Literacy Matters - Vol 21 - Winter 2021

7). It allowed me to communicate who I was in an authentic and comfortable way that bridged the gap between what I thought writing was and how it could be a style of self-expression. It was during this exercise that I started to question my past views of myself. After reflecting on my writing journey, I realized that as the semester went on, I slowly became more comfortable with myself as a writer. I stopped questioning myself when I was writing in a judgment-free environment where I was no longer paralyzed by the fear of being told I was doing it “wrong.”

conferring, students were expected to also work on their writing out of class. The final piece was due on the last day of class.

The preservice teachers shared their writing with their peers using a gallery walk format on the last day of the semester. As they rotated around the room to read their peers’ writing, they left supportive feedback on sticky notes for each writer. Since this was the celebration of writing, only positive feedback was solicited as the writing was in the published stage. Reading each other’s writing exposed the preservice teachers to a range of genres, topics, and styles of writing. This experience not only made them better writers and teachers of writing, but allowed them to connect with one another on deeper levels as human beings by sharing stories of hope, struggles, and dreams. For example, in previous literacy classes, students shared stories about overcoming drug addiction, dealing with the death of friends, and reflecting on a difficult childhood (Kissel, Stover, & Glover, 2014). Having supportive structures such as participation during Writer’s Workshop with conferring, the use of daybooks, and a celebration of writing helped Maria develop authority of her own voice and foster her identity as a writer and teacher of writing. To ensure Maria’s limited identity as a writer didn’t transfer into her future classroom, Katie provided her with opportunities to write in a safe, risk-free space as described above. As a result, Maria gradually began to enjoy writing again for the first time since childhood and pushed through her vulnerabilities as a writer. Her writing identity started to transform. The supportive structures and supportive feedback from her literacy methods class helped her build her confidence. She pushed through her vulnerabilities as she developed her published piece titled, “Writer” (see Figure 7). In her writing, Maria peeled back the negative layers of her writing identity (i.e. “I am not a writer”) that have been shaped over the years and she slowly began to rewrite and embrace her new identity as a writer (i.e. “Maybe I am a writer…”). Maria explained: When writing the initial “I am What I Am” in class (see Figure 2), my self-conscious writing habits overcame my identity, and I wrote about who I was with the thought of having to share in the back of my mind. When we began our brainstorming exercises, such as heart maps (Heard, 2016) and place maps (Fletcher, 2005), I recalled how much I enjoyed writing about subjects I am interested in (see Figures 5 and 6). By the end of the semester when it came time to write my published piece, I chose the “I Am What I Am” as my inspiration to show my growth as a writer compared to the beginning of the semester. At first, I was nervous this would be too personal, so I tried to write about other things. However, I couldn’t get it out of my mind so I decided to write what felt natural. The “Writer” piece, created a transition point for me as a writer (see Figure TransformingWriting Identity Through ClassroomWriting Experiences

Reading Matters Writing Matters

Figure 5 Maria’s Heart Map.

Figure 6 Maria’s Place Map.

| 54 | Literacy Matters | Volume 21 • Winter 2021

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