M c M a n u s a g e |

Brandon McManus
Dr. Jan
English 1103
September 22, 2011

This essay overall was not a bad final product. I did find some difficulty in the topic, mainly
because sponsors were hard to think of and to apply it to my own life. I found that I hit some
rough patches in this paper, like running out of ideas to talk about and finding examples to use
in the paper. Overall I worked really hard on this paper and I believe I did very well on it.

My Literacy LiIe
As Deborah Brandt quotes in her essay a Sponsor oI Literacy can be deIined as any
agents, local or distant, concert or abstract, who enable support, teach, model, as well as recruit,
regulate, suppress, or withhold literacy and gain advantage by it in some way. (Brandt 407)
Many people and other outside Iactors will inIluence the way a person has learned to read or
write. Most people perceive being literate as being able to read and write. This is not always the
case. You can be literate in any subject as long as you posses the skills to be Iluent in that
required subject.
Most children learn to read at an early stage in liIe. I owe thanks to my mother Ior Iirst
Ior helping me learn how to read and write. I remember many hours and nights spent in my bed
doing homework with my mother by my side. She tried to teach me how to write by showing me
words on Ilash cards and making me sound out the words. Learning to read and write while I was
young was a very very slow process, but my mom stuck with me and Iinally succeeded in
teaching me how to eIIectively read and write. I owe credit to her Ior beginning to pave the
pathway oI me learning to read and write.
Comment |]1]: dld peer rkshp g"

WhaL ldeas dld yu geL fr Lhe MasLer/LlLLle"
narraLlves rk e dld

WhaL klnd f bralnsLrlng dld yu d hen yu
gL sLuck"
Comment |O2]: eer rkshp enL really ell
Clln and Llly ere a huge help L e 1hey Lld
e Lhlngs LhaL l needed L d L beLLer y paper
When l uld geL sLuck l hnesLly uld [usL alk
aay fr Lhe paper and l uld d seLhlng
else l reallze n LhaL LhaL ls nL Lhe besL Lhlng L
d
Comment |]3]: use hen yu use a dlrecL
quLe and ake sure L have a rks clLed
Comment |]4]: WhaL d yu Lhlnk her
LlvaLln as"
Comment |OS]: l Lhlnk LhaL y Lher had s
uch LlvaLln because f her passln L read and
rlLe l uld alays see her dlng lL l Lhlnk she
anLed e L be Lhe besL l culd s Lhere fre she
had L push e L d LhaL and sh h l need
llLeracy ln y llfe
M c M a n u s a g e |

All the years oI my schooling, there have been many eIIective teachers over the years that
have also contributed to my learning oI diIIerent reading and writing skills. My Kindergarten
teacher, named Mrs. McRorie, contributed into helping me read better and also attempted to
improve my handwriting where it could be somewhat legible. She was a kind woman, to whom I
Iound a great deal oI aIIection to, and it doesn`t hurt that she was also my cousin. Since she was
so nice and caring, it was easy Ior me to learn Irom her and enjoy her teaching on a Iun and
exciting level. Later on in the years oI school, I had a teacher in my junior year oI high school
that deserves credit Ior my ability to write Iormal papers. Her name was Mrs. Stout; she was
probably one oI the worst, but also one oI the best teachers I have ever had. She worked with
students day and night to identiIy diIIerent writing problems and also diIIerent writing strengths.
When we would write in the class she would Iilm us so we could learn and watch our good and
bad habits. Even though that class was hard and required much work, I enjoyed it. Mrs. Stout
made writing Iun Ior me, and she also taught me how to do it in the appropriate manner. Thanks
to her, today I am able to write many essays. Not only did she give me the necessary skills to
write, she gave me a Iun way oI looking at writing to where I could be able to write big boy
papers.
My church has also played a role into a type oI literacy present in my liIe. I have played
in my church worship band Ior many years. Playing the guitar Ior church hymns and songs
contributes to Iun in church, but one must learn how to play, read notes, and sing along with
others. My playing skills can be contributed to my Dad, Harry McManus. My Iather taught me
how to read and write music. I know it is not what you think oI when it comes to literacy but
every way you can learn it betters you oII in liIe. In my senior year oI High School I had one bad
Comment |]6]: ls"
Comment |O7]: She sLlll ls
Comment |]8]: WhaL ere se f yurs"
Comment |O3]: 1he nly ne l culd see as
LhaL l geL dlsLracLed very easy
Comment |]10]: yu ere flled hlle
yu rLe" And Lhen h aLched Lhese vldes"
Comment |O11]: Cur Leacher Ms SLuL uld
aLch Lhese and Lhen e uld geL ln a grup and
evaluaLe Lhe and Lhen e uld aLch Lhe sl
L see haL e needed L rk n
Comment |]12]: WhaL cnsLlLuLes a blg by"
paper"
Comment |O13]: 8esearch aper
Comment |]14]: ?u slLch Lplcs here
Comment |O1S]: Shuld lL be a ne paragraph"
M c M a n u s a g e |

