Week 1 Reading Response:

Upon reading into the issue of literacy amongst Americans, nostalgic memories of my journey toward learning to reading and writing were evoked. Upon reading into the journey of literacy for Genna May, I found myself indirectly relating to her path and it’s similarities amongst my own family.

Similar to Genna, my parents were raised and descended upon rural families. In the midst of the racial conflicts occurring in the south, my parents weren’t offered as quality an education as many would in the world we live in today. Discouraged to further their education from an early age, my parents were convinced by their surrounding society that their literacy was the least of their priorities. As a result, both my parent would soon find out their lack of higher education would reduce their opportunities amongst a highly literate working world. Treating their experiences as life lessons, my parents decided it was imperative that my brothers and I attain an education to the best of out abilities.

In retrospect, some of the earliest memories I have regarding my literacy were indirect; but nevertheless, effective. Inquiring on hobbies and interests of mines, my mother would often buy books of which she knew I would find interest. In addition, to further improve my reading abilities, my mother would regularly ask me to read to her - assuring herself I was actually reading.

As far as my writing, my parents believed repetition was the key to improving my penmanship. Per inquiring to my teacher, my parents would bring copies of classroom exercises to our household, and following homework, I would repeat the same exercises performed in class in an effort to practice as much as possible.

All in all, with their best interest in mind for myself, my parents reflected on where they felt that could have improved in their younger years, and translated these lessons to my siblings and I. While I could have been watching television or playing outside, my parents knew that their principles of hard work and repetition would eventually pay. The youngest of three boys to successfully enroll in college, my personal journey to literacy has seemed to pay off.