Literary Sponsors - Essay #2

Influential Persons That
Helped Shaped My Literacy Learning


As I was reading Other People’s Words by Victoria Purcell-Gates I read a line about researchers who focus on emergent literacy that caused me to re-think my early literacy events. She writes “…all children growing up in a literate society learn many important concepts about written language before they begin school” (42). For me that meant if researchers believed “unequivocally” that children learn about literacy before they entered the classroom then I had to re-examine what I remembered about my relationship with literacy before beginning my formal education.
During family gatherings I am often reminded that I was the only one of my four brothers and sisters who did not read before kindergarten. No reason was ever given why I did not learn to read but Purcell-Gates’ book made me recognize that my emergent literacy did begin with my mother and not in a classroom as I had thought. I had to quell the thought that because I did not learn to read before beginning school my mother was not instrumental in my learning.
In the morning my mother would read the Daily News at the dining room table with her cup of coffee. On Sundays she would give me the colorful part of the paper and I would pretend to read it. This continued until I could actually read the funnies myself. As my reading and spelling developed Mom would challenge me to do the kids version of the jumble in the newspaper. The jumble is a word puzzle where the reader is given 4 or 5 words to unscramble. Each word has a circled letter that when put together, it spells out the solution to the accompanying cartoon riddle. If I could not solve the last answer to the puzzle, my mother would give me a word that rhymed with the word I was seeking. That never failed in helping me find the answer. When the kids jumble became too easy for me I graduated to the daily jumble. These words were longer and much more difficult to figure out. My mother and I would sometimes do the puzzle together or she would solve half the words and I would solve the other half. Afterwards we’d figure out the solution together. It is only after reading Other People’s Words do I understand how this seemingly benign activity led to me being interactive with words. Unlike little Donny in Purcell-Gates’ case study, print entered my life at an early age and watching my mother engrossed in the paper did code my world (133). I mirrored her when I pretended to read the paper even though I did not know the importance of the act. All I knew was that what Mom was reading would sometime cause her to verbally respond. I heard “ain’t that the truth” or “what is this world coming to” or watched the simple shaking of her head as she read and so I imitated them too. Cultural magazines such as Ebony and Jet were a constant in my home as well. Initially, I didn’t pretend to read those texts as I did with the newspaper because I was more captivated by the photography in the magazines. As I grew older and began to comprehend the articles, some words were not as easy to understand. Instead of telling me what these words meant my mother would make me look them up in the dictionary. She said “look it up” so often I eventually stopped asking. It is only in retrospect that I see her directive was purposeful. I am sure I did not always look up the words in question as retrieving the heavy dictionary from the bookshelf and bringing it to the dining room table was work but if I could not detect the meaning from the sentence or the entire article then I would have to look up the word just to satisfy my curiosity.
Ebony, Jet and the Daily News were the constant forms of print in my home. These texts were so imbedded in my life I initially did not recognize them as having any significance to my learning. I mistakenly thought of literacy as the point where one has learned to read. Anything leading up to the point of actual reading for meaning did not enter my frame of thought as contributing factor to my emergent literacy. It is with this knowledge that I can now see that my mother was my first literary sponsor.
In determining which of my educators I would consider as my co-literary sponsor, I had to really go back and recognize any significant contribution they have made in furthering my learning. I don’t remember learning to read as much as I remember having to practice my letters. Although my fourth grade teacher encouraged me to write, the distinction of literacy sponsor would go to my fifth grade teacher, Jeffery Ratner, who is now a retired principal living on Long Island, New York.
Our elementary school had 4 or 5 classes per grade except pre-K and kindergarten. It is with no exaggeration that every child knew who Mr. Ratner was and that every child wanted him for their own. I wanted to be in his class just because they performed the best plays and went to Chinatown every year. Despite the fact that he had the reputation of being mean and hard on his students those who got in were deemed privileged amongst their peers and those that didn’t wished they had.
What was special about this educator was that he refused to treat a group of ten year olds like babies. Where we were getting milk before, with him we were getting a full meal. On the first day of class he said he would always be up front with us no matter what was going on in and around our school. This was during a time when staff changes were being made and teachers who were staples in the schools were leaving or being re-assigned to other grades. If anything happened, we heard it from him first. It is then I understood why it always seemed his students appeared much older and walked a little taller than the others.
