Jacob's 8P24 - Literacy Blog

Without voice, and hearing for that matter, the world would not be anything close to what we know today. One of the first major ways of communication we as humans innately begin to develop and build upon is our voice...or at least our ability to produce noises. Sound is such a primal and useful mode of communication and I would even say it's nearly essential. The reason I have been convinced it is not essential, however, is because we have many successful and accomplished mutes and deaf folks. As a result, we as educators need to know how to handle oral communication as it is a powerful tool, but also needs to be differentiated and modified in some circumstances. I have spoken many times about how beneficial I find learning tools such as small group discussions, video lectures, audiobooks, and even podcasts. The ability to share your thoughts through communication, listen at your own pace, and replay unheard or misunderstood content are all some major reasons why I love utilizin...

Growing up, creative writing was always something I enjoyed. My Papa, Dad and I are all massive  hockey nuts and we loved reading hockey blogs and talking about the NHL, more specifically, the leafs. I was fascinated by the fact that someone was paid to watch hockey games and then write about anything they wanted from it. This was a job I would’ve paid to do and it was from that moment on, that I understood the importance of doing something you love and backing your work, in this case, writing, with something you’re passionate about, in this case, hockey. Additionally, I knew I lacked confidence in my knowledge, but always thought I was a smart person. For this reason, in school, I always loved writing assignments because I could write down and express all my thoughts without fear of being called out for a wrong answer in front of the entire class. I remember this fear of judgment was so prevalent for me, a teacher asked to read an essay of mine aloud as an example of good writi...