My Literacy Experiences
My Family
I was lucky enough to have a family that provided me with countless memorable reading experiences in my early childhood. Then, as I grew older I was fortunate enough to be able to buy or borrow whatever books I wanted, and I was given suggestions but never told what to read. My parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles all deserve credit for making me into the book lover that I have always been. My parents built a wonderfully large library in our bedroom closet before I was born. These books were read to me as a young child every night, and as I grew up I learned to read with these books. Mom and Dad took my brother and I to Borders regularly, so that library grew over the years and so did my love for literature. When Borders closed it was a sad day. My grandparents also had an extensive library at their house that I would explore any time I got the chance. These were mostly non-fiction books that advanced my reading level and knowledge of different text styles very quickly at a young age. Grandpa always let me keep the ones I loved most. I especially remember the book about Chicago bear Brian Piccolo and fellow teammate Gale Sayers, and I always loved the books he had about planes and boats. My aunts and uncles would give me books for every birthday and Christmas. These books were always about whatever I was interested at the time. Uncle Mike and Uncle Ben kept me interested in books in my teenage years with wonderful suggestions and book gifts. Uncle Ben held a competition for who out of the family could finish The Count of Monte Cristo first. My brother won 50 dollars. I thank my family for making me one of the rare young males who reads for pleasure, and they had a huge impact on my decision to have a concentration in reading. Because of the way my family encouraged reading, I believe that choice in reading material, catering to the interests and needs of students, and providing students with a variety of quality fiction and non-fiction are important aspects of literacy instruction.
The Authors and their books
What would reading be without the brilliant books and their sensational authors? Throughout my life I have read a lot of books. Some of those books have inspired my imagination and kindled a desire for knowledge that has changed me as a person. The books that I read cover to cover dying for more once they ended are another reason I want to teach reading. I want to inspire others to feel the way I do about books and reading. In the early years it was the countless picture books, and of course, Doctor Seuss. The first book I read by myself was Hop on Pop. I remember being solely interested in non-fiction in my early elementary years. I loved Dinosaur Named Sue so much because my Aunts took me to the Chicago Museums regularly. Books about dinosaurs, the ocean, space, animals, history, and especially world record books were read on a regular basis. These books urged me to discover more, and therefore they encouraged me to want to do well in school. From about the 4th grade and on my interests switched to fiction, although history books and historical fiction are always favorites of mine (Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson, Shoeless Joe and Me by Dan Gutman, The Root Cellar by Janet Lunn, Devil in the White City by Erik Larson). I think I read every R.L. Stine Goosebumps book in third and fourth grade because I loved being scared. The books Enchantress from the Stars by Sylvia Engdahl and A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle took my imagination to places it had never gone before. This led to me reading every Harry Potter book, and I also loved the Lord of the Rings books. I was at a loss of interest for a while in middle school until my honors English teacher explained I was just bored and needed to read more challenging books. This is when I dropped the teenage fiction and headed back to my desire for being scared. Who else could it be but Stephen King, the master of horror. Underrated masterpieces like IT, The Green Mile, and The Shawshank Redemption; and personal favorites such as Bag of Bones, The Shining, The Dead Zone, and Carrie kept me busy throughout high school. I remember everyone thinking I was weird for reading during free time and study hall, but I didn’t care because I loved these books! Currently I’m reading my guilty pleasure, Orange is the New Black, a memoir by Piper Kerman. My plan is to begin in on the classic literature next. I want to stick with American literature first, starting with Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood. It was really fun to remember and write out all of these books I have read and loved, and I feel like the ones I left out got cheated. My love for these books and their authors has to be one of the most significant reasons I have my concentration in Reading. I believe students sometimes don’t know what they want to read, and a good teacher can figure out what a student likes in order to provide them with some quality options for reading. My interest in reading is what drove me to want to learn and try in school, so I need to be able to motivate students to genuinely enjoy reading. I think good literacy instruction involves choice, but students need guidance so they are challenged, and so their reading skills are continually improving. A variety of both fiction and non-fiction books that cater to the needs of students from all reading levels is also an important aspect of teaching literature. Student’s interests will change like mine did, so variety is key.