Today I am most thankful for the person or people who taught me how to read. It's one of the simple pleasures in my life and I have taken it for granted for far too long. I don't remember ever learning how to read, but I do remember sitting with my mom and brother every night and reading a stack of books together. Somewhere along the way, it stuck. Now, as I sit in a 2nd grade classroom and I am witness to the struggle it is to learn, I appreciate it more so. Reading is one of the most difficult things to learn and we ask it of children on a daily basis. When I sit and watch a child who struggles so much that it is not enjoyable, it breaks my heart. If I wasn't able to read, I wouldn't know what to do. Books are an escape for me - I read to relax, to travel, to experience. I've made lists of favorite books, tackled some that I truly dislike, and I've still only scratched the surface.
I've recently entered the e-reader society and while I love it, I miss the sensory experience that a book brings. With each turn of the page, a new adventure begins. The smell of a library book transports me to another place.
I have 2 distinct memories of reading from my childhood. First, when my brother was learning to read (as with all children), he latched on to a book that had predictable text - text that you can anticipate the rhyming pattern or had a lot of repetition. This book was P.D. Eastman's The Best Nest. Every night for what seemed like months, this was the book he chose to read. My mother created a song (which I still sing when reading the book) that went with Mrs. Bird's song about her nest. For weeks, I'm sure we read it over and over and over and over again, only to have him bring it out the next night. I'm not sure when it was retired, but his little girls now own their very own copy. I wonder if he has ever brought it out to read to them....
The second memory was of the Denham Springs Public Library. When I was in elementary school, it was across the street from Denham Springs Elementary School. You would have never thought it was a library because it looked like a little house. As a matter of fact, that's exactly what it was. My Aunt Jannie worked there when we used to frequent its doors. I don't remember going throughout the school year, but I do remember visiting at least once a week during the summer to participate in the Summer Reading program. In my mind, I can still envision where the Sweet Pickles books are located.
Reading, is one of the things I love most, and to the person who taught me, I sincerely thank you!
I've recently entered the e-reader society and while I love it, I miss the sensory experience that a book brings. With each turn of the page, a new adventure begins. The smell of a library book transports me to another place.
I have 2 distinct memories of reading from my childhood. First, when my brother was learning to read (as with all children), he latched on to a book that had predictable text - text that you can anticipate the rhyming pattern or had a lot of repetition. This book was P.D. Eastman's The Best Nest. Every night for what seemed like months, this was the book he chose to read. My mother created a song (which I still sing when reading the book) that went with Mrs. Bird's song about her nest. For weeks, I'm sure we read it over and over and over and over again, only to have him bring it out the next night. I'm not sure when it was retired, but his little girls now own their very own copy. I wonder if he has ever brought it out to read to them....
The second memory was of the Denham Springs Public Library. When I was in elementary school, it was across the street from Denham Springs Elementary School. You would have never thought it was a library because it looked like a little house. As a matter of fact, that's exactly what it was. My Aunt Jannie worked there when we used to frequent its doors. I don't remember going throughout the school year, but I do remember visiting at least once a week during the summer to participate in the Summer Reading program. In my mind, I can still envision where the Sweet Pickles books are located.
Reading, is one of the things I love most, and to the person who taught me, I sincerely thank you!
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