Alexina Laliberte

Mrs. Thomas
UWRT 1101-103
9/25/14
My Life and Literature: Based on a True Story
Self-Assessment: Creative writing papers are not my strong suit. Research papers are.
So, naturally, I struggled to begin writing this paper and make it creative. But, it didn't take me
long to write once I got started. I think that this paper accurately reflects how my literacy was
included in my life. I think that my paper has some strong and weak points. I think that my paper
could evolve into a more creative piece with some guidance. But, besides this I think that my paper is a solid piece and that it flows pretty well.
My earliest memories of literacy come way before my time in school. The furthest back I
can remember would be about when I was 2. I remember my parents, but mostly my mom, reading little stories to me. Simple Stories. Stories about giving a pig a pancake, a curious monkey, a
boy who colored the world with his purple crayon, and many more. Most of the stories I listened
to were little paperback books that had no real educational purpose, but my mom knew they
would help me. And help me they did. I remember every night before bed she would read to me.
She knew it relaxed me. Reading to me every night became routine. Once I was able to understand the words and read back to her, she had me read the books to her. On the nights that I didn't
want to read, she would tell me that reading was important. She essentially convinced me to read
to her. She told me that reading would help me learn quicker and help me become a smart little
girl. I was too young to really understand at the time, but she was right. Moms are always right.

At 4 years old I went into preschool. The preschool I attended in Rhode Island was part
of a K-12 school system. We were an all-girls, private, Catholic school. Preschool was very advanced. Every morning, we would come into the classroom and play for about 15 minutes until
we weren't antsy anymore. Once our teacher was ready to start class, she had us all sit in a semicircle. We all had to read something in the morning. Each week new kids were rotated out to
read the days of the week, the month and year, the weather, and the lesson. Our teacher would
help us sound words out, but we were usually left to sound it out on our own. This was always
my favorite part of the morning. I loved to read these little things out loud because it made me
feel like a teacher. Reading was a main part of my elementary years. I stayed at the same school
through 3rd grade and went to a different school for 4-8th grade. Reading was a required subject
on top of your standard phonics or English class at the first school I attended. At the second
school I attended, reading was still an important part of education. Like at my other school, there
was an actual library for the whole school to use and a miniature library of books in the back of
all of my classrooms. The books in each classroom corresponded to the subject that the teacher
was teaching. We were told that if we completed work early, we had to to read until the rest of
the class completed their work. In both elementary schools, we were required to have an elective
class called Library. In this class, we had to go to the library and read for 45 minutes to an
hour. In the younger grades, the librarian read to us and sometimes we had to read back to her.
Once we got older, we read on our own and learned about how the library worked. We learned
about the dewey decimal system, the history of the library, etc. No matter what grade we were in,
we were required to check out a book, or a taped book (for the little kids), and write about it. In
4th and 5th grade we had to complete at least 25-30 book reports by the end of the year. It was
instilled in us that reading would be an important part in our lives and that reading would be the

gateway to success. We all read at our own reading levels, but most of the kids, including myself, were a grade or two ahead. My teachers told me that in middle school we would be reading
higher levels of books and that we would need to be great readers. They were right. Teachers are
always right.
In the middle school I attended (which was the same school I attended for 4-5th grade),
reading class was no longer a class you took. We took language arts, writing, and library. In all
of the classrooms there were books and computers for us to use for reading and writing. We were
required to read a book after taking a test or completing an assignment and read until the rest of
the class finished. In most of my classes, if not all, we were required to read a book that had to
do with the subject matter. We then had to do a personal or group report and sometimes a project
on it. The years in middle school that stood out to me the most would be my 7th and 8th grade
years. I had two teachers who made a positive impact on my writing and literature. My english
and language arts teachers. They helped prepare me for my high school career. They treated us
middle school students like responsible high school students. We were required to write papers,
take tests on books we read, and complete a certain amount of work. In both my 7th and 8th
grade language arts class, we completed the book that had all of our assignments in it. The book
had different lessons for writing, sentence structure, etc. We went through and completed all of
the lessons and assignments in one school year. Although it was a lot of work, it was worth it.
My teachers told me, at the beginning of the year, that the work that we were doing would be
preparing us for high school. At the end of the year, they told us that everything that we have
learned would make high school easy. They were right. Teachers are always right.
High school came along. I wasn't a little middle schooler anymore. I was required to read
books on my own and do even more summer reading than I ever did before. I went to an all-girls,

private, Catholic high school for 9th to 11th grade. Freshman year, I was required to write an
iSearch paper. This was a 12 page paper on one word. One word. I wrote about the word Inspiration. Let me be the 100th, and most certainly not the last, person to say that this was the hardest paper to write. But, because my mom and teachers helped and supported me, I was able to
write the paper without any major issues. My mom supported me by complimenting me on the
really good parts. She helped me by reviewing my paper and giving me constructive criticism
when needed. My teachers helped me with the technical parts of the paper. They offered review
sessions in our schools writing lab. In the lab, they helped me correct errors in the paper and
prevent others from occurring. Sophomore year I didn't have any major papers, but I had many
papers that I had to write. Junior year came along and, once again, I had to write many papers,
but nothing major. At this high school, we were told that in order to be successful women in society, an education in literature would be crucial. Before my senior year I moved to North Carolina. It was a huge change from the life I lived in Rhode Island, but I adjusted fairly well. I attended a public, co-ed high school. This school was not as advanced as my old school. I unknowingly retook an english class. The curriculum was at least a year or two behind. I was ahead of
my class and I didn't learn anything new. I had to do a research paper that analyzed a piece of
literature. For this paper, we had to analyze any classic literature piece and write about certain
aspects. I chose to write about The Lord of the Flies, which I had read my sophomore year of
high school. We had to do many days of extensive research. I was ahead of everyone during this
assignment solely due to the advanced amount of work I had done at my previous high school.
At both of the high schools I attended, we were required to read and write about books that had
to do with our curriculum. My high school teachers told me that out of high school, my writing
would be critiqued on a much more critical level. That I would need to learn to grow. That I

would eventually have to get out of my comfort zone. They were right. Teachers are always
right.
I have been very lucky to receive, and continue to receive, my education. Whether I was
aware of it or not, literature has always been a part of my life. I have been given instruction and
support by all of my family. I never struggled with reading or writing and I owe it all to my mom
for starting me out young. I don't think that I could've gotten to the point I am at in my education
without the support and positivity of my teachers. From here, as a college freshman, I plan to
grow as a writer. To become more open. To become more creative. I had a feeling that I would
need to learn to become a better writer in college and that I would be forced to step outside my
comfort zone. Although I am not always right, I was right this time.