Imante E.

Daily Writings
1. My Mother, Grandfather, Father, Teachers, God Mother, and television characters have all
helped mold my literacy narrative. My Mother would often read to me and ask me what
words were whenever we stumbled across anything interesting on everyday items such as
cereal boxes. My Grandfather taught in the New York City school system as an English
teacher and always stressed the importance of correct grammar. My other family members as
well as my teachers all also helped me in their own ways.
2. School was always extremely influential in my learning to read, write and compose. I often
would connect different subjects to what I learned in my language arts or English classes.
Words or phrases I heard from teachers would be incorporated into my writing assignments
and I was eager to discover new ones. In English class I would experiment with syntax,
finding different ways to say the same thing without being repetitive and I would search for
exotic new words that I could implement into daily conversations.
3. At my school book fairs were popular for the little gadgets they had. My classmates would
marvel at the twenty dollar PDAs and envy those whose parents succumbed to their begging
and purchased them one. The most memorable books I chose to purchase were captain
underpants books I recall them being extremely interactive and having integrated animations
manipulated by rapid page flipping.
4. When I was younger my mother would always ask me what words were. I would give my
best attempt at sounding them out and if I was wrong she would provide guidance. After the
years of my mother assisting me I began reading everyday things on my own trying to
decipher large words. One object I loved to read off of was the box that housed the various
cereals I loved as a child.
5. I can connect with identify with Lily when she thinks about her mother and if she ever read
the books she learned to read. When I was younger I studied the same things my mother had
to and whenever I had a reading assignment it was often from a book that she had read at one
point as well.
6. I do not know
My Jewish grandfathers actual family name.
If any of my family served in the military
All of my ancestors careers
My biological father
7. I know that MLA format is very specific about references and that it seems to be the most
commonly used format, simply because I have only been required to use it when writing
papers. I have not looked in the MLA section of my handbook at all.
8. Every thanksgiving and Christmas my father, Fred makes his famous (or so he thinks) sweet
potato pie. It is delicious and is loved by family and anyone that tastes it. I often watch him
make it and try to pick up on his technique. It seems to just be loads of sugar and a possible
overuse of sweet potatoes. The only equipment required is a blender, a whisk, a bowl and an
oven.
9. In much of society, research means to investigate something you do not know or
understand. When I do not know something, since I constantly have access to technology
and the internet, via my cell phone I immediately research the topic through google to find
out about it. If I am in class with my laptop at hand and I hear something from the professor
that I do not understand or a subject is brought up that I once knew I will go search for
information on the internet.
10. The best way for me to find research is to search it in all search engines such as google and
bing and follow every seemingly credible link. It also helps a great deal when the subject I m
researching is somewhat relevant to my life. At that point I am able to research different
nuances of the topic that I might not know of if it was new to me. As a researcher I never use
Wikipedia the website is cursed to me as I have always been told not to use it because of the
falsities the website possesses.
11. I have a photograph of me and my mother. Both of us in our youth. I was around 12 months
and she was in her twenties. She is looking down lovingly at me as I stare blankly, goofily at
the camera. This represents our goofy relationship laced with love.
12. During my time at UTOP, each day I have class I also have what is called Universal Hour.
Universal Hour is an hour dedicated to hearing a speaker or speakers talk about things tat
pertain to me as a new student at UNC Charlotte. One of the presentations that really touched
base with me was that of Dr. Turner, a well rounded professor and obviate authority here on
campus. She touched on making the best first impression possible with peers as well as
professors. She made the topic relatable to me by sharing some of her personal experiences
with students who did the opposite. Dr. Turners presentation caused me to be more fully
aware of the way I present myself in the classroom and to strive for better involvement in
class discussions.
13. My current situation in my semester long project involves gathering research. I want to make
sure I am well versed in the topic I am going to speak about. My topic is the Holocaust and it
is very complex. I want to make sure I am able to answer any questions I am faced with. The
holocaust is also a very common topic in High School so I would also like to find
information that is not so common.
14. A hard decision I had to make recently was whether or not to join the UTOP program. I was
offered an internship for the summer which would have earned me close to two thousand
dollars while providing me with experience necessary to succeed as an engineer. I had
interned during the spring semester of high school and was expecting to do the same during
the summer while participating in UTOP. When I found out we were not allowed to leave
campus I wanted to just accept the internship offer, however, I chose to get a few classes out
of the way and learn the campus I would be at in the fall. I was also provided with a full
scholarship.
15. The picture was of someone I did not recognize. Therefore I was forced create a topic on the
fly which was somewhat difficult, however, upon deciding on the topic it became an easier
task than it seemed to be previously. The only point at which it became difficult, was when I
kind of ran out of things to say. This will not happen during my semester long project; if
anything I will not have enough time to speak.
16. UTOP has actually been mainly what I expected. I expected to be faced with a heavy
workload and I was. As professor Raymond stated at the kickoff, UTOP is a 16 week
semester squeezed into 6. The classes involve a large amount of work and have given me
experience that will help once the fall semester starts. I am glad to have made mistakes now
to be able to avoid them later. When I first heard about UTOP I thought it would be a taste of
the true freedom college provides. This was the only part that was not true; the program is
very structured. We are given an eleven o clock curfew which can be at times very limiting,
and we are not allowed to leave campus.