Celebrating National Reading Month

Did you know that March is National Reading Month! 

March was chosen to honor Dr. Seuss's birthday. 

When I was a child, I fell in love with reading and libraries. There were so many to choose from in my city's grand public library. It was a magnificent structure in downtown Syracuse, NY that opened my eyes to magical wonders. The stacks in the children's library were filled with books about faraway places and times. I spent hours mulling over the precious publications and always walked away with a new stack of books.

But that library was not the only one that amazed me. Each summer when I visited my Nonnie in Rome, NY, we would spend time walking to the library. My love for reading increased with age. It's not surprising that booklove was one of the reasons why I studied to become a reading specialist. 

My first classroom had a small area for books nestled in the corner of the cafeteria. My high school students were not readers but I had an intense desire to introduce them to the pleasures of reading. From there, I was asked to start a reading program for 7th graders in another impoverished setting. My love for books continued to grow as did the libraries I shared with K-12th grade students. To entice the elementary students to read, I offered schoolwide read alouds during holiday times. The teachers and I celebrated Dr. Seuss' birthday on March 2nd wearing Cat in the Hat hats and reading to students. Then, after 25 years in classrooms as a reading specialist, I moved to central administration as a districtwide director of language arts. In that capacity, I was able to open libraries for classroom teachers in each of the 5 elementary schools. Now, I enjoy reading to my grandgirls with books I have collected over the years.      

Heartnote to Students

books

open doors

to new pathways

enlighten, delight, and become

bestfriends

books

reach out

to all ages

as guides into literacy

learning

books

ignite imagination

offering content and

creative illustrations for story

love

love

comes in

many forms

books offer pleasure, intrigue,

heartthrobs

©CVarsalona, February 2024

Elfchen poems

I am celebrating the month of March by reading and writing daily. I am also celebrating my six-year-old year-old grandgirl's accomplishment as a reader. As a first-grade student, she reads fluently and enjoys chapter books now. I applaud all the parents who read to their child/children when they are little and continue to enjoy the pleasure of family reading at bedtime. 

Once again I  am sliding into Day 16 of the 2024 Two Writing Teachers Slice of Life Story Challenge before the midnight hour clocks in.2024 Two Writing Teachers Slice of Life Story Challenge.

Day 16

Mission-Critical

For years, we have discussed the importance of reading for children. Respected experts in literacy have provided guidance and tips for families, schools, and communities to encourage learners to become lifelong reading and writers. Historical figures, such as Frederick Douglass, have also voiced their opinion: "Once you learn to read, you will be forever free." While Douglass' comment is particular to the time period, it has merit in today's society. Reading opens doors of knowledge, builds vocabulary, increases language and critical thinking skills, and sparks imagination and inquiry for all children. Through books and other reading materials, learners freely explore the wonders of the world.

We have heard and read other outstanding quotes about the importance of reading but I have never been so impressed than listening to the following amazing speech by a brilliant four-year-old. This youngster places emphasis on what reading can do and with an appealing style encourages others to discover the wonders of reading. 

Tonight, #NYEDChat will enlist educators, parents, students, and colleagues from all walks of life to join their voices with my fabulous creative guest moderators, Peter H. Reynolds, Paul Reynolds, and Susan Verde. We will discuss 2020, the Year of Reading. In a 21st Century world, "Literacy is mission-critical"-Paul Reynolds. We must problem solve the issues before us. Reading will bring clarity and resources to pressing topics.

Questions for Discussion

Q1 In a world where the global family must communicate and collaborate to solve the planet’s most challenging problems, Literacy is increasingly mission-critical. What do you think are the most essential things we can do to promote a culture of joyful reading?  #NYEDChat

Q2 Have you seen NYSED’s Lifelong Practices of Readers & Writers? http://www.nysed.gov/common/nysed/files/programs/curriculum-instruction/lifelong-practices-readers-writers-11-30-17-conference.pdf Which of these 16 lifelong practices resonate most strongly with you? #NYEDChat

Q3 It is said that “Children are made readers on the lap of their parents.” Emilie Buchwald but sometimes home is not the or the only place where reading happens and it is teachers and mentors who also help “make” a reader. Recall a personal example of this statement. #NYEDChat

Call to action! What can we as parents, educators, or administrators do to make 2020 the Year of the Reader? What creative strategies will spark and accelerate this movement? (#Reflaction) #NYEDChat

William Faulkner's terse statement, "Read, read, read," is what lifelong readers do, but how about those who do not know the pleasures of reading a good book? We need to find strategies to encourage all students to read from toddler years on. 

