Books for Teachers and Everyone Else!

It was quite a long time ago, 1987 to be precise, that I was a Teaching Assistant helping children whose first language was not English. I wasn't allowed to "teach" which was pretty hard as we are all teachers at heart, so I began using books to help the kids learn new vocabulary. It started with just reading to them but soon morphed into creating worksheets to go along with the texts. This got me noticed. I was asked to set up a seminar for other Teacher Assistants to explain both my reasoning and to show them how to enhance the language experience with books. That was a banner event for me - I even got paid! - and it wasn't long before I entered university and achieved my degree in Elementary Education.

One of the books I recall most clearly is Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain by Verna Aardema. It's about drought conditions in an African village, a bold read with a happy ending. I was really committed to using books with an obvious cultural background and story. It often helped the students to attach their feelings to the books and encouraged them to learn with enjoyment. This why I am currently developing a book of teacher lesson plans for use with my newest book, The Storm, which is in the final stages of publication.

I love books. I love how they reach into your soul and find connections with your emotions even when no connections are identifiable at first glance. I'm very excited to produce my lesson plans to supplement the learning curve of all readers. I hope to have it published by the end of this year. So grab a book and let's read!