Is there a young reader (or reader to be) in your life? Write them a letter expressing what you hope for them as readers.
Dear Mia,
In just three short years, I’ve already seen
the beginnings of your evolution as a reader. When you were little,
you loved to chew on books. Well, really, you loved to chew on
anything, but you particularly loved the way that cardboard felt on your
gums. As you got older, you were fascinated by the pictures, and would
spend (short) times on my lap as we talked about what we saw on each
page. A little bit older, and you would tolerate actually listening
to short board books. In the last 6 months, you’re attention span has
increased so that you will listen to much longer picture books. We’ve
even started reading fairy tale anthologies, one story at a time.
Recently, you thrilled me by reading to me.
You are most definitely a reader. My hope
for you, as you grow, is that you will enjoy a wide variety of texts,
whether it be graphic novels, picture books, chapter books, or audio
selections. I hope that you enjoy some of the selections I send your
way, but also develop relationships with characters of your own
choosing, as I did with Laura Ingalls, Nancy Drew, the Wakefield twins,
and that close-knit gang of babysitting friends. I hope that in the
next few years, we are able to continue our Special Time of reading at
bedtime, expanding to chapter books that we are eager to return to in
the evenings.
Sometimes hearing “Read this to me, Mommy!” for the 600th time in a day causes me to do an internal eye roll because, really, I need a Mommy Break. But even so, I love that you want to be read to, and that our bookcase is overflowing with books that you actually use. I’m proud of that, and I’m proud of you.
Love,
Mommy/Mama/Mom
Dear Jacob,
You are too tiny to have much of a reading
history yet. You do listen as stories are read to your sister, but you
listen anytime you hear my voice, so that’s nothing new. Maybe this is
the start of your literacy journey. Hearing a pleasant (why, thank
you!) voice in connection to books will hopefully trigger a positive
experience in your memory. As you get older, I hope that we can share
some of your sister’s favorite books a second time around. I hope you
will also smile over the antics of a silly puppy, and search for your
favorite barn animals among the pages.
I’m looking forward to seeing you toddle over to the bookshelf (but not too soon,
okay?) and developing your own interests. Will you also be a Thomas
fan? Will you also want to read/watch Curious George ad nauseam?
You have a ways to go. We’re not even at
the book-chewing stage yet. But when you get there, I’m sure we’ll find
a whole new world of characters to explore.
Love,
The Lady Who Comes to Get You in the Middle of the Night (aka “Mommy”)
1 comment:
Laura Ingalls? check!
Nancy Drew? check!
the Wakefield twins? check!
that close-knit gang of babysitting friends? also check!
Loved those books too. :o)
Post a Comment