Please consider joining our chat or scheduling answers to the above questions so that people across the world can engage in a positive call to action in 2020 as "the Year of Reading".

June Vibes

Summertime makes a grand entrance each year as children and parents move into a relaxed mode of living. There are family outings, mini-trips, vacations, and fresh air fun. Everyone feels summer vibes that bring smiles and uplifted spirits. Here is a feel-good song, "June is bustin' out all over," that holds the spirit of June in its lyrics.

Feeling the verve of summer busting out, I am joining Michelle H. Barnes' June Ditty Challenge created by Karen Boss, an editor from Charlesbridge Publishing who is Today's Little Ditty Spotlight guest for the month of June. Susan likes the idea of "putting good vibes for kids into the world" so her ditty challenge this month is to write a poem in second person, speaking directly to a kid or kids about something that you think is important for them to know.

For my ditty challenge offering, I chose to discuss the gift of reading. It is a joyful one that never stops surprising the reader with journeys to near and far-off lands, inspiration, amusement, and beautiful language to develop communication skills. My ditty poem captures my love of reading and the blossoming love for books that has developed in my granddaughter's life. Because she delights in choosing her own books to read, one of my gifts for her second birthday was a picture book that speaks to the blossoming artist that she is. Sky Color, written by my friend, the creative artist/children's author, Peter Reynolds, is a great read aloud to spark the creative spirit in any child. 

I dedicate my poem to my little love, Sierra, who is full of life and celebrated her second birthday this past weekend.

📖

Dear little grandchild of mine,

summer is for old-fashioned fun-

your time to notice, wonder, and combine

outdoor merriment under the sun

with picture books for everyone.

Find the story that sends you climbing

the one that's filled with rhyming.

There are many to make you smile,

others to spark your artistic style.

Perhaps, you'll come read with me

by my roaring Long Island sea

or under your old Virginia tree.

Wherever you go,

bring a treasured book

to fly you to an enchanted nook

where summer dreams wait for you 

as book love grows during year two.

©CV, 2019

📖

Now, I am off to visit my friend, librarian/poet, Linda Mitchell at her blog site, A Word Edgewise. Linda is the gracious host of Poetry Friday this week.

Within the Pages

I never forgot the walk past the huge lampposts, up the stairs, and through the massive doors. I remember stepping into the foyer and feeling like I was floating across the oversized room, as if I was sitting on Aladdin's carpet. Walking further into an enormous area designated as the children's room, I was immediately mesmerized by long rows and shelves of endless books. I knew then there was something magical and sacred about the library. 

To this day, I never forgot the smell of the books and the feel of my fingers running across the covers. I was a young child with little background knowledge about places outside of my neighborhood and downtown Syracuse but in this haven of knowledge, I was whomever I wanted to be. Books carried me to places I never knew about and those I wanted to explore.

Postcard from the Onondaga Historical Society

Onondaga Public Library, Syracuse, NY

In my formative years, I understood  that reading could transport me. I became a voracious reader, encouraged by my teachers and my family. My love for reading grew with each classic novel and nonfiction book I read. I cherished reading about historical figures and fictionalized characters whom I wanted to emulate. Books became my friends over the years.

At the end of college, I took a circuitous route back to my roots and became a reading teacher to pass on my passion for reading to young minds. I hoped that I would impact students' lives to encourage them to become lifelong readers. To this day, I am book lover, spreading the message that Reading Matters.

Happy National Library Week 2017 

"Libraries Transform"

They transformed my life. How about yours?

It's Tuesday so the slicers are serving up their Slice of Life pieces at Two Writing Teachers. Join me as I travel there.

March Slice of Life Story Challenge

As the School Year Draws to an End Reflection Matters

School is nearing an end and summer is around the bend. So I decided to take a stroll down memory lane to highlight my first year of teaching when long hair and mini-skirts were in vogue. My first experience started in Albany at the Albany High School Annex with senior high, disenfranchised readers. The work was challenging but so rewarding. I started immediately after my Master's Degree was completed and that meant I only had six months to engage students whose lives were filled with social, emotional, and academic difficulties in the art of reading. I hope that this poem helps you reflect upon your early days of teaching and how you have grown as a learner and practitioner. 

Readers Take Flight

Faces of youth,

"Kotter-like" students beyond their years,

Move through the hallways of my mind.

I number each of them in my etch book of time

As I recall first words,

Backstories of solitary lives

Without maps to guide their journeys,

Tribulations, and small triumphs.

In the corners of yesterday, I see their faces

Peering behind books. I savor the memories-

Makeshift first classroom,

Third floor annex-adjacent to cafeteria,

Sweaty smells, crowded seating,

Children in adolescent frames,

Disheveled, tuned out.

