ABBY

PHOTO BY RANDY BACON

ABBY

“My Journey With Literacy”

My journey with literacy has evolved over time, as my own understanding of the complexity and power of literacy has grown. Just like a novel, life unfolds in chapters. In the early chapters of my literacy story, I knew I wanted to be a teacher. As a child, I loved playing school, forcing my sisters and friends to be my “students.” When they weren’t available, I settled for stuffed animals or dolls. The best birthday gift I ever received was a chalk holder, just like the one my teacher used at school. At twenty-three, my lifelong dream became a reality and I started my first teaching job, teaching twenty-seven kindergartners at a school with a high percentage of at-risk students. I did not yet understand the huge responsibility I was assuming… laying the foundation for a child’s success in reading, in school, and ultimately in life.

I also did not yet understand the complexity of teaching a child to read. I saw some students learn to read quickly and easily while others struggled. When a child learns to read, they are learning to crack the code. It opens the door to a world that was previously off-limits to them, or maybe they never even knew that world existed. I became fascinated with the process and I devoured anything new I could learn about teaching children to read. I was fortunate enough to work with a wonderful literacy coach who mentored me in how to most effectively teach reading and writing. The more I learned, the more questions I had. I started working on my Master’s degree in Literacy, which allowed me to apply what I was learning with my students.

The next chapter in my literacy story is called, “Parenting.” Watching a child learn to read is fascinating. So much is happening in children’s’ brains as they learn to “crack the code.” Their early experiences with print and language help to form a literacy foundation years before formal education begins. I knew this because of my educational background, but experiencing it first-hand made it real. When my daughter was born, I was able to see how those early experiences shape a child as a reader. This changed me both as a parent and as a teacher. Listening to books on a parent’s lap, having conversations, listening to nursery rhymes… they are helping children become readers. So this raised more questions in my mind: How do we make up for it when a child doesn’t have those early experiences? Are they essentially starting school five years behind? And what if a child has all of those wonderfully rich experiences and they still struggle learning to read?

And so I began the next chapter. I became a Reading Interventionist, working with struggling students, and a Literacy Coach, mentoring other teachers in reading and writing instruction. I studied both the art and science of teaching reading. I analyzed data. I read books… lots and lots of books. I saw children experience both successes and failures. I saw joy and frustration. Then I knew it was time to be back in the classroom, working alongside children and parents.

This brings us to today. Being a parent has made me more empathetic as a teacher; I am constantly asking myself, “what would I want a teacher to do if it was my daughter?” I also have greater empathy for the parents of children who are struggling to read… I try to imagine the frustration, heartbreak, and maybe even guilt they must feel. I am still learning, making mistakes, watching successes, and experiencing failures as a teacher. This is not the final chapter in my story with literacy. I do not have all of the answers and I know I never will, but I will keep asking the questions and keep trying.

Reading is essential, as it allows us to function in society. But it serves another purpose too… to enrich our lives. To unlock ideas, viewpoints, information, and other worlds. To make us more understanding and empathetic. It may sound cheesy, but to me, reading is magical. Seeing the look of awe on a child’s face when they realize they have “cracked the code” is pure magic.