Just to give you a little background about my family….both of my parents earned a bachelor's degree right after high school and my mom completed her Master’s degree shortly after I was born. My mom is currently a math teacher at Asheboro High School and teaches night classes at Randolph Community College. Although my dad did not pursue the same career, he put just as much emphasis on the importance of a good education as my mother did. It was understood that I would work hard and go to college.
My mom read to me every night growing up. I would not be surprised if my mom read to me every single Dr. Seuss book that had been written at that time. She absolutely loves to read and her enthusiasm was contagious. She had me sounding out words and reading on a 2nd grade level before I had even started Kindergarten. I went into Kindergarten knowing the entire alphabet and could write out my full name (Elizabeth is not an easy task for a 5 year old incase you were wondering).
My mom instilled into me a love for reading at a very young age. My house was filled with books from the day I was born and I still to this day enjoy reading for pleasure. I of course didn’t realize then that my mom was actually preparing me for years to come. I can honestly say that I don’t think I would enjoy reading as much as I do now had my childhood not been focused around books.
Renee,
ReplyDeleteI think it's fantastic that you had the experience of growing up with reading, and with enthusiastic parents who emphasized and instilled in you the importance of learning at an early age. I had a similar experience with my father, who loved to read and inspired me to love to read as well, as well as my mother who would read to me at night. I look back on these experiences fondly and am grateful that they helped shape who I am today, paving the way for my future pathway as a 12th grade English teacher. I can't help but think, though, about children who do not share the same experiences--about kids whose parents work all the time and therefore can't always read to them, or who can't for any number of reasons. I wonder how we, as teachers, can fill in this gap for them--can we somehow manage to instill enthusiasm for students who never had a strong background in reading, even for students who have made it all the way through the 12th grade without so much as picking up a book? I hope to find the answer to that question in the months and years to come. Thanks for sharing :)