dicussion
Damond
Journal1-_MyEnglish_need3differentanswer.pdf
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 1/14
This is a graded discussion: 10 points possible due Sep 13
Journal #1- "My English" 6 25
Journal #1 Discussion for "My English" by Julia Alvarez To participate in today’s class and receive credit for Journal #1, you need to do the following 3 parts. Journal points (30 possible for the semester) will be recorded in my paper grade book, but the discussion and participation part will be recorded as a discussion/participation grade.
Part 1: Journal #1--Read “My English" by Julia Alvarez at the link:
http://mistertanttila.weebly.com/uploads/4/5/5/3/45537305/my_english_0.pdf22 (http://mistertanttila.weebly.com/uploads/4/5/5/3/45537305/my_english_0.pdf)
(http://mistertanttila.weebly.com/uploads/4/5/5/3/45537305/my_english_0.pdf) Part 2: Summarize in a few sentences what Alvarez has learned from her experience (no more than 50 words). (Annotations and notes will help you to summarize the main idea.)
Part 3: Submit the answers to two of the following discussion questions here as a DISCUSSION by Thursday (200 words) (3pts for the journal/ 5 pts for the discussion).
Part 4: Read two of your classmates’ reading responses and discussion questions and REPLY by Sunday. Each reply should be 50-100 words (2.5 pts for each reply).
Discussion Questions (answer 2 questions):
1. Does anything in the reading remind you of your own experiences with language? If so, what is similar?
2. How do the language experiences Alvarez describes differ from your own language experiences? Why do these differences exist?
3. What method does Sister Maria use to teach Alvarez English? How does this method differ from the way she was taught at the Carol Morgan School? (compare and contrast) Which method does Alvarez prefer and why? (assess)
4. Which details in the text stand out in your mind, enabling you to see, hear, or feel what happened? How do these details affect your enjoyment and understanding of the experiences described?
5. How do Alvarez's ideas about English change as she learns the language?
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 2/14
Search entries or author
Reply
Unread Subscribe
(https:// Minh Pham (She/Her) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3646350) Sunday
Part 2: Summarize in a few sentences what Alvarez has learned from her experience
Julia Alvarez lived under a dictatorship where people didn't have a voice, or human rights. The writer has learned from her experience the meaning of the power of writing to change her life and change the world such as achieving her education goal as a successful writer showing how the good thing came out of the horrible situation.
Part 3: Discussion Questions (answer 2 questions):
What method does Sister Maria use to teach Alvarez English? How does this method differ from the way she was taught at the Carol Morgan School? (compare and contrast) Which method does Alvarez prefer and why? (assess)
Sister Maria uses a creating method to teach Alvarez English without overloading the writer to make the writer feel learning with pleasure by imaging the nature such as snow, cloud, sky closer with learners. On the other hand, the way the writer was taught at the Carol Morgan School by forcing staff education with pressure. Alvarez prefers Sister Maria methods rather than Carol Morgan School’s methods. The writer found herself through Sister Maria’s methods make writer’s brain creative learning for fun when winter feels that she comes back to writer’s country, while Carol Morgan School’s methods make writer pressure about english words unwilling to learn lead to hard to remember vocabularies. Sister Maria starts with an easy way such as a simple sentence “the snow fell" to make the writer feel comfortable to learn easily and this method activates the writer’s imagination while Carol Morgan School’s methods are starting the hard things like grammar structure to make the writer feel uncomfortable learning english.
How do Alvarez's ideas about English change as she learns the language?
Alvarez’s ideas about English change as she learns the language difference from the beginning. At the beginning, the writer thinks english is the way her parents want to hide her from secret conversation. After the writer learned english, the writer changed her mind to become positive thinking about english such as the writer wrote “ I was no longer a foreigner with no ground to stand on”. The writer believes that her english is proficient through her english by love.
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 3/14
Reply
(http Liangqi Min (She/Her) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3761666) Thursday
Reply
Hi, Minh I quite agree with your idea that Alvarez has a negative attitude towards learning at the beginning. From the very beginning, Alvarez had a hard time getting interested in learning English and having the confidence to learn it well. So if we want to really learn a subject well, the first thing we need to do is to try to get interested in it.
