Rhetorical Reading Worksheet

DIRECTIONS: For each assigned reading, you will answer the following questions about the reading. Please be specific referring to page numbers when possible.

Kyle Nelson YOUR NAME: Deborah Brandt AUTHOR(S): TITLE OF TEXT: The Sponsors of Literacy
1) What is the authors main claim? How do you know?

The author's main claim in this essay is that literacy in one's devolvement to literacy as an economic devolvement, which the author calls "sponsors of literacy". I know this is the main claim because throughout the article it gives great detail on people's lives and how their experiences shaped the way they communicate and write. 2) What are three pieces of evidence that the author uses to support this claim?

! "The reading and writing skills of print apprentices in this period were an achievement not simply of ! teachers and learners nor of the discourse practices of the printer community" (Brandt 1). "What I have ! tried to suggest is that as we assist and study individuals in pursuit of literacy, we recognize too how ! literacy is in pursuit of them" (Brandt 22). "Sarah Steele described how, after joining the law firm, she ! began to model her household management on principles of budgeting that she was picking up from one of the attorneys with whom she worked most closely" (Brandt 19). "#!$%!&'(!)*&'%+,-!.)/(!0)123!41)2.-5!6'789'7!:%&5! ! I do believe that the author makes valid claims. I myself believe that a persons' literacy is influenced by ! their life experiences. For example, if you are a head coach of a football team, you may treat your ! home life the same way. You may scold your children the way you scold players for making mistakes. ! This also applies in someone's writings, which the author uses as examples in this essay. The author ! also states that even if you are brought up in a different way in the same town, you can still pick up the same tendencies of that community. ;#!<%9!3%(-!&'2-!&(=&!+(1)&(!&%!):%&'(+!>2(4(!%?!+()32:@!?+%.!&'2-!41)--!A%+!?+%.!()+12(+! 4%.>%-2&2%:!4%*+-(-#5!<%9!)+(!&'(!)*&'%+,-!2:&(+)4&2:@!A-2.21)+!&%>24-B!32+(4&17!.(:&2%:2:@! ()4'!%&'(+B!+(?(++2:@!&%!&'(!-).(!&(=&-B!(&4C5! ! This text does not really relate to another piece of reading I have read previously. In this essay there is ! not much of references other author's work. Instead it is more like an interview with two different people ! for each of the three separate examples the author gives. I believe once I begin to read more articles ! like this, the relationship between them will become more clear. ! D#!E%:-23(+2:@!&'(!&+)F(4&%+7!%?!&'(!41)--!):3!%*+!4%*+-(!%GF(4&20(-B!9')&!9211!7%*!&)/(!?+%.! &'2-!+()32:@!)-!7%*!.%0(!?%+9)+35!6'7!3%!7%*!4%:-23(+!&'2-!&%!G(!):!2.>%+&):&!1(--%:!2:! '(1>2:@!7%*!-*44((3!2:!9+2&2:@!?%+!&'(!)4)3(.75! ! From reading this text I will now consider what type of literary sponsors I have in my life. This was ! something that I have never considered before and this text has opened my eyes to it. I consider this to ! be important to succeed in writing because it can help me create more descriptive and better spoken ! writings than I have previously wrote. I will now be on the look out for the specific influences I have on ! my writing. H#!6+2&(!&'+((!I*(-&2%:-!&'(!&(=&!&+2@@(+(3!2:!7%*!9'21(!+()32:@C!
There were a few questions that I have encountered while I was reading this text. One question I had was, what does "anecdote" mean? Another question I had was why there was not many references to other authors. Finally the last question I had was how can this be related to learning in the classroom.