S-T-O-P
“It is physically impossible to not read,” claimed my fourth grade friend. This was the friend that devoured chapter books like cookies in first grade and was well above average in all of her reading scores. Without a doubt, she was the opposite of me. “Of course,” I reasoned, “It’s physically impossible for you.” After thinking about it though, I became aware of the fact that many of us become so literate by fourth grade, that we read without even realizing that we are reading. Just like many other fourth graders, I was able to read signs passing by, book covers on the shelf in front of me, or posters on the wall effortlessly and involuntarily. I never thought about it until that point however. Basically, I took the ability to read and write for granted.
After she told me about the impossibility of not reading, I became more aware of the words around me. As a fourth grader, I didn’t have to stare at the red octagons on the road and think, “S-T-O-P… ssstttt… aaaahhh… P… STOP!” Similarly, I was able to walk into a new building and find the restrooms because it was easy to find read posters and …show more content…
I was able to understand Hindi jokes and nuances, but there were words that I did not understand: the words on billboards, book covers, signs, and posters. All the signs were just funny looking scribbles, and I found myself constantly asking, “What does that one say?” My mom always patiently responded, “That says ‘restroom’, do you need to go?” or, “That says ‘smoking is prohibited,’ but you don’t need to worry about that.” I eventually became so interested that I dragged my mom to the corner store with me to buy some books on Hindi. I received some weird looks from the store owner when I bought them. I guess he wasn’t exactly used to fifth graders buying books on their ABC’s. Because I hadn’t done anything like this since kindergarten, I felt like a child again. This new but familiar experience excited me
“It is physically impossible to not read,” claimed my fourth grade friend. This was the friend that devoured chapter books like cookies in first grade and was well above average in all of her reading scores. Without a doubt, she was the opposite of me. “Of course,” I reasoned, “It’s physically impossible for you.” After thinking about it though, I became aware of the fact that many of us become so literate by fourth grade, that we read without even realizing that we are reading. Just like many other fourth graders, I was able to read signs passing by, book covers on the shelf in front of me, or posters on the wall effortlessly and involuntarily. I never thought about it until that point however. Basically, I took the ability to read and write for granted.
After she told me about the impossibility of not reading, I became more aware of the words around me. As a fourth grader, I didn’t have to stare at the red octagons on the road and think, “S-T-O-P… ssstttt… aaaahhh… P… STOP!” Similarly, I was able to walk into a new building and find the restrooms because it was easy to find read posters and …show more content…
I was able to understand Hindi jokes and nuances, but there were words that I did not understand: the words on billboards, book covers, signs, and posters. All the signs were just funny looking scribbles, and I found myself constantly asking, “What does that one say?” My mom always patiently responded, “That says ‘restroom’, do you need to go?” or, “That says ‘smoking is prohibited,’ but you don’t need to worry about that.” I eventually became so interested that I dragged my mom to the corner store with me to buy some books on Hindi. I received some weird looks from the store owner when I bought them. I guess he wasn’t exactly used to fifth graders buying books on their ABC’s. Because I hadn’t done anything like this since kindergarten, I felt like a child again. This new but familiar experience excited me