(http Joseph (He/Him) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3793433) Thursday
Reply
there are many different ways to "teach", but some ways are more efficient than others. I think that Sister Maria's method makes learning more fun and easy-going. It makes the student less pressured and wants them to be more engaged in learning.
(https:// Dabin Sul (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3622687) Monday
Part. 2: Summarize in a few sentences what Alvarez has learned from her experience
This story is the young kid from the Dominican Republic, transiting negative impressions about the English to positive. The beauty of the way of learning the “language.” Change of her impression changed her into a successful and very professional writer.
Does anything in the reading remind you of your own experiences with language? If so, what is similar?
It does remind me when I just immigrant to the US. I completely understand the way how the writer used the Spanglish and struggled with pressure learning. As you can tell by my name, I’m from Asia, and my first school was 99% Spanish student. It was odd that Asian students had to learn English in Spanish. English because very chaotic and didn’t even realize they taught me English in Spanish until later on because I didn’t speak English at
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 4/14
Reply
that time and couldn’t tell which one is English or Spanish. However, I moved the school where there are more white and Asian people and start realizing real English.
How do Alvarez's ideas about English change as she learns the language
Her impression of English was negative. Even when she just thought her parent’s secret language was just the more challenging Spanish version. Her parents used English to discuss bad situations because they did not want the child to know. She could guess that they talked about the bad situations because she can read her mother’s gesture. When she entered the Carol Morgan School, she was under the pressure learning circumstances like teaching by rote. Different languages made her feel like a foreigner, who cannot belong to the “English” country when she immigrated to the US. Her perspective of the English became positive after she learns in the way how Sister’s maria taught her. I learned with imagination and creativity. She expressed that she feels more comfortable by saying, “I had landed in the English language.”
(http Minh Pham (She/Her) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3646350) Tuesday
Reply
Hi Dabin
I agree with you that the writer of " My English" had the negative thought about English for the first time. The writer though that her parents want to hide their conversation through English because she had negative impression about English. On the other hand, Writer's mother asked her practise English at home even though the writer was not comfortable at Carol Morgan School. The Writer was changed her mind when she find out the power of English as her new home. For example, the writer sinks into the english stories of Sister Maria where the writer finds herself back in her homeland. Thank you for your sharing
(http Joseph (He/Him) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3793433) Thursday
Reply
Hey Dabin,
I feel the same way about learning English. When I first came to the states, I went to school without knowing anything about English. It didn't help with the fact that i was the only Asian in the school. I struggled with communicating with fellow students and teachers and I was very stressed.
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 5/14
(https:// Ana Hernandez (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3792507) Tuesday
Reply
Part. 2: Summarize in a few sentences what Alvarez has learned from her experience
Alvarez learned to like the English language instead of associating it with a negative feeling. Through her own way, like finding quirky sentences and words, her thoughts on the language impacted her enough to grow fond of the language. It influenced her enough to become a successful writer.
1. Does anything in the reading remind you of your own experiences with language? If so, what is similar?
The struggles that the author had with learning the English language is something I can relate to. My first language was Spanish and everyone I interacted with when I was small spoke that language to me which engrained it even further into me. My parents spoke little English, only the common yes or no to get by, which left me without anyone to teach me or give me a start on learning. Eventually, I picked English up when I was enrolled in kindergarten but even now after years of speaking English there's certain words I don't know the term for in English when I do in Spanish. It works in the opposite way as well, I know some Spanish words and not English.
2. How do the language experiences Alvarez describes differ from your own language experiences? Why do these differences exist?
One strong difference between the author and me when we were in the process of learning English was that she started liking it enough to start up an 'English storm' whereas I was scared to speak it. I felt very timid speaking it to people since I was new to the language and was insecure I would misunderstand something. Specifically what taped my mouth shut was an incident where my kindergarten announced a bring your stuffed animal to school day and I understood it as bring your pet to schoool day. I didn't have a pet so I asked my parents to adopt a pet fish for me to bring to school. They thought it was a quirky thing for an American school system to do and bought me a fish ready for the day where I had to bring it. Luckily I didnt bring it because a friend of my Mom who spoke both English and Spanish explained that the day was for stuffed animals and I brought a carebear to school instead of my new fish. These different experiences were shaped from family's familiarity with English. While the authors parents knew English mine didn't which created a different path for me.
