BEFORE YOU READ
        Some sponsors of literacy throughout the U.S. are all schooling systems.  They clearly want children to learn how to read, and promote this.  Libraries are also one of the biggest promoters of reading and writing.  They make this possible and more helpful for children by having "book night," or having different educational reading or writing programs for children.  Mostly all libraries have some kind of open club that any child could join and be welcome into, so they can learn to better read and write. 


     In Deborah Brandt's article, "Sponsors of Literacy," she attempts to explain the change between literacy, and how the standards have changed dramatically.  She also explains how teachers or sponsors could teach reading and writing skills.  There is a lot of competition between various literary sponsors.  Many different groups are trying to make it easier for people to learn to read and write with a better knowledge of understanding.  She uses two different people to compare, Dora Lopez, and Raymond Branch.  Dora comes from an immigrant family, and Raymond is a more wealthy white male.  They both live in the same area, yet they both have a different understanding to the basic of reading and writing.  Race, gender, and class could play a major role in this in certain areas. 

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
1.) She describes literacy sponsors as people who have more knowledge within literacy terms.  She explains some of these sponsors could be known as teachers, priests, military officers, editors, influential authors, and usually more rich.  The characteristic of a literacy sponsor are knowing more about reading and writing than the average person, and being able to teach and explain it, so that people will be able to understand. 

APPLYING & EXPLORING
2.) I had a teacher who tried to with-hold literacy from me in a sense.  I was reading the book, "A Child Called It," at a very young age.  I started reading chapter books at a very young age, and enjoyed them.  I was not sure what the book was about, but she said the book was too mature for me.  Besides that, I ended up taking it home, and just did not read it in class.  I have been forced to read certain books I did not care for in school that were on the school list for the year.  I did not enjoy the book, "Island of the Blue Dolphin" so much, but it was required to have been read by my fifth grade year in elementary school.  If i ever needed to find a good literacy sponsor when I was younger, I always went to the school library, and talked to the librarian.  She was an older nun, and always referred me to books that probably would have been expected to be read by a more mature age, but she knew how much I loved to read. 

SUMMARY
     Brandt's article could fall into comparing with Michael Klein's article about teaching students to write like researchers.  Both authors are trying to teach you something new, and push you more towards how you should learn to do this.  Brandt is explaining to the reader how literacy sponsors can help to promote the way you read and write.  Klein has been the author in the night library and probably would understand how literacy sponsors work, and how they can influence students to spend much time in the night library, just like he had caught himself doing.

     I personally found an interest in this reading, because I had never really thought about how literacy sponsors have such an impact on certain people.  I understand that gender and class can play a major role in the reading and writing of two separate individuals.  It is always talked about, especially when elders are telling children they should be thankful they know how to read and write, because there are still many people who do not know how to do this.  I especially liked that she used military officers and priests as literacy sponsors.  I personally never made this connection, until reading her article.  She opened up my eyes to a few new ideas I never thought of before.