Hello and Happy New Year!
It seems like it has been much more than a month or so since I last blogged! I thought today warranted a post considering it is "Family Literacy Day"!
Today I am preparing for tomorrow and my visit to a Grade 4 classroom at Big Rock Elementary in Okotoks. They are celebrating literacy all week at the school and I was invited by our good friend Jamie whose girls both attend this school.
I am excited about this honor of speaking to a class! I am to share with them why literacy is important to me, literacy in my job ... what elements within it are critical to be literate for and then I get to read a favorite chapter or story of my choice, followed by a Q&A session.
So - why is literacy important to me? Such a simple question but quite hard to answer in any way other than that I cannot imagine a life without reading. Books have been a constant joy in my life, transporting me to other places. Maybe that is where my love of travel stemmed from and how I can tie the work aspect into my chat with the kids? Reading of other cultures and the history of those regions in the world make my job as a travel agent exciting. Advising clients what books to read before they set out on a journey, what sights to see when they are there and their historic significance to that culture is the "counselling" part of my job.
See? I knew if I took the time to blog today the "plan" for tomorrow would take shape! :) Maybe I will read a Chapter from J.M. Barrie's "Peter and Wendy", or perhaps P.L. Traver's "Mary Poppins". I fell in love with London through books before I ever travelled there. Prior to this very moment I thought I would just read one of my stories from "The Shining Star Collection" but now I think I have a plan! Thanks for listening and helping me work through that! LOL!
I hope by reading a story each of the 24 nights before Christmas that you formed some new habits around family literacy! My deepest wish is that you continue that practice throughout the year and today is a perfect day to gather together and share a story! So, just in case you were missing my "challenges"... I challenge you to read together tonight as a family and perhaps discuss these very same questions I will be asked tomorrow with your children.
I also read an incredible story this week that my good friend Marilyn posted on Facebook about a man and his book store which is now located in Thunder Bay. He moved the store there after high retail rents forced him out of Toronto. He is a true collector of rare books and now I want to go visit his store to see this amazing collection! There is something about a room FULL of books that excites and ignites my soul!
My siblings and I were blessed to grow up having access to a warehouse of books and magazines as my Dad worked in the wholesale distribution business. I can still close my eyes and smell the newsprint. That warm feeling of being surrounded by books is almost indescribable. To me, it is a warm cocoon of endless possibility. We can read a book and be anyone or anything we want to be vicariously. Books are transformative.
I remember my Uncle Mike, who was an English Professor and poet, say to me, "It does not matter what you read, as long as your read!" How true. I often wonder if kids that don't like reading have just not found the perfect author or story that reflects their interests? This is where librarians come in. God bless them all! I remember riding my bike to our closest library and spending hours there reading or researching facts for school assignments. (Yes, that was well before the internet, lol!). The librarians there were like the secret gate keepers, asking us questions, probing out our interests before making their recommendations. What an amazing career that would be!
I am rambling ... again. Wish me luck for tomorrow and I hope that I can in some small way inspire even one child to pick up a book!
Enjoy your "Family Literacy Day" and let me know what you read together tonight people!
Shine On!
- K
It seems like it has been much more than a month or so since I last blogged! I thought today warranted a post considering it is "Family Literacy Day"!
Today I am preparing for tomorrow and my visit to a Grade 4 classroom at Big Rock Elementary in Okotoks. They are celebrating literacy all week at the school and I was invited by our good friend Jamie whose girls both attend this school.
I am excited about this honor of speaking to a class! I am to share with them why literacy is important to me, literacy in my job ... what elements within it are critical to be literate for and then I get to read a favorite chapter or story of my choice, followed by a Q&A session.
So - why is literacy important to me? Such a simple question but quite hard to answer in any way other than that I cannot imagine a life without reading. Books have been a constant joy in my life, transporting me to other places. Maybe that is where my love of travel stemmed from and how I can tie the work aspect into my chat with the kids? Reading of other cultures and the history of those regions in the world make my job as a travel agent exciting. Advising clients what books to read before they set out on a journey, what sights to see when they are there and their historic significance to that culture is the "counselling" part of my job.
See? I knew if I took the time to blog today the "plan" for tomorrow would take shape! :) Maybe I will read a Chapter from J.M. Barrie's "Peter and Wendy", or perhaps P.L. Traver's "Mary Poppins". I fell in love with London through books before I ever travelled there. Prior to this very moment I thought I would just read one of my stories from "The Shining Star Collection" but now I think I have a plan! Thanks for listening and helping me work through that! LOL!
I hope by reading a story each of the 24 nights before Christmas that you formed some new habits around family literacy! My deepest wish is that you continue that practice throughout the year and today is a perfect day to gather together and share a story! So, just in case you were missing my "challenges"... I challenge you to read together tonight as a family and perhaps discuss these very same questions I will be asked tomorrow with your children.
I also read an incredible story this week that my good friend Marilyn posted on Facebook about a man and his book store which is now located in Thunder Bay. He moved the store there after high retail rents forced him out of Toronto. He is a true collector of rare books and now I want to go visit his store to see this amazing collection! There is something about a room FULL of books that excites and ignites my soul!
My siblings and I were blessed to grow up having access to a warehouse of books and magazines as my Dad worked in the wholesale distribution business. I can still close my eyes and smell the newsprint. That warm feeling of being surrounded by books is almost indescribable. To me, it is a warm cocoon of endless possibility. We can read a book and be anyone or anything we want to be vicariously. Books are transformative.
I remember my Uncle Mike, who was an English Professor and poet, say to me, "It does not matter what you read, as long as your read!" How true. I often wonder if kids that don't like reading have just not found the perfect author or story that reflects their interests? This is where librarians come in. God bless them all! I remember riding my bike to our closest library and spending hours there reading or researching facts for school assignments. (Yes, that was well before the internet, lol!). The librarians there were like the secret gate keepers, asking us questions, probing out our interests before making their recommendations. What an amazing career that would be!
I am rambling ... again. Wish me luck for tomorrow and I hope that I can in some small way inspire even one child to pick up a book!
Enjoy your "Family Literacy Day" and let me know what you read together tonight people!
Shine On!
- K