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 6/14
(http Ashley Mendez (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3792172) Wednesday
Reply
Hi Ana :).
I relate to you, as a little kid I only spoke Spanish. Interacting with others my age when I would go to the park would be hard because I did no understand what they were saying. I used to do this a few years back, any terms in English that I did not understand or know I write put them down in my notes on my phone then on my free time or when I am bored I go back to them. Just to try to know the term more and its meaning.
(http Liangqi Min (She/Her) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3761666) Thursday
Reply
Hi, Ana
Like you, I was born into a family that didn't speak much English. The subject of English was to be a boring and boring course like any other. Because I didn't use English in daily life, my English level grew very slowly at the beginning. However, when I came to Los Angeles and began to learn English, My English improved very fast.
(https:// Liangqi Min (She/Her) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3761666) Wednesday
Part 2: Summarize in a few sentences what Alvarez has learned from her experience
Alvarez who changed her attitude towards learning English from initially rejecting negative impressions to positive ones thanks to her understanding of the beauty of The English language. Her learning became better and finally, she became a writer.
Part 3: Discussion Questions (answer 2 questions):
Does anything in the reading remind you of your own experiences with language? If so, what is similar?
When Alvarez first learned English, he felt the same boredom that I felt when I first started learning English. I started learning English when I was in kindergarten, starting with the basic alphabet. At that time, I was too young to write my own Chinese name well and was forced to start writing strange English letters. Later I learned Chinese pinyin, both of which are letters, which gave rise to a familiar feeling. However, it is hard to learn two languages
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 7/14
Reply
at the same time. Sometimes, English will be mixed with Chinese. Now I am proficient in English, and sometimes Chinese will be mixed with English. This is similar to Alvarez's situation. I think there are some proper nouns that are difficult to transform, or I can't think of a better substitute right now.
How do the language experiences Alvarez describes differ from your own language experiences? Why do these differences exist?
Alvarez's experience with me is not very similar or even very different. Her experience in Spain and my study in China are also two models. My family is not very good at English, so I did not try to speak English with my parents at home. I think the reason for this difference may be that the two countries where we grew up have different education systems and different philosophies.
(http Minh Pham (She/Her) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3646350) Wednesday
Reply
Hi Liangqui
I understand well your own experience with language because your native language which is difference letters from English letter. It is so hard for you to learn both languages because I also struggled like you when I was trying to learn chinese language. I am so lucky because my Vietnamese language have alphabet is like English letters. However, I also have obstacle at the first time learning English because of pronunciation difference. I am so happy because you overcome your obstacle to become successful.
(http Ashley Mendez (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3792172) Wednesday
Reply
Hi Liangqi :)
I agree with you! It is hard to learn two different languages at the same time but luckily we have both accomplished it! I am very happy for you that you are now proficient in English, that is a big accomplishment for which you should be extremely proud of. Congrats and best of luck :) !
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 8/14
(http Ana Hernandez (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3792507) Thursday
Reply
Hi Liangqui! I agree that learning two languages at the same time is difficult and honestly confusing. They say younger people pick up languages quicker but being as young as a kindergartner still has its difficulties. When I was in kinder learning Spanish and English made me mix a lot of things up. I'm glad you're proficient in English now because so am I!
(http Dabin Sul (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3622687) Yesterday
Reply
Hi Liangqi,
I can relate that Asian's experiences are most likely very different than the Alverez' experience. I heard that Spanish and English share similar traits, which makes it a similar language and comes down to less boarder to learn one or another. But all commonly and interestingly, we all do get mixed with the language like how you and Alverez get mixed with both languages.
