Literacy Narrative
EN 1103-10
7 February 2014
Determination to Succeed It was a beautiful summer day at the beginning of my senior year. Students were anxious to meet their teachers and begin the last year of their high school career. There were those excited to graduate that knew exactly what they wanted to do with their life. Then there were those like me who had no idea what college they would be attending the following year. I knew I wanted to go to college, but I had no idea which one I wanted to attend or what my major would be. After I arrived that morning, I walked into the crowded hallway of my 4A public school on my way to my first and hardest class, pre-calculus AP. I was one of the last ones to enter the classroom and had no other choice but to sit next to my ex-best friend. It was already a bad day. Once the bell rang, Mr. Rogers, an older teacher with gray hair and big circular glasses, stood in front of the classroom and began teaching our first lesson. Within five minutes of the lesson, I was already lost. Once he turned around to see if anyone had questions, I was the first one to raise my hand. “Miss Moeller, what is your question?” he asked in an annoyed tone. His eyes looked like they were going to burn a hole right through me. I felt like the stupidest person in that class. I had always understood math and it was frustrating to not comprehend what he was doing. Math had always been one of my strongest subjects and I never had trouble making A’s in my previous math classes. I was already so lost in that class that I didn’t even know where to begin. As Mr. Rogers awaited my response, I could feel everyone in the class looking right at me. I wanted to sprint out of the classroom and run home. I wasn’t smart enough for an AP math class. I didn’t have the intelligence or determination. “How did you come up with that answer?” I asked nervously. “It’s very simple stuff. Arithmetic,” he replied. Was that his answer, arithmetic? I hated the feeling of not
7 February 2014
Determination to Succeed It was a beautiful summer day at the beginning of my senior year. Students were anxious to meet their teachers and begin the last year of their high school career. There were those excited to graduate that knew exactly what they wanted to do with their life. Then there were those like me who had no idea what college they would be attending the following year. I knew I wanted to go to college, but I had no idea which one I wanted to attend or what my major would be. After I arrived that morning, I walked into the crowded hallway of my 4A public school on my way to my first and hardest class, pre-calculus AP. I was one of the last ones to enter the classroom and had no other choice but to sit next to my ex-best friend. It was already a bad day. Once the bell rang, Mr. Rogers, an older teacher with gray hair and big circular glasses, stood in front of the classroom and began teaching our first lesson. Within five minutes of the lesson, I was already lost. Once he turned around to see if anyone had questions, I was the first one to raise my hand. “Miss Moeller, what is your question?” he asked in an annoyed tone. His eyes looked like they were going to burn a hole right through me. I felt like the stupidest person in that class. I had always understood math and it was frustrating to not comprehend what he was doing. Math had always been one of my strongest subjects and I never had trouble making A’s in my previous math classes. I was already so lost in that class that I didn’t even know where to begin. As Mr. Rogers awaited my response, I could feel everyone in the class looking right at me. I wanted to sprint out of the classroom and run home. I wasn’t smart enough for an AP math class. I didn’t have the intelligence or determination. “How did you come up with that answer?” I asked nervously. “It’s very simple stuff. Arithmetic,” he replied. Was that his answer, arithmetic? I hated the feeling of not