Writing poems came easily to me in first and second grade as I always rhymed words by creating new “Roses are Red” poems for publication in the school newspaper. I am sure this had a lot to do with my mother giving me words that rhymed with the jumble answer I was looking to solve. By the time I was in fourth grade, I was writing 1-2 page short stories starring the members of my class. No one knew who I would write about next, and neither did I for that matter. However, when I reached Mr. Ratner’s class, I was in for a rude awakening. Looking back now, my writing was very… elementary. I used simple words to tell simple stories and Mr. Ratner was not a simple teacher. His first task was to have us pay attention to the boundaries of the paper. My refusal to adhere to the invisible margin on the right side of the loose leaf paper left me having to reproduce work over until all my writing was neatly place between the two red goal posts. I didn’t understand his obsession of these two poles but complied with grumbling as did the rest of the class. Little did I realize this practice not only taught me to pay attention to basic instructions but it facilitated in me learning how to break up multisyllabic words at the syllable instead of breaking them where I wanted. I knew what syllables were but I did not understand the rules until forced to pay attention to what I thought was a meaningless rule by a strict task master.
Because literacy involves being competent in reading, writing and interpreting texts, I chose my fifth grade teacher mainly because his choice of vocabulary words enriched my writing. Long gone were the 2 – 3 syllable words I received in previous classes. Now I was being introduced to words that were not part of my oral vocabulary words such as, “temerity,” “consequences” and my favorite word, “idiosyncrasy.” It was exciting, for me at least, to see on Monday what words he would test us on by Friday. Mr. Ratner made sure the class used the words during the week and in the readings he assigned for homework. It was not easy for me at first because I did not know how to study. I had no older brother or sister that could teach me how. As a learner I did not always understand what I was supposed to do to retain the information. How do I study? I wouldn’t raise my hands to ask questions. In short, I did not want to appear stupid so I did not understand the value of asking questions. In addition I was comfortable in my old habits of double negative usage and dangling participles in my speaking and writing. Why wasn’t it good enough for him when all my previous educators applauded and praised my efforts? I felt he was picking on me but subconsciously knew he was expecting the same from all of us.
On the back of our report card there was a space provided where teachers would write their comments on our progress. I still remember his neat handwriting on my report card. I was acutely aware that his black fountain pen with the balled, metal tip would make his E’s look like the number 3 every time. On one report he wrote something similar to “Nayanda’s improving nicely but she would do better if she learned to use the dictionary more.” Until this day, I attribute my love for the dictionary to Mr. Ratner. He pointed out how using the dictionary is more than just looking for the unfamiliar as he showed me the pronunciation key, the notation for parts of speech and the related words. The introduction of antonyms and homonyms further increased my writing as now I was able to call upon words that earlier weren’t available to me. Needless to say, the love affair caused me to refer to the dictionary frequently when reading books and the newspaper for current event articles as he had instructed.
In our elementary school library I was introduced to books that did not have large printed words or pictures of literary scenes every few pages. I needed the dictionary to navigate through new words brought to me by new texts. I became familiar with Judy Blume and other young adult writers in fiction as well as the poetry of Langston Hughes and Phyllis Wheatly. It is in fifth grade I came to fully comprehend Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech as we prepared for a play celebrating his birth. What did it mean to me in the bicentennial year of 1976 when the country was celebrating its independence from Britain while the black community was still missing its first national leader? I was not used to thinking that deeply. Not only did we read varied texts but the goal was to understand what we read. Mr. Ratner opened the door to what was possible for me as a learner in a culturally mixed neighborhood in Long Island City, Queens. I would say our classroom had a slightly larger African-American population but that was not indicative of all the classrooms in the school. My elementary school was pretty mixed as many of my friends were of different ethnic backgrounds.
Whereas before I was a rhyming fanatic, I had now become more engrossed in why a text was written and wanted to discover the purpose for which it was written. I was no longer afraid to ask questions because I understood those answers brought me additional clarity. My reading took a path of its own I didn’t foresee. My short story writing ceased as I compared my writing with what I was reading. I knew the days of cute little stories were over as poetry, especially Haikus, became a dominant part of my personal writing.
At 10 years old I learned to be responsible for my own knowledge. Instead of having books being recommended for me, I was now exploring the possibilities myself. What was provided was a foundation, a blueprint, if you will of what I could know. From that moment on, I knew my education was up to me.

