Free Literacy For Presentation Essay Example

I have always had a passion for English. Since pre-school years I have been introduced into different stories, articles and pieces in English which has not only helped me master English for fun but also expanded my skill portfolio. My mother’s artistic touch to reading during my early childhood years was a solid background that opened for me a door to book clubs, to winning a scholarship to study abroad and to finally become a master of presentations. Indeed, I have come to appreciate English as a language which has helped me master not only language skills but also life skills. Proficient in English, I came to be one star of an international student speaking program.
As a child, mom and dad used to bring in colorful stories in our home. Of course, I was not able to read or say one single word. I was just a little child. I was attracted more to pictures. At bedtime, mom used to read stories out loud. Sometimes, she would sing. I was fascinated by how mom read stories.
When I joined school, more books came in. Familiar to books since an infant, I started reading short stories at school and home. I listened amusingly to my English teacher as she read stories out loud in class. Storytelling was a practice I came to adopt later one, I found out.
I remember joining different book reading clubs. Fascinated by even more real experiences from parents who joined us, I started applying for reading competitions and winning prizes. I was not particularly good at speaking. That was something I learned to develop later and became a master of. During middle school, however, I focused more on reading and writing. Frankly, I finished almost every book I could lay my hand on at my school's library. I just enjoyed reading a lot. I enjoyed going to magical places I could watch in movies adapted from books I read or read about in movies I watched. (Comparing movies and books was an activity my brother, sister, dad, mom and I used to do over weekends during school year.)
The high school years came to an end. I scored high. Having different options, I applied for a scholarship abroad. I was just giving a try to something I believed might never happen. But, for all my surprise – and happiness – I was accepted.
I spent a whole summer poring over books, brochures, flyers and instructions and watching videos getting to know as much as I could of my school. Everything was English. Although used to English, reading an all-English stuff was just different. Then, I came to know I had to spend few hours every week chatting with my host family online before traveling. My orientation lasted few weeks and I was all set to, well, join school.
My very first hours abroad were just inexplicable. I was simply stunned by every single detail around me. That did not take long. Soon I was absorbed into endless pre-school activities which would help me make a smooth move into class.
I believed I would do well enough given my "long" history of English. But, encountering new experiences in different contexts was completely different. First, I was silent mostly. I was just learning – I later found out – how to listen, which was an essential step into speaking and, later, presenting fluently.
Admittedly, I had to focus more in classes. I just wanted to maintain a minimum GPA. Having passed first semester satisfactorily, I started to breathe and look around. Having immersed myself for long in classes, I had to stick up my neck and get to know more about social life. Over spring break, I stumbled upon a fascinating speaking program for international students. That was just perfect, I thought. I applied and a week before school started I got a notice I was accepted.
Remembering how embarrassing presentation was when unprepared, I practiced in every single free minute I had. Invited by my mentor to watch a "veteran" speaker do a presentation, I grew more enthusiastic. Doing a mock presentation before my first presentation, I received positive comments which made me even more comfortable.
On presentation day, I was calm and clear minded. I went to presentation room much earlier. I just wanted to check equipment and all was all set. I went through my slides one last time and went outside to sip a cup of coffee before I started.
I delivered a presentation which came to be covered by school student's magazine. I was very happy. Now, I thought, I could speak publicly more confidently. Although I received some few comments, I was overall okay.
If anything, my school and home experiences back home helped me feed my passion for speaking in public. Since I was used to reading voraciously, I had better background of a wide range of subjects some speakers had to spend hours reading or learning about. Then, I learned experiences – particularly linguistic ones – are not lost. They are revisited over and again but only if one minds to connect dots and wants to learn.
Years later, I – one again – revisited my "presentation years" at college and was very much delighted as I recalled how I came a long way to master presentations by experience at work. Presentation has just become my preferred mode of self-expression.