It is a wonderful feeling to give meaning and emotion to others by the reading of the written word, it is a way for me to share how I have experienced what I am reading.
I am grateful to love reading, to be able to loose myself in books and to share this love and experience with others. I belong to a family of avid readers and their love of reading nurtured mine. Even before I leaned to read I loved to look at comic books.
When very young I go a nominal allowance each week. Except for birthday and Christmas presents, I mainly used to buy books. The only time I ever shop-lifted was when I had finished my current book in the Bobbsey Twins series and it was days before my next allowance.
I could have borrowed the book from the library, I often borrowed books. But I so wanted to own the complete set. Having books in my room that I had read and could re-read was a source of great joy.
I was standing in the book aisle of W T Grant's and the next book in the series was in front of me. It was like a magnet. I could not help myself, it was as if the book attached itself to me. I didn't really hide it, I simply tucked it under my arm and walked out of the store!
The joy I experienced when reading it was seriously diminished by my quilt at having stolen it and my fear of getting caught. Amazing how fear of punishment can make us follow the rules. Never took something I hadn't paid for ever again!
I also owe my love of reading and my reading skills and passion to my teachers at PS #19 in Yonkers, N.Y. I went there from Kindergarten through March of the fourth grade.
 |
| PS 19 1st grade girls, I'm back row, left end |
My first week at this new school was shocking. At PS # 19, the focus was on the 3 "R"s", Reading, (w)Riting, (a)Rithmatic. We also had penmanship, music, art, and what passed for gym (group games in the school yard). That pretty much encompassed the entire curriculum for these early years of school.
With the move I was suddenly expected to also know about geography, social studies, science, current events, grammar, and (my big nemesis) spelling.
At PS # 19 all our work was done from books distributed for the lesson and then collected after the lesson so they could be passed along for another classroom to use. When we left school, at least through the 4th grade, our school work was done for the day.
At my new school I was given custody of a reader, a geography textbook, a social studies textbook, a science textbook, an English textbook, and a spelling textbook. We had assignments in just about all just about every night and weekends! I had to lug these tomes home each afternoon and lug them back each morning.
Thanks to the advise of my next door neighbor and soon to become life-long best friend, P, I requested a "book bag" and loose leaf notebooks to carry all this paraphernalia in. My first book bag was a beautiful shade of pale blue. I did feel very important and smart hauling 20 to 25 pounds of of books and paper everyday.
There was a lot that was being studied in class that was foreign to me. My most vivid memory was being told on my first day that the following day we would you start studying the Dark Ages. Having no frame of reference I brought this up at home, and confidently proclaimed that this was the time before electric lights! How little I knew; it was daunting. How much wonderful information to learn; that was exciting.
Those ladies in Yonkers had taught me how to read and how to read very, very well. In my new fourth grade class my reading level was tested and I scored, for comprehension and vocabulary, at about the 8th grade level.
So, although these were all unknown subjects to me, I had the textbooks and I could read them. We moved in there in March, by the end of that school year, in June, I was fully up to grade level in all subjects, except spelling.
And, this too, I attribute to those teachers. I was taught to read phonetically. And because of this I would automatically mentally replace the letters of a word with their phonetic equivalents. What most often appeared on the page was not what I necessarily thought I saw nor what I read, rather I see and read words as they are pronounced.
This is great technique for reading and especially for reading out loud; not so good for spelling. This really has handicapped me when trying to spell! Computers and word processors have helped and before them, sloppy handwriting covered up a number of mistakes.
Spelling issues aside, it was the reading skills that I learned so young, that imprinted on me the power of the written word, And having experienced this magic, I have always believed that because I have the ability to read and if I have the passion for something, with dedicated hard work I could learn anything I set my mind to. And time and again this has proven true in my life, in my personal interests and my professional successes.
I have been so fortunate to have had many extraordinary teachers throughout my life, They have motivated and inspired me and applauded my successes. With this recwho worked in poor school districts (inner city and rural) and, in spite of all that was lacking, motivated, inspired and taught the children entrusted to them.
This is not to be confused with that I loved and adored them; most yes, but not all. I think I am probably one of a few to have been expelled in 2nd grade. But, that too is another story for another day.