Analysis

Unfortunately, I don’t remember our first writing assignment but what I do remember is that no one in my class adhered to the margin rules. Mr. Ratner called us up one by one to retrieve our papers from his desk questioning us in different ways about the margin on the right hand side of the paper. Sure the margin was, in fact, on the reverse side of the paper but it wasn’t invisible to the eye. That was the point. Mr. Ratner forced us to see what we refused to see, notice what we weren’t supposed to notice.
We wrote letters to the Daily News and New York Post when we were particularly interested in something. I remember the excitement of a classmate as he received a response from Jimmy Breslin. That only encouraged us more. We wrote letters to the networks about our favorite shows and even wrote to our favorite news anchors. Mr. Ratner taught us the difference between informal and formal writing and why we use one to write business letters and the other for pen pal letters. One of the writing forms that stand out the most is our “thank you” letter to the restaurant where we had lunch on our trip to Chinatown. We had to be very specific in this letter so the owner would know who we were. Therefore we had to put the date and time of our visit, what dish we were served and the name of our waiter, if we remembered. We also had to add something specific about the visit such as the fish tank in the corner or the décor on the walls. We were encouraged to write what we liked and didn’t like about our visit and after we wrote two or three drafts, they were sent out the following week. The payoff came when we received a letter back from the restaurant written by the daughter of the owner who did not speak English. The practice of letter writing showed us that we could engage with adults on a level totally unfamiliar to most of us. We could even get a response with purposeful, well thought out words.
I believe Mr. Ratner knew that most of us came from homes where parents were not college graduates, much less high school graduates. I can only believe he wanted to show us how what we thought and what we said meant something. I would say our classroom had a slightly larger African-American population but that was not indicative of all the classrooms in my elementary school. Most of the African-American children during my era grew up learning to be seen and not heard. What this meant was that at home or even in public places, in the company of adults, we were to remain quiet. Children were not allowed to talk back, ask questions or interrupt adults in conversation without saying “excuse me.” If the “excuse me” was not acknowledged we retreated until an opportunity presented itself where the adult we needed was not busy. This practice was also useful in making sure as children we did not say too much at a time that was inappropriate.
In this teacher we found a place where this practice was not the case. Perhaps that was why our vocabulary words were not the typical fifth grade fare. I do not believe a majority of today’s 10 year olds would know the meaning of temerity or idiosyncrasy. But because he taught on a different level than I was used to my dictionary was my new best friend and I was constantly being teased by my siblings who tried to hide it whenever they could. It is from my reading for this class I understand these lists of vocabulary words along with the weekly list of spelling words are part of the world recognition view of reading. But as ideas about how children learn were beginning to change in the 70’s to a more cognitive view (Freeman 2), I think Mr. Ratner sought to bring some of the community into the classroom. I do not recall specific images hanging on the classroom walls but I do know his particular taste in music mirrored some of our own and when there was down time he would play the music of Natalie Cole or The Temptations on a small record player he kept in the classroom.
We had a number of Asian-American students in our classroom and throughout school so our trip to Chinatown allowed us a glimpse into this culture. After the trip the Asian students would answer questions about what the red tassels hanging in the restaurant represented, why was it customary to bow as opposed to shaking hands or how did they learn to use chopsticks.
He expanded my view of what community was by asking us to search for articles to share with the class. None of us were allowed to bring in cartoons or crime related stories. We had to write briefly what the article was about. This was the time of year where Gerald Ford was defeated by Jimmy Carter in the presidential election, NASA had a new space shuttle name Enterprise (which pleased the Star Trek fans) and celebration of America’s 200 years of independence from Britain was the talk of the year. Fidel Castro was now the president of Cuba and I had no idea who he was or where Cuba was located. Having to seek out a new article to share each week was interesting. This is where I first learned to think critically, although I didn’t know that is what I was doing. Basic questions that would come up for me is why is this news? Who is the audience that this article addresses? How do you feel, what is your response? Because I had to discuss the article in detail picking one became personal as it allowed me to verbally express and write what I knew and understood about the news clippings.
In fifth grade I was challenged to write things purposely, to have an intention. I was challenged to keep in mind who I was writing to and the reason for my letter. If I was writing a story or poem, what was its purpose to me and to the audience? For a while I stopped writing creatively because I felt what I had to say was not important enough. I no longer wrote to entertain my classmates as I felt a somewhat bigger responsibility. I knew words were important. My mother thought so every morning she sat with her paper and her coffee. They made her speak out loud to no one in particular. Words had power to elicit responses and the proof was there in my class where students were receiving letters from complete strangers. Not everyone received an autographed picture or an acknowledgement letter. We learned not to always depend on one. However, the lesson learned in writing letters to various individuals or entities was to effectively voice an opinion, concern or problem in hopes of having it addressed, if not responded to, in some form. This practice gave us a voice with adults we might not have ever had outside the classroom. We were free to express ourselves without fear of being shushed or ignored. Perhaps that is why I recall this particular classroom activity so vividly. I could say what I felt and thought without being interrupted or dismissed. Today, I still believe in the power of an effective letter.
