The Way I’ve Learned

Developing literacy skills can oftentimes be a subconscious occurrence, but there are key

moments where the progression of these skills is noticeable. This is partially due to literacy

sponsors, which are people, ideas, or institutions that have aided a person in the cultivation of a

specific literacy ability. Literacy sponsors are fundamental in teaching literacy. Brandt said,

“literacy as a resource becomes available to ordinary people largely through the mediations

of more powerful sponsors” (Brandt, 2017). People are born with no knowledge and

clearly must learn from outside sources. It is important to acknowledge personal literacy

sponsors to appreciate those that are helpful, and to also become cognizant of those that

spread misinformation. People should disregard unethical literacy sponsors and learn from

reputable ones. Throughout a person’s life, there are bound to be both.
I was fortunate enough to have positive literacy sponsors in my early childhood, which
laid the foundation for my appreciation and respect of all forms of literacy. My mom and the
Commented [JP1]: I added Brandt’s quote and took out the
majority of what I wrote about negative literacy sponsors
because it misleads the audience to think I was going to
discuss negative literacy sponsors in my life.
Commented [JP2]: This is a local revision but I changed all
the times that I said ‘literary’ to ‘literacy’ (13 times)

local public library were the most influential. My mom was a high school English teacher. I

always saw her with a book in hand and she would often read to me. She taught me to

recognize letters and their sounds before I even started preschool. I was immersed with

language and literature as early as a year old. My mother loved writing and it always came so Commented [JP3]: I added specific details about what my
mom taught me at a young age.
natural to her; she used to write poems when she was in her early teens. It is due to my mom’s

love of literature that I am moderately good at reading and writing. I can tell because whenever I

have to write a paper it doesn’t excite or interest me in the way that it does her. Due to her

explaining literature to me when I couldn’t quite understand what the author was trying to

portray or showing me new ways to write/portray words, it allowed me to be a better reader and

writer.
 My mom would also take me to the library after school or on the weekends and I would

walk through the aisles deciding what type of Fantasy or Sci-fi books I wanted for that week.

Books with vampires, fairies, or werewolves intrigued me when I was younger. Although I could

get pulled into any book because there was always something to learn. There were countless

books for me to choose from which allowed me to always find something of interest. This is

what caused my love of reading. Books were a way to get outside of my own head and to stop

thinking about myself for some time. I liked being fully engrossed in a character’s life and

enjoyed imagining how the characters interpreted and saw the world. When I was in

elementary school, the “Twilight” saga especially interested me. Younger me questioned

why Bella (the main character) would constantly put her life in danger by being

surrounded by vampires, which only increased my interest in the series. At that time, my

literacy influences consisted of reading teachers who encouraged a love of literature as well

as my mom who I constantly saw reading. It broadened my view and made me realize that Commented [JP4]: I added specific details about books that
interested me and I also related it to positive literacy
sponsors
people interpret situations differently; this intrigued me enough to read book after book in my

futile attempt to understand everyone’s viewpoint. I also love the mystery; there are always turns

and plot twists in a book. I would read books and an event would happen that I didn’t expect, and

I would be so jarred that I would have to put the book down and take a break so I could process

it. Reading so many books and seeing different writing styles gave me ideas and tips about how I

should write and construct my thoughts onto paper.

When I started high school, I didn’t go to the library and read books for pleasure as much

as I once did. This wasn’t due to me slacking off in school and not seeing the value in literature,

rather it was the opposite. It was due to another literacy sponsor which was the International

Baccalaureate (IB) program. The IB program is a four-year program that is academically

challenging. During my senior year, I had to write an extended essay (along with many other

papers for each of my subjects) which caused me to do extensive research and write a paper that

was more than twenty pages. This was crucial in advancing my literacy because I had never

written a research paper that long or in-depth. I also had to read many scholarly journals and

other credible sources that used advanced and career-specific language. The IB program was also

a literacy sponsor because in my English classes we evaluated many books, plays, and poems.

Some of the books that I read in the program were “The Things They Carried” and “To Kill a

Mockingbird.” These books were different than the ones I read for pleasure, and I might not have

read them if I had not done the IB program. I certainty would not have intensely analyzed them

even if I had read them by choice. I also read many poems, such as a collection from Margaret

Atwood, which advanced my knowledge of literacy devices. My assignments required that I

delve deeply into the poems and analyze specific literacy techniques, styles, and choices. Also,

the teachers in the IB program were extremely motivated and were always dedicating time and

pushing us to increase our literacy skills.

I have been impacted by my literacy sponsors; much like Sandra Cisnero, author of The

Only Daughter. Cisnero is a woman with five brothers; she’s from a Mexican middle-class

working family. Her upbringing molded her personality. For example, Cisnero’s brothers didn’t

play with her because she was a girl which made her become interested in reading and writing. I

can relate in the sense that the experiences that I have gone through have also impacted my

writing and understanding of the world. In the IB program, I attended a school that I wasn’t

zoned for because it was the only school in the area that offered the program. This meant that I

didn’t know anyone in my high school and wasn’t going to the school that all my friends were

attending. Even though a new school certainly did not excite me, it caused me to really focus on
my academics because I didn’t have any friends that could distract me. Cisnero also discussed

how her father believed that she would just be someone’s wife. When she told her father that she

wanted to have more than that, he encouraged it even though he still believed that it was

important for a woman to be a wife. When Ciserno went through college and graduate school

and still wasn’t married, her father believed that it was a shame (Cisneros, 2017). I don’t really

relate to this part of Cisnero’s story because my mom and family have always supported my

goals and believe I will amount to greatness; they already think I've achieved greatness. I do

understand that women must oftentimes work harder to prove themselves in relation to their male

colleagues. Ciserno understood the influence of those around her, and she still had the innate

drive to create her own path. Her literacy sponsors and her upbringing shaped her, just as mine

shaped me.

My mom, the local public library, and the IB program have been crucial sponsors in

advancing my literacy. Who and what people are influenced by shape their perspective of the

world and literacy; young people lack experience and look to those around them for guidance.

People learn from the people, ideas, or institutions that are near and available to them. That is

why children who have talents/hobbies such as cooking, dancing, singing, usually have parents

or take classes that aid that particular interest. Without my literacy sponsors, I know for a fact I

wouldn’t have done as well in my English classes, and more importantly wouldn’t have gained

the knowledge I did from hearing and seeing varying perspectives.

 Work Cited

Brandt, Deborah. “Sponsors of Literacy.” Writing about Writing: A College Reader. 3rd ed.,
edited by Elizabeth Wardle and Doug Downs, Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2017, pp. 68-99.

Cisneros, Sandra. “Only Daughter.” Writing about Writing: A College Reader. 3rd ed., edited by
Elizabeth Wardle and Doug Downs, Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2017, pp. 101-105.