposes? 
• Can you recall a time when you first began to write? Was writing easy or difficult for you?
• What are the main types of writing you do? Why?
• How would you describe yourself or characterize yourself as a writer?
• Is there one moment that encapsulates who you are as a writer? 
• In what ways has writing changed you for the better? For the worse? 
• Describe a specific writing moment from your life that was meaningful (in a good or bad way.) 

The intention of this essay is for me to get to know you, to gauge your writing, skills, and to gain an understanding of what you need to work on. For this essay, I will be grading your grammar, spelling, organization of paragraphs, flow of the essay, MLA formatting, and the extent to which you followed directions and completed the assignment. Obviously, we have not learned anything about thesis-driven, evidence-based writing yet, so I will not grade you specifically on that. However, you should take care to put your best effort into this paper, as I will be reading them closely and correcting your language and formatting.

Format:

12 point font, Times New Roman, 1-inch margins, double spaced

Only on the first page , place your name, your instructor’s name, the course title, and the date on separate lines against the left margin.(MLA Format)

Then center your title.

Page number preceded by your last name in the upper right corner.