Daily Writing:

1/18/2017
When I was younger, my parents gave me Hooked on Phonics. I had to read 2 books a
day. My parents really encouraged me to read. Once I could understand the words and sentences
I started to read Dr. Seuss without any help. My parents were also very helpful in teaching me
how to write. They taught me how to hold a pencil and form letters and numbers. They had me
practice writing the alphabet on lined paper. I would trace each letter, uppercase and lowercase, a
few times and then free hand it. People who were also beneficial in forming my literacy narrative
were my teachers in elementary school. My second-grade teacher, Mrs. Creighton helped me
write in cursive. Every day we would practice. We would trace the alphabet letters and free hand
it too. My teachers and parents played a huge role in guiding me to read, write and compose.

1/23/2017
President Trump was sworn into presidency this past week. I personally did not vote for
him because some of his views scared me as a female. He has said some hurtful and
inappropriate things and Im absolutely terrified for where his presidency leads our country. Im
honestly more afraid of his VP, Mike Pence, then Trump. The Womens March on Washington
was so inspiring. I wouldve loved to participate in these marches but I had to work all weekend.
The march was a way to show womens beliefs and what rights we should have as women. The
march was so empowering and historical. It is honestly crazy how women are still having to
march for their rights. Women have been marching for decades and have gained some rights in
their doing. As a woman, Im scared for the future and the children. What will happen to them if
we get some of our rights to birth control taken? Many people in the class talked about accepting
Trump as president. I had a hard time watching Obama leave the White House because I was
scared about what was going to happen. Over time I have gotten over the fact that we cant undo
what has already been done and the best we can do is support him and help him make the right
decisions for our country. My classmates used analogies like, We wouldnt want a plane to go
down if we were all on it; We wouldnt want our designated driver to be drunk. Stuff like this
really helps us realize there isnt anything we can do, but to hope he does the best he can. Im
still scared for my rights, but I hope he wont let us down as president and he does an amazing
job at turning this country around and helping to provide and care for those who cannot do for
themselves.
1/25/2017
A special place I have for developing my literacy narrative is my elementary school. My
elementary school focused a lot on reading and writing. Every school year we had a goal to read
25 books or more. Since I am very competitive I always strived for more than 25 books. Those
who reached the goal had their name on the reading bulletin board in the hall. In school, we
would take time to also journal about our weekend, vacation, and a current event. In elementary I
was placed in a program called Enrichment. Enrichment was a time in the day where we would
leave the classroom and go to our rotations like Shakespeare, Latin, current events, or hands on
equations. It was an advanced class where we practiced writing, reading and studying. In the
third-grade I was reading Shakespeare, Midsummer Nights Dream. We even got to see the play
for it. We also read Alice in Wonderland. I still have all my journals from these classes with the
notes from my teachers in them encouraging my creativity and to help me strive to read and
write.
In Malcolm Xs literacy narrative, he talks a lot about how much he read even after hours.
When I was little I would always hide what I was reading, playing, coloring, etc. from my
parents when they came to check on me. It was also interesting how he read mainly black history
books. In all my history classes I noticed that they still do not show just how badly the blacks
and other minorities were treated. I am Native American and even today they are still being put
down. The poor treatment of minorities is still happening today and they do not shine a light on it
in history books. Since whites are the superior race they tend to not show the bad things they
have done in the past. They only recognize the good and broadcast it. History is interesting and it
is very good to know about our history and past as a country, good and bad.

1/30/2017
Throughout elementary school I always loved going to Book Fairs. They were always
one of my favorite days of the school year. I loved to see the new books they always carried and
ones they recommended. Every time I went I would get the new Magic Tree House book and
other chapter books. I would also get picture books, bookmarks, posters, journals and smelly
markers. Book Fairs always had a happy and cheerful atmosphere. The people who worked there
were usually volunteer parents. We could go to the book fair right after lunch time or during a
specific time throughout the school day. I would sometimes go during recess because I just loved
books. The smell of new books is one of my favorites and it is comforting to me to just could
pick up a new or old book and read. Every time they Scholastic Book Fair would come they
would send home little book newspapers with us. When I would get home, I would sit down with
one of my parents and mark that newspaper like crazy. I knew I could not get every book that I
circled, but I was only allowed to get a few. My parents loved the fact that I would get excited to
read and they encouraged it. My mom or dad would even come during lunchtime to help me pick
out some books.
Like Sherman Alexie, I am Native American. The only difference is that I did not grow
up on an Indian Reservation like he did. He talked about how his dad loved to read. My mom
was the one who loved to read. She always had a new book and her and my dad both encouraged
us to read. Like him I also read the back of cereal boxes, but not to learn to read. I read the back
of them just for fun or when I was bored while eating. Sherman Alexies passion is in books and
writing. My passion is in teaching the children of the world. I love how passionate he is because
it was very influential to many children and I hope to have the same effect on my kids.

