A brief history.

                Being the daughter of a high-school English teacher, my entire life was influenced by English and grammar. She taught me to be articulate and well-versed. The basic knowledge of proper punctuation, syntax and grammar was built in to my working memory and my daily speech. However, something I have always struggled with is explaining and defining why something is wrong. I could read a sentence and know what was wrong, but not why. I had a difficult time defining grammar rules; I just knew what sounded good and what didn’t. I suppose that I never yearned for the knowledge either. I flew through high school English, writing my essays with subconscious knowledge. Because I took both AP English and Literature in high school, I skipped English 1010 altogether. My freshman year in college I took English 2010 and passed with flying colors. Again, I did so purely on subconscious knowledge. I still did not know the rules. I assumed that those rules were taught in English 1010, which I was able to avoid. Although I always enjoyed English, I never thought that I would encounter another English class again. I did not need to learn the grammar rules at this point. I was home-free. Little did I know that after changing my major from Psychology, to Elementary Education that I would finally settle on English Teaching. I knew that I needed to learn these grammatical rules and definitions in order to effectively teach my students. When I happened upon the writing center, I knew that it would be the perfect job for me. I was so excited when I was hired, knowing that this would provide me the necessary skills. It put me in the best position for my future career. In summary, my English and writing skills were my birth-right, taught and inspired by my mother.