(https:// Ashley Mendez (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3792172) Wednesday
Part 2- Summarize in a few sentences what Alvarez has learned from her experience -
From her experience Julia Alvarez came from a family whom only spoke Spanish at home and within time herself and her family became a bilingual family. Through out her childhood she heard some different versions of Spanish being spoken in her family and where she had lived then as well.
Part 3 - Submit the answers to two of the following discussion questions -
1. Does anything in the reading remind you of your own experience with language? If so, what is similar?
2. (5) How do Alvarez's ideas about English change as she learns the language?
Yes,there is something in the reading that reminds me of my own experience with language. In the reading it says, “the family as a whole only spoke Spanish at home” . As a
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 9/14
Reply
little kid the only language I spoke was Spanish. That was because most of my family did not know any English only my mom but due to respecting my family not knowing the language she would speak Spanish only. Until I began to assist elementary school I learned to speak English now I myself as my family are bilingual. Alvarez’s ideas about English change as she learns the language because she realizes that not all of the people she knows speak her usual language of use. She then became a more positive person as well as a positive writer. She also expressed herself saying that she felt more comfortable with the language. Alvarez also understood that Americans were not necessarily a smarter, superior race,speaking English. The writer said,”It took some time before I understood that Americans were not necessarily a smarter,superior race. It was as natural for them to learn their mother tongue as it was for a little Dominican baby to learn Spanish.”
(http Ana Hernandez (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3792507) Thursday
Reply
Hi Ashely!
Similar to you I only spoke Spanish when I was younger due to a majority of my family only speaking that language. It wasn't until I started school that I actually began to learn English. At the same time, my parents began to pick up a few terms themselves. We still speak predominantly Spanish at home but now if needed everyone knows English.
(https:// Ka�e Herrera (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3622282) Wednesday
Part 2: Summarize in a few sentences what Alvarez has learned from her experience.
Julia moved to a more English speaking area wish Spanish as her first language and became nervous she wouldn’t be able to grasp it. She eventually did after discovering it wasn’t any different or “superior” than English. She found a new interest in the language and became a writer.
Part 3: Does anything in the reading remind you of your own experiences with language? If so, what is similar?
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 10/14
Reply
What really made me relate the most while reading this was when she was talking about how if her parents wanted to say something they didn’t want the kids to hear than they would speak English instead of Spanish which she could understand. My family all speaks Spanish except my brother and I so all my life growing up if there was something they didn’t want us to hear it would be talked about in Spanish. I found that interesting that even though we come from totally different backgrounds I can still understand what she meant by feeling left out or them telling “secret.”
How do Alvarez's ideas about English change as she learns the language?
In the beginning she felt like people who knew English were smarter or different from her but she learned that wasn’t true. She learned that it was natural for those people to learn English just like it was for her learning Spanish and that vice versa they would be feeling the same as she felt. In the sixth grade is when her love for the language grew and she felt more and more confident about speaking and writing.
(https:// Alyssa Duron (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3759907) Thursday
Part 2
Alvarez was a kid raised in the Dominican Republic that grew up speaking Spanish and carried a negative connotation with the English language. She felt anxious trying to learn English, but through new experiences, she discovered the beauty and power of a language that was also hers to speak.
Part 3
How do the language experiences Alvarez describes differ from your own language experiences? Why do these differences exist?
The experiences that Alvarez had with language greatly differ from my own experiences. Alvarez grew up speaking Spanish while having to also learn English. Through childhood, English was the only language I learned. I never experienced the struggles of trying to learn a new language, and the struggles that may come with it. These differences exist because I was raised by my mom who only speaks English while going to an English- speaking school, so no new language was ever introduced to me. Alvarez’s experience was very different. She grew up speaking Spanish in her home but was sent to a school where she had to learn English.
How do Alvarez’s ideas about English change as she learns the language?
Alvarez first heard English when her mom and dad were talking about something that they did not want her to hear, she explained it as “the sound of being let out” (115). When she
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 11/14
Reply
started going to school to learn how to speak English she struggled and would mix up the two languages. Her classmates would make fun of her and it made her feel discouraged. Once she started attending a new school her idea of English changed and the language started to have a meaning to her. Her teacher taught her the love of writing and she felt powerful.