2/1/2017:
 For as long as I can remember I have been taught how to use Word and PowerPoint. I
dont remember what my first experience with it was, but I do know a time that I used
PowerPoint for a presentation. In my enrichment class, in elementary school, we had to do a
research project on a company we were assigned. We were put into pairs and we had to research
everything, including writing a letter to the CEO. I did a food company that made breads and
stuff. We had to present our findings in a PowerPoint to the rest of our enrichment class and the
teachers. I have always been able to navigate Word and PowerPoint with ease since I have been
taught to use it. In high school I took a Word/PowerPoint class and I am now certified in both. I
scored a 100 on both online exams. We had to learn everything there is to know about Word and
PowerPoint. Knowing how to navigate it has been very beneficial to my literacy narrative
because it helps me focus more on typing my papers instead of worrying about how to set up the
document or PowerPoint.

2/6/2017:
One of the most inspiring places I have ever been is Costa Rica. I travelled there in 2012
and it was the first time I have ever been out of the country. It really was inspiring to see the
beautiful nature and how everyone connected with it. Ever since going I have been inspired to
travel. I have not been able to yet, but hopefully I will be able to travel once I graduate college. I
loved how the environment felt and how everyone was so nice and caring everywhere you went.
I went ziplining and all the animals were gorgeous and the views were breathtaking. Ever since
my dream to travel has grown. I would love to teach abroad somewhere in Europe. I plan on
minoring in teaching English as a second language and this experience really pushed me to
choose this minor. While driving down the roads of Costa Rica I would always see kids playing
outside and dogs and puppies roaming around. Watching these families who have so little make
the best of it was really inspiring.

2/8/2017:
For my senior project, I chose the topic Animal Assisted Therapy. I chose this topic
because I really love animals and I have always loved how beneficial it is to a person. During my
research I had to have many hours. I used my time efficiently and spent time designing the
PowerPoint, researching, and seeing this in action. I found articles really beneficial because
reading from other peoples point of view was intriguing and I loved feeling what they were
feeling when talking about others. This research was very successful.
1. Why do we sleep?
2. Poaching
3. The state of consciousness
4.
5.
2/13/2017:

My grandfather, whom I never met, was apparently one of the first men to fly over
Antarctica. My father has a document framed and it was signed by one of the presidents, I think
it was Reagan, but Im not 100% sure. I have always wanted to know more about him, but he
died when my dad was 21. Im also Native American, Chinook to be exact, and I want to know if
Chief Joseph really helped us get to safety. The Chinook tribe is originally from Washington and
Oregon, but because of the whites, they pushed us into Canada. We apparently helped with the
Lewis and Clark Expedition, so I want to find out more and see if that really was an old wise tale
or if it really did happen. I have also heard that we are somehow related to Chief Joseph, since he
took in many tribes under his wing. It would be really cool to be related to such an amazing
person who played such a huge role in our history.

2/15/2017:
The vignette I felt a connection with the most was 19. When I was little my sister,
Breanna, and I would go antiquing and look at everything. My mom would take us and we would
look at all the clothes, jewelry, books, and little trinkets. When we lived in Florida there were lots
of little stores around. I felt happiness and reminiscence of the past. I remember my favorite parts
of going to these stores was looking at the music boxes and having to wipe off the dust of these
trinkets. I had a huge collections of music boxes and wind up ceramic ones. I have this one that
has a little girl and her dog on it and theyre picking an apple tree. My Grandma gave this to me
a long time ago and every time I would wind it up I would always think of my Grandma because
I missed her dearly. A long time ago she lived with us for about 7 years in our Florida home,
where she had her own little section of the house. She passed away about 4 years ago, and I
remember looking for my ceramic wind up and would play it just to remember our times
shopping for these.