literacy sponsor. His name was Mr. Nelson, he told me that I could not read or write well. I
showed him wrong and proved to myselI that I was able to do anything I put my mind to.
As in Malcolm X`s article 'Learning how to Read, we Iind that he had the inner strength
to teach himselI to read. I believe iI most people had this strength and drive to learn a certain
subject; then most people could be Iluent in that type oI literacy. Malcolm X is perceived as a
Iamous public speaker, as well as, a Iamous writer worldwide today, when he didn`t even have
that much education to go by. Sherman Alexie is another example oI a person that overpowered
the hard situations that he was placed in. In his article 'The Joy oI Reading and Writing:
Superman and Me, we see a Indian boy that taught himselI to read and write through comic
books. Both oI these cases were minority citizens, who could not read at one point in their lives,
but they both overcame diIIerent situations to make an eIIort in learning speciIic types oI
literacy.
Throughout a liIetime, many people will have diIIerent Iactors that inIluence their
literacy skills. Some oI these Iactors can impact them positively or negatively. During my liIe, I
have had diIIerent teachers, situations, and my parents to inIluence my reading and writing
ability. I am thankIul Ior all those who have in taught me and helped me through the years;
otherwise, my writing would not be where it is today. So I owe the reason I learned to read to not
just me but to everyone in my liIe that helped.


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spnsrs 1hls plece sLlll feels llke an early drafL ln se ays As yu acknledge ln yur self
assessenL yu sLruggled a blL lLh Lhls Lplc and yur rlLlng here shs LhaL yu're sLlll flndlng yur
ay lnL Lhls Lplc ere's a suggesLln fr revlsln rk knlng LhaL rlLlng ls recurslveLhaL e
Comment |]16]: lesh Lhls experlence uL re
h ere yu Lld yu ere nL a greaL
reader/rlLer by Lhls persn and h exacLly dld
yu prve hl rng"
Comment |O17]: e Lld e LhaL y sLrengLh f
rlLlng as hrrlble l uld Lurn uL L be nLhlng l
prved hl rng by Lrylng harder and dlng ell
n y Lher papers
Comment |]18]: d ldea L pull fr Lhe
readlngs L add supprL L yur plnL
Comment |]13]: Whlch sees a blL cunLer L
Lhe prevlus paragraph's plnL LhaL anyne can
learn L read and rlLe lLh perseverance and self
deLerlnaLln
M c M a n u s a g e |

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L bralnsLr se re and Lhen revlse eLclL feels llke yu need L sLep back L Lhe bralnsLrlng
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Cnce yu've dne LhaL ce back L Lhls paper and see here yu can flesh lL uL re lgure uL
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1he hlghllghLed areas are places here yu have se surface lssues L pay aLLenLln L s please read
Lhse alud and see haL yu hear

ur !an
l belleve LhaL Lhls as nL y besL plece ?u are rlghL hen yu say LhaL l a sLruggllng lLh
Lhls paper l uld llke se help ln knlng h uch deLall l need L puL lnL Lhe paper AnLher parL
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lL because hen l geL sLuck l alk aay fr Lhe paper and l kn LhaL's nL gd s haL d yu Lhlnk
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f gd feed back hlch sL f lL as L add re deLall and l dld buL l Lhlnk lL ls sLlll nL gd
enugh and l need L elabraLe l lll rk harder n Lhls paper


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