Sitting before me, waiting for guidance.

Traveling together on a rocky but steady path

We grew a learner’s haven.

As trust evolved,

Content explored.

Their minds expanded,

Swaddled in words from books

That lined the walls

And cradled the learning.

Then, as quickly as I came into their lives,

I left. June brought the year to an end. 

The string that bound our learning lives unraveled.

I watched each of them take flight.

Into the summer winds, they soared

As floating balloons dancing in the sky.

I sighed, hoping that one day they would become

The readers I groomed them to be.

This poem has been submitted to the Poetry Friday Round-up found at Carols' Corner this week. In the comment section, there will be messages from a variety of writers linking you to their poems. At the top of the blog page, is a quote by Kate DiCamillo that speaks to the issue of reading as a gift. 

"Reading should not be presented to children as a chore or a duty. It should be offered to them as a precious gift."

May your Friday be filled with the pleasure of reading.

Books Change Lives

Reading is one of my passions but it is not a universal one shared by all. Sometimes, I think how sad it is to not have developed a love for reading; not to have grown up feeling the weight of a book in your hand or the thrill of reading late into the night. 

Books are a uniquely portable magic. 
Stephen King

Indeed, books have magic. They helped me create my own private space and took me to places that I would never have been able to visit. They were the sights and sounds that I might never have heard other than in between the pages. As a child, books provided me with a feeling that I stored in the recesses of my mind for years and then, transferred to my own children. 

Growing up in a house of readers is a different picture than the one painted for many children in America. I remember the cries of children coming to elementary school with no gloves and little warm clothing during very cold snowstorms in upstate New York. There were the junior high students who did not own books and were not passionate about reading; the adolescent boys in the juvenile detention center that longed to know how to read despite their challenging situations. Thinking back on a career filled with struggling readers makes me reflect on the influences teachers have on children's lives. Passion for reading and learning is infectious. 

On Thursday night, in a lovely living room space at Scholastic headquarters in New York City, Laura Robb, nationally known teacher/author, and her son, Evan Robb, principal and author, greeted guests at an evening get together devoted to the power of books and how literacy changes lives. They passionately showcased their philanthropic foundation, Educator2Educator (E2E), whose mission it is to:

• Provide print and e-books to high poverty school and class libraries from preschool to high school.
• Develop a professional library for teachers with suggestions for collaborating to learn and improve instruction so teachers can prepare students to meet 21st century needs by developing problem solvers, expert readers and writers, expert users of technology, collaborators, and creative thinkers.

The Robbs spoke of the opportunities reading provides for struggling learners and why they feel so strongly about the place of books in children's hands.  Evan recounted a recent story of a middle school child who desperately wanted a book he saw at the Scholastic Book Fair in his middle school but did not have $7.99 to pay for it. Laura read student letters speaking of the power of reading and learning. Supported by UBS Financial Services and an Advisory Board of notable figures, the night offered pleasant conversations and reflecting time in an environment that highlighted a print-rich environment and the power that reading brings. 

There are so many students living in poverty who have not had the privilege of a book rich home environment.  There are those who have not even been exposed to the public library or if they have do not have opportunities to frequent it. Books change lives. That is a clear message that we heard. "I hated reading in middle school and most of high school. I couldn't read the books. I couldn't write essays or stories. Reading gave me a headache. I was going to drop out, but my tenth grade teacher for my special help class told me I was smart. He helped with reading every day. He got other teachers to help me. I graduated high school. I'm starting college next year." This real voice from the classroom is one heard by many teachers across America. Laura Robb made the voice public. As a dedicated teacher for over 40 years, she has passionately prepared students for their roles in society and continues to provide teachers with guidance, research in the field of literacy, and modeled examples of strategic reading. Her love for reading and what it offers was felt by all in the room on Thursday night. 

With the Common Core rigorous expectations, voluminous reading is a priority. Developing children's passion for reading is a combined call to action for both parents and educators. Did you know???

• 10% of American public schools don't have a central library where students can check out books.
• Each year 1.3 million high school students drop out due to poor reading and writing skills; more than half are students of color (Alliance for Excellent Education, 2010).

If inclined, you may wish to visit the Educator2Educator website to find out more about the noble cause of bringing books and ebooks to high poverty schools. Also, part of the initiative is to develop professional libraries for teachers to meet the challenges of creating learners who read like detectives and write like conscientious, investigative reports. Teachers may wish to apply for grants from the foundation.  Information is noted on the website.

United voices are heard across the globe today as we celebrate World Teacher's Day. Educator2Educator is but one voice speaking to the cause of the power of books to change lives.