Week 1: Powerful Literacy Moment

When I was in seventh grade, we did a cross-curriculum project about the Holocaust. In our Language Arts class we read the book, Night, by Elie Wiesel, which is a biographical memoir of his journey as a young boy in the Nazi concentration camps of Auschwitz and Buchenwald. We processed this book in our literature circle groups which made me feel like a sophisticated adult since we were discussing such a serious piece of literature. The reason that this book stands out to me as an impactful literacy moment in my education is that after we finished the book, the author came to our school and gave a speech. Most of our grade and several high school classes gathered in the auditorium and listened to him talk about his experiences, his book, and his words of wisdom. After his speech, I was able to get his autograph, which is under the glasstop of my desk to this day. Meeting the author of such a powerful piece of writing allowed me to form an even more personal relationship with that book and made literacy come alive for me. I had always enjoyed reading but after this experience I realized the the potential it had to change one's life and paradigm. I still get goosebumps to this day when I reminisce about shaking his hand...