Think about the part that reading and writing played in creating who you are today. Writing a literacy narrative is your story of coming into the language. The act of reading and writing opens up your mind and heart. This essay will give you the opportunity to recount this transformative experience and then stand back to interpret how that event changed you. Literacy narratives challenge you to remember the guides who helped you learn. On the other hand, this assignment might focus on the people who blocked your growth as a reader/writer. Also, you may write about an environment that promoted or restricted your ability to read and to write successfully. Was your attitude affected by gender, cultural, or racial attitudes? If so, then you may write with that slant.

Recall experiences about learning to read and write. Select an incident to focus on in the essay. Explore this event in your essay. Use vivid details to describe the situation. Be specific in showing how this event/person is significant in the story. Answer the question: What is the point of telling this story? Do not write a complete literacy history of your life. You have a lifetime of experiences from which to draw. Your memories are just "waiting for their chance."

Suggestions for your narrative:

Q1. What significant incidents can you remember that had a positive or negative effect on you? How are you different as a reader or writer than you were before?

Q2. Select specific experiences from your home life that affected you as a reader or writer? Were you encouraged to read or write? Why were these skills valued or not valued in your home environment?

Q3. How has gender affected you as a reader or writer? Were females encouraged to read and write while males discouraged? Or is the reverse of the situation true?

Q4. How has culture or economic status influenced you as a reader or writer?

Q5. Write a literacy narrative about a special person who inspired you to read and write. Or write about a person who stood in the way of your development. How did this individual make writing a burden for you? Did a teacher contribute to an embarrassing moment for you because of your reading and writing skills?