I am a learner. It's my top strength according to the strengths Finder quiz I took at Evangel University.
I love reading.
I love words.
I love language and linguistics.
I love etymology.
I mildly enjoy writing but it's not my favorite.
It's a good thing I love all of the above since I'm getting a master's degree in literacy.
I'm not perfect. I make mistakes, yet I do love all of the above.
In my studies as an educator and a graduate student, I've done a lot of self-reflection. What makes one person a lover of books and words and another not? That's a loaded question and there's been a ton of brain research done. I won't bore you with that. We'll just say there's a lot of theories and a lot of research. A lot of it points to family life. Now before I go further, please know that I'm not pointing fingers at people, especially parents. Im sharing my experiences and some of what I've researched.
How you are raised can effect your ability and love of reading.
Let me share with you my experience.
My mom is an avid reader. She read every day, often for hours. My dad, while not an avid reader, read to me every night. Some of my earliest memories are my dad and I reading together. I was about 4 the first time I remenber reading a Little Christmas Golden Book by myself. Granted, I probably had it memorized, but I did know when to turn the pages and I knew that each group of letters stood for a word.
I don't remember learning to read. I've heard that's pretty normal for people who were early readers. I remember reading in school was easy and fun. (Math...not so much...). Spelling has always been a piece of cake.
So back to the point, my parents loved reading. Whether they recognized the importance of it I do not know. But it was important. My favorite memories of my mom were making regular trips to the Book Bug in Sikeston. Mom was constantly trading in books to get more. She would give me a set amount and I could go buy books. We didn't frequent the library often because we bought and traded so often. I also remembering being obsessed with Babysitter's Club. There was a new bookstore in the mall and mom would let me go get a new book. Used books were amazing...but a NEW book?? I was on cloud 9.
I have incredibly rich memories of living in a literate rich house. Not only did we read books, my dad was an incredible story teller. He would tell stories of his childhood. I still have images in my mind from the stories he told. I would visualize everything as he told the stories. I almost feel that they are my memories because of the vivid descriptions he gave. I can picture my grandma and great grandma (whom I never met) feeding hobos off the train. I can picture my dad watching the movies with no sound on the outdoor theater across from their farm. I can see, in black and white, my dad chasing the ice wagon. I can picture the farm he lived on in great detail. If I ever saw these things in real life, because my visualization of them is so vivid, I'd probably be disappointed.
There are four aspects of language: reading, writing, listening and speaking. My parents read with me, encouraged me to write, listened to me and had me to listen their stories and we engaged in spoken conversation. Unknowingly, they filled my life with all aspects of language. My life was filled with rich experiences. We weren't monetarily rich but I lived and learned through books.
Right here I could go into the effects of poverty on literacy, but I won't. Research Ruby Payne if you want to see staggering, scary information on that.
So what am I getting at in all of this? What's the point?
Parents, read with your kids. Let them see you reading. Talk with them, not at them. Share your life stories with them. Buy cheap used books or visit the library. Converse! Do it for your kids. Let them see you loving it and they will more than likely love reading. Let them experience the world through books. Build their knowledge bank through reading. It really does open up the world for themthem.