(https:// Joseph (He/Him) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3793433) Thursday
Reply
Part 2: Summarize in a few sentences what Alvarez has learned from her experience
Julia Alvarez grew up with a negative impression of the English language. As she grew up and moved to New York, she learned to love English and went on the become a successful writer.
Part 3: Discussion Questions (answer 2 questions):
1. Does anything in the reading remind you of your own experiences with language? If so, what is similar?
Similar to the author, I came to the United States when I was six years old. Although my family never used English around me before I came here, I didn't like the fact that I had to learn a new language. What is this new language? Why do I have to learn it? When I first attended school in the states, I didn't know anything about English and was put in class. I was so scared that the teacher might call on me and I wouldn't know what to say. As I grew up though, learning the language, I came to appreciate it more and more. the fact that I can speak multiple languages is honestly a blessing.
2. How do the language experiences Alvarez describes differ from your own language experiences? Why do these differences exist?
I think personality plays a big part. From the story, you can tell that the author is outgoing, not afraid to try things, daring. "Soon, I was talking up an English storm." (My English, pg. 117) For me, being the shy, introverted person I am, I wasn't like that. Also, I didn't have people around me who spoke or understood English well enough to converse together. One other difference is the fact that my first language was Korean while the author's was Spanish. Spanish and English have similar traits whereas Korean and English are kinda far away from each other in the language spectrum. It felt like I was learning an alien language.
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 12/14
(http Dabin Sul (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3622687) Yesterday
Reply
Hi Joseph!
It looks like most of the immigrant students has similar experience apart from where you from. I can relate to your story, because I was very scared too when I was put in class. Worried about being called out, and not able to answer like other "normal" people. I wasn't introverted, but sadly, when I had to learn English, it made me introverted.
(https:// Yan Shan (He/Him) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3774615) Thursday
Part 2:
Julia became curious about English in her childhood because his parents used English to talk about things they didn't want their children to know. Her English became mixed up with Spanish even though her mother insisted that she learn English. She had enjoyed English until Sister Maria Generosa had a significant impact on her when she was in sixth grade.
Part 3:
Does anything in the reading remind you of your own experiences with language? If so, what is similar?
I can deeply feel Julia's experience of mixing up Spanish and English. I have been learning English for about twenty years since the third grade of elementary school. However, I think I have never truly learned English because everyone around me spoke Chinese. My family, friends, and classmates all communicate in Chinese. Even my English teacher uses Chinese whenever she is not leading a class. Even though teachers make us recognize words, grammars, and keep practicing the strange pronunciation until we have completed various exams, but my brain dismisses everything right after exams. Also, I recall that my parents' relatives once said it is useless to learn English since one will never go abroad.
What method does Sister Maria use to teach Alvarez English? How does this method differ from the way she was taught at the Carol Morgan School? (compare and contrast) Which method does Alvarez prefer and why? (assess)
Sister Maria asked Alvarez to use her imagination when writing stories in English such as how the snow might fall on the hills. However, She had required to interminably diagram sentences from a workbook or learn a catechism of grammar rules when she was taught at
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 13/14
Reply
the Carol Morgan School. Obviously, Alvarez prefers the method of Sister Maria. She experienced that little catch of anxiety when she heard someone with a heavy southern or British accent spoke around her. She said that she was no longer a foreigner with no ground to stand on and landed in the English language until she met Sister Maria. It means that she truly accepts and enjoys learning English.
(http Carlos Dominguez (He/Him) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3784043) 1:01am
Edited by Carlos Dominguez (https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3784043) on Sep 12 at 1:02am
Reply
Hello Yan Shan, great analysis of the article. I also had the difficulty of mixing both the languages I spoke. Which made it harder in the processes of learning, and made me despise it. Thanks for your info on the third question, I guess having a way enjoying it like sister Maria did for Alvarez really made her feel comfortable with. And allowed her to see it in a different perspective. Thanks for sharing with us.