2/20/2017:
My Nannies spaghetti sauce is what makes a meal. My mom and her brothers make it
just like her. When they cook it, they use a pigs foot and soak it into the sauce. They try to use
fresh herbs whenever possible, like basil and oregano. She also puts in a certain amount of
crushed tomato cans and a certain brand. She also puts occasionally puts meatballs and Italian
sausages into the sauce depending on which purpose it is being used for. They make it in this
huge sauce pot, large enough to feed a village, and cook it for a few hours. This dish is so special
because it is always used at a family functions in spaghetti, lasagna, chicken parmesan, baked
ziti, etc. I have never met a person who does not love this sauce, especially with my Nannies
lasagna, which is my favorite meal in the entire world.
2/22/2017:
When I saw this picture I had a feeling it was babies coming from war. I want to know if
these children are were from soldiers on the US side or Vietnam side? This plane is literally full
of newborn babies. Who is taking care of them while taking them across seas? It looks like a job
for more than 5 people. From experience I know that babies have a tough time on planes because
of the altitude changes causing their ears to pop often and them to be uncomfortable. Im
honestly shocked at how many babies there are and how much they cared to take them back to
find a home in America. Did the planes with these children all make it back safely? From
googling online I found that the first plane to try to take these Vietnamese orphans home crashed
within minutes of taking off, 138 people were killed, mostly Vietnamese children. This photo is
from the Vietnam Operation Babylift, they transported them to America, Australia, Canada and
France. Over 10,300 infants and children had been evacuated.

2/27/2017:
During this family tree research I have discovered that I do not know a lot about my dads
side of the family. His family is further away than many of my moms side of the family. They all
live in NY, but when we go up there we are always with my mom and stay with my Nannie. I
have not seen many of my dads sisters and brothers in a few years. They are not too fond of each
other because my dad got most of his dads stuff since he took care of his dad for years. I never
met my Grandpa and I lived with my Grandma for 6 years, but had to put her in a nursing home
because her dementia was getting bad and she had brain surgery, triggering it more. We kept in
touch with her for a while, but it was hard to do when she couldnt remember who we were, she
only remembered my mom and dad. When my parents go divorced she did not know and we
never told her because it would break her heart. I really want to find out more about how my
Grandpa and his past and his family. Going through this project I discovered I dont even know
his first name because my dad never spoke of him much. My dad is pretty quiet about his side of
the family so I am hoping to dig some stuff up about it. I want to know if my Grandpa was born
in New York or somewhere else and if his parents were born somewhere else.

3/1/2017:
The quote that spoke to me the most was Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking
and prying with a purpose, by Zora Neale Hurston. It spoke to me because I am a curious
person and being curious makes you interested in learning more and getting into others business.
Whenever I am curious about something I feel like a child because those who are curious are
mainly children. When youre young you want to know what things are because you have never
seen them before, so you research it by asking questions after questions. When I was little and
still to this day I always ask questions because I want to know things. Researching has a purpose
of exploring you interests and gaining new knowledge about them.
3/13/2017:
While on the phone with my Nannie I was asking her questions about her grandparents and her
parents. Her mom passed away when she was 9 years old, so she never knew much about that
side of her family. When looking at their birth certificates she found out that they were born in
another part of Sicily, Italy. We were struggling to read it because it was in Italian. We also
looked on ancestry.com and found where they left and where they arrived. She was very happy
about all this new information. She didnt know she had their birth and death certificates, she
thought her cousin or brother would have them, so she was surprised to see that she had them.
She told me they were so old and she was scared to hold them because they were falling apart. I
was excited to learn more information about this side of my family because my Nannie never
really told us stories about her mom, only occasionally her dad.

3/15/2017:
Estimable means worthy of great respect. I find it significant because at that moment. For Henry
Louis Gates Jr., he realized what he wants to do. It is important to know our family roots and
where we came from. When you lose someone youre close with it can change you in so many
ways. You look at what they accomplished in life and promise to do better by them and to chase
your dreams. It is very relevant in 2017 because today we have more resources than weve ever
had. It is our job to use these resources and learn about our history. We need to care because soon
our grandparents and great grandparents are going to be gone and we will have no one to ask
about our family and ask stories that happened before our time. After my Grandma passed away I
felt obligated to find out more about our history. I wish I knew more stories from my dads side,
but since I never knew my Grandpa and lived with my Grandma for 8 years, when I was very
young, I never was able to ask the questions I want to ask today.

3/27/2017:
Multi-modal is to use different forms of presenting like, music, pictures, movement, etc. For my
topic multi-modal is not really different from what it is. Two modes we plan on using are,
linguistic and visual. Our topic is on