The Reader Who Most Influenced Me

On this week's Share A Story Shape A Future blogging event sponsored by The Reading Tub, they pose the question:


Who is the person who influenced you most as a reader?


Here she is with her first grandson (someone she also influenced as a reader):

My mom

She's gone now from this earth but she sits on my shoulder every day. I see her putting a bowl on her head and prancing around the kitchen, reciting Robert Louis Stevenson's poem, The Land of Counterpane. I expect it was a meaningful poem since my brother and I both had times of extended illness in which we were confined to bed. It made us giggle and we loved the rhythm and rhyme of the poetry.

I see her pouring over a book, occasionally with those silly black framed glasses from the 1950's on her nose - do you know the ones with the wings? Her two most favorite authors were Phyllis Whitney and Eugenia Price (Momma loved historical fiction). As soon as I was in 5th or 6th grade and was a strong enough reader to attack these novels, she began sharing them with me and we'd have play fights over who would get the newest title first.


Although I cannot remember the first time I heard this phrase, I can still see that dreamy look in her eyes when she would tell me "you can go anywhere in a book" I believed her and I still do.

All her children believed her and their children (Nana's grandchildren) do too. What an incredible legacy this little feisty woman from the coal-mining country of Virginia has passed along, simply because she loved reading and books.

Today, she remains an influence not only in my personal reading (I have a good book or three or four on my bedside stand all the time) but also in my work as The Literacy Ambassador. Her passion for reading and stories and talking and sharing inspire me to this day. They are the reason I am an enthusiastic and passionate speaker, writer and advocate for the fact that "there is a book for every child". I know that without the indelible impression she left, I would not be doing what I am today. She, in fact, is the core of the revolution I am starting with my two new books, Anytime Reading Readiness and Before They Read. To learn more about that revolution, visit Reading is For Everyone
You can also stay in touch on Twitter and Facebook where you'll find me as litambassador and on Linkedin

Words of Wisdom About Reading with Your Child

In my travels in the reading world, I often have an opportunity to meet incredible people. Conversations with Mem Fox, Dr. Catherine Snow, John H. Ritter, Carmen Agra Deedy, and Aliki Brandenberg are at the top of my list. I have many more friends out there (just too many to name) but they are are devoted to one thing in common: helping families understand the power and magic of reading with your children.

I keep in touch and Aliki in the midst of her travels was kind enough to share the following words of wisdom with me for you. They apply whether you have a child who is 5 or 15.

Reading to Your Child

Dear Friends,

I hope you know the joys and benefits of reading to your child. My greatest pleasure was reading to my own two children, Jason and Alexa. We would pile on the bed an hour before bedtime with our chosen books, snuggle close, and spend as much of that precious time as possible in this magical state. When I sometimes hear “I’m too busy”, I wonder what is more important? The dishes?

The statistics are clear, and there for all to see. They tell us that Books=Literacy. To read is to absorb words, grammar, sentence structure, the comprehension of ideas, and insights into the world around us.

But beyond those many benefits is the soul. In the warmth from that nearness of reading a book together, we share any emotion the words and pictures inspire: joy, laughter, fear, sadness, excitement, awe. We share conversation, and communicate the wonder, questions, and understanding the story generates.

A love of reading is one of the most life-fulfilling habits children can develop - AND IT IS FREE! It is a precious gift for which they will one day thank you. Your reward will be to see your own children read to their own children. Believe me. Those who live this, know. Just as teachers often beget teachers, readers beget readers.

Happy reading together!

Aliki

Do you have wonderful mentors and inspirations you want to share? Can you be an inspiration to someone who doesn't read with their children? Absolutely, you can!

MAKING UP FOR LOST TIME-Readers 10+ Years Old

Some families, in the midst of their whirlwind of life, never really got into the reading together habit when your children were young. It's so easy to become distracted and deal with what is most urgent rather than what might be more important. I often hear families say, "we just don't have time".

First of all, let me tell you -- it's not too late. Make a conscious decision that this is a forever gift you can give your child. If your child doesn't "love" reading, my first advice is never force a "sit down, you must read now" time. You can to enforce a regular homework schedule but put reading on a different page. Especially as our children grow into young adults, such pressure to read often simply backfires. So what do you do instead?

1) Start being a reading model yourself. Order a magazine subscription (usually only $15-25 for a whole year) that you both can enjoy. Check out a few books from the library or at the bookstore that you would like to read or revisit (and they don't have to be classics - think "what will I enjoy?" A mechanic's how-to, a cheater's manual for the latest video game, a cookbook, anything. Find out what books are on the reading list for your child's English class and determine that you'll read (or maybe) struggle through one just so you can relate to what your child is experiencing.

2) If your child says, "I hate reading", it may simply mean that she/he is embarrassed because reading skills are weak. Have a heart to heart, not about reading at first, just about what your child wants to do with his/her life. Share what you know about the importance of reading for that profession and offer to help your youngster get where he wants to be, do what he wants to do. Even professional ball players have to read large play books. Think of reading more as a tool for life than an academic exercise. Solicit help from your child's favorite teacher.

3) Involve your child in reading and writing activities that serve your family every day. Making out grocery lists, searching for coupons, reading labels when doing the family shopping -- all of that is literacy. Get your child involved in paying bills, doing laundry, and look for ways to incorporate a little reading and writing into those experiences. But make the reading the tool, not the focus.

As our readership of this grows (and I hope all of you will share this blog with at least one friend), I'd love to see you adding your own comments, suggestions, frustrations. Together we can help every child discover the power and privileges that come with reading, writing, listening, communicating and viewing.

Don't forget that TLA, Inc. specializes in helping families find time and motivation for reading and writing. Check out our website at www.readingisforeveryone.org for ideas for PTA/PTO meetings, community events, etc.