Knowing what my past reading and writing experiences are, will explain how I got to where I am currently in my abilities to read and write. Some of the experiences might have been positive or negative, but with those experiences, I will use them to teach the importance of reading and writing with my future students. As a toddler, I first discovered books by touching, tasting, and even occasionally tearing pages. Doing these things provided me with the opportunity to explore written materials. My mom also helped in my discovery of reading. Every evening, before bedtime, I would gather many books and snuggle up in my moms lap. Listening to her read was always an adventure. My favorite memory of my mom reading to me was when she would try to imitate what she believed the voices of different characters might be. This set a lifelong love for books and learning.
Another one of my fondest memories of literacy was when I was in kindergarten and we had a special time when our teacher read to us. It was always at the same time each day, naptime. Each student would race to get a little carpet to lie down. The teacher would dim the lights and begin to read with a soft voice. I remember that I would get so excited to hear the story, but before she could finish the book, I, along with most of the other students, was sound asleep.
Television (T.V.) was never an option in my house. If we did not have something to do, we found a book, magazine or newspaper to read. It was more educational for us to read about the news than it was to watch it on T.V. With T.V., they had no idea if what was on the news was appropriate for us to watch. With magazines or newspapers, my parents were able to tear out all the violent pictures or stories. Not only did my siblings and I read, but both my parents did too. Throughout my early childhood years, I can remember my mom and dad always having