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Writing Short Stories
In 1st grade, we wrote short stories and illustrated them weekly. They could be about anything but we had to sound out the words we used. I remember there was a lot of focus on the beginning, middle and end of our stories. -
Classroom Read Alouds
In my 2nd grade class my teacher, Mrs. Wartel read James and The Giant Peach aloud. I remember hanging onto every word. Her enthusiasm while reading made the story come alive and that was the beginning of my love for reading chapter books. -
First Creative Book Report
5th grade was the 1st time I remember doing book reports. Our teacher gave us the option to create something instead of write about the book. I made a 4ft tall paper mache gian with my mom. I remember we both got really into it and it received a lot of attention when I brought it to school. -
First "Classic"
To Kill A Mockingbird is the 1st "Classic" that I remember reading. I recall that the content was heavier than elementary school readings. I don't remember much about the story but I remember that I didn't enjoy it very much. -
Shakespeare
Reading was always easy for me to do and understand. When I reached the point in High School English where Shakespeare was introduced (I believe it was Macbeth) I did not understand any of it. I can remember reading the passages over and over again trying to figure out what it meant. I still think I would have a hard time reading and understanding it. -
A New Intelligence
When I was in High School I was a student teacher for other teens with learning disabilities. I helped them with reading and writing. During a rock-climbing trip, I discovered that as skilled as I was in school they were the ones who excelled in rock climbing and hiking. They had a whole different understanding of their bodies and abilities that I was completely inept in. They were my teachers that day. -
Isabelle's Diaganosis
When my daughter was diagnosed with visual, physical, and cognitive disabilities, the medical world used vocabulary that I couldn't pronounce or read. I felt so overwhelmed and unintelligent. Now I am fluent in describing and understanding all things "Isabelle." -
Isabelle Reads
We were told that Isabelle would never talk or walk. The future looked dismal. One day she looked at a van parked next to us in a parking lot and read the word roof. I remember feeling like she had hope to have some type of success in school if she could read even a little bit. -
Reading My Childhood Books To My Children
My son and I read James and The Giant Peach together. He loves to read and it comes easily to him. I was so happy to be able to share this book that I loved so much growing up. -
Good Parenting???
Our 17-year-old has been very "teenagery" lately. It is difficult to use "being grounded" as a punishment during a pandemic. So, we read a self-discovery book together about trust and honesty etc. It ended up being a great experience to have some meaningful content to discuss that we both were engaged in. I wish I had used this tactic earlier in my parenting career.
