Literacy Smiteracy! (that sure has changed)

In the beginning of this course, I was truly unaware of what literacy truly is. Though High School, we were always assigned to read something; whether it be a poem, essay, or anything for that matter. With this we were to write an essay with a prompt that the teacher gave us. If we did not get the right meaning and feelings out of the reading piece, we did not do well on the assignment. Because of this I always believed that literacy was just a simple word or reading, which my head was "literacy Smiteracy!".

After taking this crash course in what literacy really is, my ideas have really changed. Right away in the beginning of the class I knew I would like it. After the first post, I was able to see that it was okay that we all got different messages out of a piece. This only allowed us, as a class, to talk more about what we had read. Because I was actually learning about myself (how I like to write, if my life can relate to the essay, etc.) I was really seeing that literacy had a true meaning. Now in my eyes, literacy is not only reading a piece, but reading it, reflecting, and learning about yourself and others through the piece.

I think this is a very important thing to have learned, especially because I will be a teacher in just a few years. Even though I will be teaching young children, it is still very important to teach them to assimilate reading with something that is fun. Through working with college freshman, I have learned that reading has become something that all students dread. Why is this?? Reading/Writing/Literacy has become too rule bound over the years, causing students not to like it. As a future teacher, I want students to be able to explore within reading and writing.

I also have found the importance of reading for students. Reading, however, is harder for some than others. This also can cause them not to like it. Because of this, I feel that it is important to make reading as fun as possible! This class has really broadened my horizons, and has made me really think about how I see myself as a future educator!!