Question 1
Leigh started writing to Mr. Henshaw since he was in second grade. He kept writing to him year by year. Cleary helped me as a reader to understand how the knowledge and thoughts of children grow as they grow up. First, he was just as a little boy who wants to write to someone who he believes in and really loved. Maybe he felt motivated when writing to someone or pretended to. Then later as he grew up, he had the power to write without pretending he is writing to anyone and as he said, “‘I don’t have to pretend to write to Mr. Henshaw anymore. I have learned to say what I think on a piece of paper’ ” (Cleary 73)
When Leigh was writing letters to Mr. Henshaw, his writing was limited because he used to think that Mr. Henshaw would get bothered by his too many letters and knew that he was busy writing books, so he won’t have time to read all his letters. But then Mr. Henshaw gave him the idea of writing a diary, and that’s where he started improving his writing. He wrote almost every day to “pretend Mr. Henshaw.” His writing improved as he moved from grade level to the next, and later was one of the five winners of the Yong Writers’ Yearbook. ? I think Cleary used letter writing and diary entries to convey the intellectual and emotional development of Leigh Botts because that’s where kids bring everything inside their hearts and brains out into writing. We as readers will understand the kids’ thoughts and feelings and how they develop as they grow older. A letter writing would have all the emotional and intellectual feeling and thinking of someone who a child loves and/or values. And a diary would be a great help for a children to develop his or her emotions and intelligence through writing. Also, diaries are the follow ups of what a person does through his or her day. Therefore, there will be always something to write about and develop his or her writing skills as they write more day after day. I think Cleary made Leigh see himself as medium boy because he didn’t have the support to be higher or better than anyone Mr. Henshaw might think he is. He is living with his divorced mother in a small and simple house. May be if Leigh Botts was higher, maybe gifted or talented as he said, he could of not written to Mr. Henshaw or didn’t even have the time to do so (15). But because he is a very lonely and doesn’t know what to do with most of his time and because his parents are separated, and has things that bothered him in his life like his father who barely comes to visit him or call him, and someone keeps stilling his best food from his lunch bag. With all these things happening in his life he turned to Mr. Henshaw and started telling him about what he feels and plans. Question 2 Since of humor is always what grabs me to read a story until the end and wish if it was longer. That’s how I felt when I read this …show more content…
Henshaw about ways to get to be an author, and he answered and said to read, look, listen, think, and write (Cleary14). Leigh followed the tips and felt he was getting better with his writing and thought writing wasn’t so bad. The second instance that Leigh receives a positive feedback from an adult that I could think of was when his mother asked him to answer Mr. Henshaw’s questions. She said to Leigh that authors are working people just like everyone else and if Mr. Henshaw spent some of his time answering Leigh’s questions then Leigh has to spend some of his time answer his questions too (Cleary 12). Third instances was with Mr. Fridley when he told Leigh, “‘what you need is a burglar alarm,’” to help him find the thief who keeps stealing his good food from his lunch bag (Cleary 48). Leigh wrote a lot about the burglar alarm in his diary and to Mr. Henshaw. And because of Mr. Fridley that Leigh invented the burglar alarm that made him famous at his school, and no one stole his lunch after he set the burglar
Leigh started writing to Mr. Henshaw since he was in second grade. He kept writing to him year by year. Cleary helped me as a reader to understand how the knowledge and thoughts of children grow as they grow up. First, he was just as a little boy who wants to write to someone who he believes in and really loved. Maybe he felt motivated when writing to someone or pretended to. Then later as he grew up, he had the power to write without pretending he is writing to anyone and as he said, “‘I don’t have to pretend to write to Mr. Henshaw anymore. I have learned to say what I think on a piece of paper’ ” (Cleary 73)
When Leigh was writing letters to Mr. Henshaw, his writing was limited because he used to think that Mr. Henshaw would get bothered by his too many letters and knew that he was busy writing books, so he won’t have time to read all his letters. But then Mr. Henshaw gave him the idea of writing a diary, and that’s where he started improving his writing. He wrote almost every day to “pretend Mr. Henshaw.” His writing improved as he moved from grade level to the next, and later was one of the five winners of the Yong Writers’ Yearbook. ? I think Cleary used letter writing and diary entries to convey the intellectual and emotional development of Leigh Botts because that’s where kids bring everything inside their hearts and brains out into writing. We as readers will understand the kids’ thoughts and feelings and how they develop as they grow older. A letter writing would have all the emotional and intellectual feeling and thinking of someone who a child loves and/or values. And a diary would be a great help for a children to develop his or her emotions and intelligence through writing. Also, diaries are the follow ups of what a person does through his or her day. Therefore, there will be always something to write about and develop his or her writing skills as they write more day after day. I think Cleary made Leigh see himself as medium boy because he didn’t have the support to be higher or better than anyone Mr. Henshaw might think he is. He is living with his divorced mother in a small and simple house. May be if Leigh Botts was higher, maybe gifted or talented as he said, he could of not written to Mr. Henshaw or didn’t even have the time to do so (15). But because he is a very lonely and doesn’t know what to do with most of his time and because his parents are separated, and has things that bothered him in his life like his father who barely comes to visit him or call him, and someone keeps stilling his best food from his lunch bag. With all these things happening in his life he turned to Mr. Henshaw and started telling him about what he feels and plans. Question 2 Since of humor is always what grabs me to read a story until the end and wish if it was longer. That’s how I felt when I read this …show more content…
Henshaw about ways to get to be an author, and he answered and said to read, look, listen, think, and write (Cleary14). Leigh followed the tips and felt he was getting better with his writing and thought writing wasn’t so bad. The second instance that Leigh receives a positive feedback from an adult that I could think of was when his mother asked him to answer Mr. Henshaw’s questions. She said to Leigh that authors are working people just like everyone else and if Mr. Henshaw spent some of his time answering Leigh’s questions then Leigh has to spend some of his time answer his questions too (Cleary 12). Third instances was with Mr. Fridley when he told Leigh, “‘what you need is a burglar alarm,’” to help him find the thief who keeps stealing his good food from his lunch bag (Cleary 48). Leigh wrote a lot about the burglar alarm in his diary and to Mr. Henshaw. And because of Mr. Fridley that Leigh invented the burglar alarm that made him famous at his school, and no one stole his lunch after he set the burglar