At school I was bullied when I got things wrong in class, and this made me want to not try. Then when I was working, I would start early in the morning and often did doubles, so I didn’t have the time or energy to learn.
I did not know what to expect from Turning Pages Digital, and I was really nervous about meeting someone new and starting a new challenge. But I wanted to be able to write things properly and not rely on predictive text.
I now understand more words and I can tackle large chunks of text. Before I would just skim and zone out halfway through, and now I take my time and read things properly. I recently read through some of my partner’s medical paperwork, and support her with it. That felt great and is not something I could have done before.
I plan to continue learning and improving my literacy skills. I’m looking forward to being able to read fiction books.
I am most excited about being able to write my wedding vows. We have been engaged since before I went to prison, and I thought about it there a lot. I am so happy that I can now write down all the things I feel about her. It feels incredible that I know I can do this.
I really liked having the sessions in person as well as working on my own. If I got stuck on something by myself, I knew my reading coach would help me in the next session.
She helped me with difficult words and all the different spelling and punctuation rules. If there is something I’m not sure about, she takes the time to explain until I understand.
My favourite part was the sense of achievement I felt when I completed the programme.
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