Juan.

Ramirez
January 25, 2015
Its Elementary

It was around ten in the morning of the year 2001; the start to the most successful
educational journey for me. Bewildered by the place and the magnitude of the building, I did not
know where my mom was taking me. Speechless, I walked into the building knowing nothing
about where I was or what type of place it was. There were people walking around and they
would smile and say Hi or Welcome. Poor little me didnt know what to say, one because I
spoke no English at all and two because I didnt know where I was. I wasnt afraid though, I was
more or less curious to know where we were and why we were there.
After a few minutes of waiting in an office, that I later learned that it was called, Mr.
Chapman came to shake my small four year old hand. We walked through a numerous amounts
of hallways and from what I remember; I liked what I saw on the walls. The art pieces on the
walls looked like the ones I made at home on my walls but there were also cartoon like paintings
of Clifford the Big Red Dog and other appealing characters. I liked this place and as I looked
around, we arrived at the end of a hallway and saw a room with lots of colorful toys, walls,
posters, books, mats and other fun things. There was a lady and she walked up to us and smiled
and she spoke to me but I understood nothing. She then spoke to my mom and I got to play with
legos and other small toys in that room. Later after playing with those toys, we went home and
my mom told me that I was going to school and where wed gone, was where I was going to be
attending Kindergarten with my teacher Mrs. Corsey.
The first few weeks were the struggle for me as I didnt speak any English. I learned as I
went and learned the most common phrases like needing to go to the bathroom and asking for
something at lunch. I literally remember myself crossing my legs and pointing at my pubic area
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Juan. Ramirez
January 25, 2015
showing my teacher that I needed to go pee. I also remember when I wanted to tell her that a boy
had thrown wood chips in my face and now I realize that it seemed like I was playing charades. I
made it out of Kindergarten though, and I learned how to speak English and my mom helped and
I was learning Spanish as well so it became difficult at times and confusing but over time, I
learned my sounds and basic names for shapes and the phrases necessary to be successful and not
be retained.
First grade was an even better year because I blossomed in my English skills and that was
the last year that I had to be in the ESL program. We had specials, as they were called, and
going to the library was one of them. There were so many books and picture books as they are
today were my favorite and I enjoyed learning new things. Id begun to find an appeal towards
reading and books and education as a whole. Writing was still not a big deal but I liked writing
my name and different other words. I also remember that when I liked a girl in my class and I
wrote her a note because I could write thanks to the small four page books.
Second grade there was even more growth and where reading mattered a whole lot more
as well as writing because my class and I began to write sentences and paragraphs. Reading
became more of a challenge and a competition. I have always been a competitive person but
thanks to the Accelerated Reader program that my school held I was enthusiastic to read and read
and read. I wanted to reach my goals as after you read your book, you had to take a quiz to
receive points and a percentage. I reached my goals and went past them. I wanted to be higher
than everyone else and so that pushed me to read even more. Reading had become a important
part of my life and it mattered now because there was one time when I didnt read my book that
was sent home with me and I didnt want to go to school because I thought I was going to get in
trouble. That day, as I turned my book back in to my teacher Mrs. Flowe, I broke out into tears
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Juan. Ramirez
January 25, 2015
and cried because I told her I didnt read my book. She soon calmed me down and told me that
everything was alright and that there wasnt a problem. At the end of the year, she game me two
big books that she knew I could read and she wished me good luck as I went on to third grade.
Third grade was more of a challenge that I took personally. Again I strived to read the
most out of my class and be the best reader and writer and everything else that I was taught. The
EOGs were coming and I had to be the best I could to get good grades. There finally was a
personal challenge this time and it was one of my classmates, Jhovanti, because he was so
arrogant and thought he knew it all and he was the one to beat out if everyone in my class. My
writing skills also diminished that year because I was too lazy to do my homework and write
paragraphs using my vocabulary words. You could say that theres when I started procrastinating
when it came to writing. This habit would continue for another year and then Id meet the one
whod change that about me and my dislike for writing.
Fourth Grade came around and I loved reading and which is when I read the most, I
believe. I read chapter books and picture books and I believe I had the highest reading level in
my class and it was close to being at a twelfth grade level, the highest level that could be
achieved according to my literacy tests. I challenged myself and again this year, I was very
competitive because the race for the top reader in the class was between me and a girl. A GIRL!
Now you tell me what boy wants to get beat by a girl? No one! She knew it was a competition
too because there were prizes and she wanted to read more than I did but its safe to say that I
came out victorious and it was so bad that she had to leave the school just kidding, but I did
obtain the top reader of my class that year and she also did leave but not for any reason that I
mentioned. Again competition and also an impulse to impress a girl, not the one I competed
against, but her friend, made me love reading and motivated to do so throughout the year.
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Juan. Ramirez
January 25, 2015
Finally, at the end of the journey and probably the most important year of my
educational life, I got to fifth grade and I learned a lot and changed a lot for the better. I let go of
my lazy habits of not doing my homework and through reading, I learned to write that year. A lot
of the change in the way I approached writing was because of my teacher, Mr. Roper. Now I
wanted to write and I knew how to make better sentences and how to write essays. My reading
skills also improved and I was reading at the highest level possible. Reading and writing inspired
me so much that year I became a tutor and helped the first graders learn how to read as well.
Reading helped me find a need for education and it is why I'm where I am today and thanks to
those five years, I was successful for the rest of my years in school.
My elementary school was very supportive in my life and my learning of reading and
writing and my enthusiasm for reading and learning new things. My writing, although not as
passionate is a very well developed form of writing that I am satisfied with. Though I dont like
writing as much, I still enjoy writing when it is about topics I am passionate about. Reading and
writing are very important tools and sometimes inspire students to reach for goals that they never
would have imagined. For the more than ten certificates I received on graduation night, I have
nothing more to say but that it was all thanks to my commitment to bettering my self in reading
and writing and my journey to achieve that in the six more important years of my life at
Statesville Road Elementary.