Write an article

In your first essay, you will be asked to reflect on your journey as you entered a new and different environment/community of people.  This could be a second or third language you acquired, moving to a new country, moving to a different neighborhood or school, becoming literate in social networking, studying abroad, an athletic sport, gaming, chess club, etc.  The possibilities are endless and are specific to your life experiences – Murray would say it’s all autobiographical. Or you might even want to consider writing about how your school/home/work environment suddenly changed last month when all classes went online, everyone had to stay at home, and/or your work environment turned upside down (not literally, but our environment has certainly changed a whole lot).

Use one of the options you explored Wednesday (or if that doesn’t work consider a new one) to continue to work on your first formal writing assignment (FWA 1).  Using Rodriguez as an inspiration, create on an initial draft where you move from the first person (“I”) to the third person (not “I”, perhaps s/he they)  to differentiate between how you view yourself prior to entering the new community.  In one of the more poignant moments of his narrative, Rodriguez includes first person dialogue with his mother to emphasize moments when he began distancing himself from his family and embracing a more scholarly approach to his world.  Your own experiences may not include a mother figure, but they do include interactions with others. Add details that bring the reader into specific relevant moments (look back to your brainstorming for moments that stand out) to highlight the importance of these events.  Rodriguez also code switches (moving back and forth between Spanish and English) to emphasize the importance of moments in his life story.  Feel free to do this as well using the mother-tongue (language) that is part of your community.