Sample Literacy Narrative

Note to reader: This draft is re-printed here with the author's permission. These student drafts are provided for a couple of reasons: first, to give you a taste of the variety of topics and approaches students have taken, and second, to provide instructors with readings that might be used in class discussions and activities. These samples are not perfect and represent final grades from across the grade scale (A through F), so please be forgiving, understanding, and respectful if you find errors or problems.

Dean Evans

Literacy Narrative

Rough Draft

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As I sit, preparing myself for an authentic 18th century mock battle, I dress myself in Eastern Woodland Native American garments. I dress myself with a red wool loin cloth, decorated with silk ribbon of blue and yellow tied around my waist. I then put on my brain tan leather leggings with decorated quill work garters at the base of my knees. I cover my feet with a thick elk hide leather for moccasins. Then I cover my back with a white linen trade shirt. After I am fully dressed, I tie my scalp lock hair into a pony tail. I decorate my hair with stripped down turkey feathers and bead strands. I then hook into my ears and nose, silver medallions. After all my trinkets have been dressed upon me, I prepare myself to paint my head with war colors of red and black. As I complete my look, I stop to check my wild game that roasts over the fire with my small tin lined copper cook pot filled with split pea soup comes to a boil. I enjoy the sounds of the bag pipes, fifes, and drums playing all around me. Just a few steps away from where I set up my lean to structure, among the other white canvas tents, stands a historic reconstructed fort made of wood, stone, nails and grout. I join my fellow reenactors that are dressed in many of ways such as French Marine soldier, English soldiers, colonial militia men, and other Natives. As the sights and surroundings take place, I over hear many stories and laughter coming from all the reenactors preparing to show the public a true 18th century mock battle tactical. I step back to take it all in and realize that this is a great start for an enjoyable weekend.

I started taking reenacting seriously when I was about 17 years old. That’s when I started getting more involved with the mock battle tactical events.

Some of the most exciting experiences I had were traveling to new strange places, getting to see places such as reconstructed forts, monuments, old battle fields and villages. I mainly traveled with my Uncle Doug. We would start packing gear on Thursday evenings so we could leave bright and early Friday morning. We always had a blast on our road trips to the tactical events. We would listen to music and talk about what we would say to friends we only see at the events. We also would talk about what ever NEW gear we wanted and hoped that someone would be there selling what we needed.

Once we got to our final destination, we would set up camp, change into our outfits, Uncle Doug would be dressed as a militia man and I would have a Mohawk dressed like a Native, and get a group of reenactor friends together and go out to eat. While we were out and about, we would get the strangest looks from people, but we didn’t care. If people asked why we were dressed the way we were, we would invite them out to the event so they could see what it’s all about and why we love the hobby. Most of the time the inquiring people did show up and were just amazed by how many people love history and that we all gather and portray events and people of the past.

I love traveling to all of the reconstructed forts when event season starts. I imagine the historic people that were there before me, Native Americans, French and English soldiers and Colonial people. I wonder where they all stood, how they lived and what their part was to help keep the grounds. Another experience is, enjoying the wonderful company of my fellow reenactors. I have met some of the best people through the hobby of reenacting. I know for sure that I would most likely not have met them if I never became a reenactor. It has come to my knowledge that historical reenactors are some of the most generous and kind people out there. Everyone wants to greet one another, share meals and drink, and they are eager to talk, listen, and share knowledge that they have learned. There is always some to learn! I have never had the idea that I would love doing research, reading about weird and historical things. I always enjoy studying old illustrations and paintings in an effort to learn new things. I have learned how to prepare 18th century food dishes, styles of clothing worn, how to build structures that Native Americans actually lived in and much more. The beauty of historical reenacting is, there is always something new to learn. Since I have become a reenactor, I have learned so much COOL history than I ever did from any dry old dusty history class in school. This is no attack to any history teachers at all! Promise! It’s just that nothing beats going out there to the places where it all happened. Wearing what they wore and doing it in the way that they did in the period I portray.

No matter what though, rain or shine, Uncle Doug and I always made the best of our weekend at the historic battle tactical events. It never failed, the weekend always went way too fast and by the afternoon of Sunday we would have camp all packed and ready to head on to the road. We would say our good byes and exchange emails or phone numbers if we made new friends and headed out. On the way home, we would talk about how great everything was and if we learned anything new for our portrayal for the next events weather it would be about sewing new clothes, a new recipe, bragged about the new gear we bought and so on. Once we would arrive home, we would unpack look at the calendar and be stoked that in two weekends to come, we would have another battle tactical event to get ready for and have another fun-filled adventure.

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The following story-boards come from a radical-revision assignment where students were asked to revise an essay using a completely different genre and/or medium. The student, Dean Evans, is an accomplished artist and chose to convert his literacy-narrative essay into these remarkable story boards.