Finally, I Enjoy Reading


Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Finally, I Enjoy Reading


MockingbirdI read very little as a child and teenager. It wasn’t until I was in my 20s and worked in a library at a school in San Francisco that I began to realize I had missed out on a lot of good books. I was so amazed at how well-read my students were, and realized how little I had read by comparison. I was a very slow reader, but soon I began to read more and more, including some of the classics I had skipped such as To Kill a Mocking Bird and The Grapes of Wrath. After becoming a learning specialist, I realized that my slow reading was one sign of my mild dyslexia. While I still read at a slow pace, I am lucky because I regularly enjoy a good book. I work with students, however, who are not so lucky. Their dyslexia is often moderate to severe so reading words is very hard work for them. They need a lot of intervention to learn to read and they need teachers who understand this and can teach them. I am rewarded every day by working with my students. In time, I hope all educators will learn more about dyslexia and how to effectively help these students.

-Frances D.