As I came to know Mr. Ratner and see his passion for his students I was drawn to him for everything. I truly did not want to disappoint this man. I wanted everything I put in front of him to be the best work I could give. It was no longer about making my classmates smile but having a paper returned that said “good work” or “nice job” or “good use of vocabulary” that would make my day. He gave us easy access to him as we not only had him in class but we could get his home number only if we looked it up in the phone book. I was one of the few that did and I was able to maintain a relationship with him over the years.
I believe he had inklings of the drama that was going on in the lives of his students. But because family issues were kept in the family, no one dared talked about the abuse, hunger or unsafe living conditions that they were experiencing. Only after his students of 1976-1977 were adults with their own children did we realize we had some of the same problems happening in our homes. This was a time in society where teachers did not ask a student about anything in their life outside of the classroom. I think if Mr. Ratner were to ask me back then if my father had a drinking problem, I would have denied it. Family business was not to be shared with school adults and I am sure Mr. Ratner understood that part of our culture very well. The consequences for me saying anything negative about my home life would have been detrimental to my posterior. I believe this is why he created a learning environment that we all could feel safe in, where we could be seen and heard. Even today when his birthday comes around he will receive messages on Facebook from former students proclaiming how influential he was in their lives. He served as a surrogate father figure for some and he refused to let them fall by the wayside. He encouraged what we knew and asked us why we didn’t know. He saw our potential and showed it back to us as often as he could.
Because of both my early literacy sponsors I learned to write purposeful letters, read books that were foreign to me, pronounce words properly and find the meanings of any word I did not know. I learned to substitute words, read the first chapter of a book before making a judgment and look beyond the funnies for the news within my community. My mother and I enjoy playing Scrabble together and have included the children to participate in the game as well thereby helping them to explore and/or add to their oral vocabulary.
I would love to say everything was smooth sailing after that but not so. I became spoiled with him as a teacher. It was a number of years before I met someone else that was as passionate and engaging with students as he was. Unfortunately, that wasn’t until college. But his influence still came across in my scholastic writing. For example, in my 12th grade English honors class, we were told to write a paper on why Huckleberry Finn should or should not be taught in schools. We had to present an argument and use “12th grade vocabulary” to explain our position. My high school was located in the Hell’s Kitchen area of Manhattan, predominately Latin and African-American students with an average population of students whose grades were considered good.
When Mrs. Spilotro finished returning the essays, I realized mine was not given back. Fear gripped me because I thought it was misplaced or she didn’t like my handwriting (she’d do that on occasion) and I had to write it over. She announced to the class that of all the papers she received this was the one that followed her directions and was fully thought out and a pleasure to read. Mrs. Spilotro read my paper to the class and I could not close my mouth. I really wish I had kept a copy of it. I remember that I was for the teaching of the book in schools because of its historical setting. I remember using words like “consistently” and “derogatory” as I was explaining my position. When she handed my paper back to me she gave me the smallest wink, as she was not known to show any emotion whatsoever and I never felt more proud of myself.
Unfortunately, I could not consider her as literary sponsor as this is the only significant interaction I remember from receiving from her. The attention and nurturing I received in fifth grade did not follow me to the other grades. I can barely recall any conversations, praises or admonitions, except this one, from any of my other educators that followed Mr. Ratner. What I do know is that everything I learned about writing I learned in fifth grade. In the book entitled Literacy For All Students page 133 reads “Culturally responsive teachers build on what students know to help them make connections to new concepts” (133). This is where Mr. Ratner thrived. He became immersed in our culture, what we were watching, what we were listening to and incorporated it into our learning. I imagine he thought, how do you allow a child to have a voice when they are not used to having one? Write letters. How do you introduce a culture the majority of the students are unfamiliar with? Take them to an area that is rich in that culture. I am not sure whether in 1976-1977 this would be considered radical teaching but I do know if my subsequent teachers were as attentive to our needs as students as he was, I would have included them as my literary sponsors as well.




Works Cited

Brandt, Deborah. Literacy and Learning: Reflections on Writing, Reading and Society. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2009.

Freeman, David E., and Yvonne S. Freeman. Essential Linguistics: What You Need to Know to Teach Reading, ESL, Spelling, Phonics and Grammar. Portsmouth: Heinemann, 2004.

Powell, Rebecca and Elizabeth C. Rightmyer, ed. Literacy For All Students: An Instructional Framework for Closing the Gap. New York: Routlegde, 2011.

Purcell-Gates, Victoria. Other People’s Words: The Cycle of Low Literacy. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1995.