Exercise 8

Exercise 8: Sponsorship Pattern Report

Write a brief report (250-500 words) that explores some of the major patterns in your literacy history in regards to your sponsors of literacy. You might consider the following (or similar) questions in order to complete this assignment: 

• Have you experienced primarily positive or negative literacy sponsorship? 


• Have you “misappropriated” much of your sponsorship? 


• Have you dealt with many obstacles in order to acquire your literacy? 


• What kinds of sponsors have been most or least effective toward your literacy development? 


• Has some aspect of your sponsorship(s) instigated or contributed toward a change in attitude or perspective about your literacy or life? 


• What other patterns, dynamics, interactions, or relationships have you noticed as you consider and reflect on your literacy sponsors? 

You might choose to present a report based on an outline you make before writing the report, or you might choose to freewrite your response to this assignment, jotting down whatever words or ideas come to mind. Whatever you choose, your report should lead up to and include a tentative thesis/main claim for your literacy sponsorship analysis. (You are not obligated to keep this thesis in your final essay, but it will be good to have something to begin with.) Please highlight this tentative thesis. 

Exercise 9: Freedom Writers Report

For this assignment, you will watch a couple of videos. The first video features a TEDx talk given by Erin Gruwell (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDq9o9j3-CU&feature=youtu.be), the teacher whose class inspired the movie. The second video features an interview with Maria Reyes (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=797_cGr4pwE&feature=youtu.be), one of Ms. Gruwell’s former students, whose life inspired the character Eva from the film. 

After watching the videos, write a brief report of 250-750 words (about one to two-and-a-half pages) that answers the following questions: 

• What did you learn (or have reemphasized) about writing by watching these videos? What do these videos suggest or reveal about literacy sponsorship? 


• What are some of the literacy sponsors mentioned in the videos? How are they sponsors, and what were some of the effects of their sponsorship? 


• What thoughts about your own writing, writing experiences, literacy sponsors, etc., do these clips bring about?