(https:// Anasazi Wilson (She/Her) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3777305) Thursday
Part 2: Summarize in a few sentences what Alvarez has learned from her experience
Alvarez overcomes the challenges of learning English. She is originally judged from mixing both English and Spanish at home and at school. Struggling to fully understand the language. She learns a better alternative way of learning the language by writing and overtime grows to love it. Her experience with a supportive English teacher helps guide her to connect with the English language. Writing becomes a powerful tool for her to express herself.
Part 3: Does anything in the reading remind you of your own experiences with language? If so, what is similar?
Yes, I’ve on and off tried learning Spanish for years. I would often get frustrated and stop learning since I worried about saying the wrong thing. I spent time in Uruguay but barely spoke Spanish because I was embarrassed by how little I knew. There was pressure as well to learn since my mom’s side is Panamanian. I think if I allowed myself to practice then my Spanish would have improved. It’s been a few years but I’m learning Spanish again. I think if I started relaxing into the language then I will adjust better. Spanish is more than grammatical rules and vocabulary but can be used to create writing, similar to English. I want to appreciate the Spanish language overtime and will use Sister Maria’s method to enjoy a new language, similar to Alvarez.
What method does Sister Maria use to teach Alvarez English? How does this method differ from the way she was taught at the Carol Morgan School? (compare and contrast) Which method does Alvarez prefer and why? (assess)
2020/9/12 Topic: Journal #1- "My English"
https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/discussion_topics/4055968?module_item_id=12260697 14/14
Edited by Anasazi Wilson (https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3777305) on Sep 10 at 10:57pm
Reply
She used creative writing and involved the writing process when teaching English. At Alvarez’s former school they only followed strict grammar rules. And quickly judged if Alvarez spoke in Spanglish. Sister Maria seemed less judging and wanted the students to appreciate the English language. By using colorful words that would remind one of the Spanish language since it had a nice flow to it. Alvarez prefers Sister Maria’s method since she grows more accustomed to English from creative writing. Alvarez is given access to connect the English language with stories. This option helps her to appreciate and finally connect to English.
(http Carlos Dominguez (He/Him) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3784043) 1:16am
Reply
Hello Anasazi Wilson, great summary of the article. I completely understand the feeling of not wanting to practice a part of a new language cause you don’t want to mess it up or look foolish. I hated writing in English cause I could never portray my thoughts properly in English, there were so many rules to writing. I guess if you take little by little you’ll find the enjoyment that comes with learning something new. And great answers, thanks for sharing with us.
(https:// Carlos Dominguez (He/Him) (h�ps://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3784043) Yesterday
Edited by Carlos Dominguez (https://canvas.pasadena.edu/courses/1107612/users/3784043) on Sep 12 at 1:09am
Reply
Part 2: Summarize in a few sentences what Alvarez has learned from her experience (no more than 50 words). Julia Alvarez at a young age migrated to New York and entered an environment were she had no knowledge of the dominate language spoken. Through her early years she had to adapt, learn, and differentiate English from her native tongue. In the process her excitement and passion for it blossomed.
Part 3: Submit the answers to two of the following discussion questions
2. How do the language experiences Alvarez describes differ from your own language experiences? Why do these differences exist? I didn’t have the same experience and difficulties as Alvarez had, both languages were spoken at home. I had no trouble understanding the English language as I had siblings who were fluent and learned it at young age. The trouble was with separating and having to turn that switch between the two languages back and forth. I also became confused with the fact that speaking English doesn’t help you with the spelling. That’s when my lack of confidence began when it came to writing in school. So I didn’t have the same development of growing to understand and enjoy the English language as Alvarez.
5. How do Alvarez's ideas about English change as she learns the language? In the beginning she is confused by what is spoken, she feels as it was a way to hid things from her by her parents. She doesn’t see it as a language but as a tone in their voice. Alvarez couldn’t wrap her mind around the idea of why she needed to learn new words for things that she already knew in Spanish. And as her skills progress she found herself questioning less the English that was spoken and having less confusion. When she was in sixth grade her English teacher opened her view on what and how writing could make people feel and comprehend the writers view. As Alvarez develops the English language she finds excitement, understanding of how it makes her feel, and she can use it to express herself. She no longer labels herself as a foreigner to the new language.
