Experience #2 Literature/Reading - Special Education
First of all...this experience in my life is a huge LOL moment to look back on so bare with me. Regardless of who I am now or the passions that I am following by trying to become an english teacher, I actually really struggled with reading and writing as a child. Actually I still really struggle with reading and writing now but at least I am better at it and actually enjoy it.
Growing up I wasn't the sharpest tool in the toolshed or the brightest light at the lamp store but I had a drive to be better which meant I had to work just a little harder than I should have. This meant being enrolled in some special education classes early on in elementary school so that I could actually learn how to read in a more focused and individualized environment. Everyday I would leave my normal class for a hour or so and go to the special education room where I would have one teacher all to myself that helped me learn the basics of reading and writing. We did things like read books together, write short sentences, and discuss the things that we were learning about to make sure I was really grasping the material being given to me instead of just agreeing and moving on regardless if I understood. I only had to do this for about a year and I think I was in like third grade or maybe even earlier, but I learned a lot about myself as a learner and that became really valuable even for myself today. Because I was a slower reader and didn't always grasp the information that I was reading I realized three things:
1. it is about being a good reader, not a fast reader
2. You don't have to be at the same level as everyone else
3. Being at a different level doesn't mean you shouldn't still be trying to learn.
These lessons are things that I have carried with me through education and motivated me to want to teach children in the first place. If I hadn't had the opportunity to sit down with someone everyday that encouraged me to work harder instead of giving up I probably would have just given up and accepted that I wasn't a good reader and that was it, which wasn't true at all. These are things that I also will carry into my classroom. I believe that just because a student isn't a strong reader or writer, it doesn't mean that you should just move on without them and that even just a little extra help can encourage students to excel in ways that they didn't even think possible.
Growing up I wasn't the sharpest tool in the toolshed or the brightest light at the lamp store but I had a drive to be better which meant I had to work just a little harder than I should have. This meant being enrolled in some special education classes early on in elementary school so that I could actually learn how to read in a more focused and individualized environment. Everyday I would leave my normal class for a hour or so and go to the special education room where I would have one teacher all to myself that helped me learn the basics of reading and writing. We did things like read books together, write short sentences, and discuss the things that we were learning about to make sure I was really grasping the material being given to me instead of just agreeing and moving on regardless if I understood. I only had to do this for about a year and I think I was in like third grade or maybe even earlier, but I learned a lot about myself as a learner and that became really valuable even for myself today. Because I was a slower reader and didn't always grasp the information that I was reading I realized three things:
1. it is about being a good reader, not a fast reader
2. You don't have to be at the same level as everyone else
3. Being at a different level doesn't mean you shouldn't still be trying to learn.
These lessons are things that I have carried with me through education and motivated me to want to teach children in the first place. If I hadn't had the opportunity to sit down with someone everyday that encouraged me to work harder instead of giving up I probably would have just given up and accepted that I wasn't a good reader and that was it, which wasn't true at all. These are things that I also will carry into my classroom. I believe that just because a student isn't a strong reader or writer, it doesn't mean that you should just move on without them and that even just a little extra help can encourage students to excel in ways that they didn't even think possible.
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