Early Childhood Lit

     I can picture it now; the burgundy carpet, black steel spinning racks filled with paperback books, and the carpeted audience seating that set the stage for our librarian. My initial reading and interest in story telling began in my elementary school, Cranberry Pines. I do not recall our librarians name, but I can remember her curly gray and white hair, the glasses that sat on the edge of her nose, and the long patterned skirts and sweaters that she would always wear. I remember her reading my favorite book when I was young, the story of the three little pigs told from the wolf's perspective.   

     I was fortunate enough to come from a great school district and a beautiful school. In our library we learned that silence was golden, how to gently turn a book's pages and how to find books using the dewy decimal system. I can recall sorting through the drawers and index cards, walking among the tall wooden shelves and glancing at the numbers and author's names on the spines of books in order to track down the correct one. The library planted the seed in my brain for both order and the wonder of different worlds that could be brought to life by printed words.

Photo of my siblings and I before my youngest brother was born!  My oldest sister is holding me, we are very close still!

      At home my father was constantly reading, there would always be stacks of books in the den, his book shelf overflowing and spilling onto the floor of my parent's bedroom. I can remember the smell and the smoothness of the hardback books that were left uncovered stripped of their book sleeves. I don't really remember my parents reading books to me but I do recall my older sister reading to me as a child. She always had an affection for literature from an early age, my interest in reading developed later in life. Now one of my favorite things to do in the summer is to read in my backyard in my hammock. I associate reading with being outdoors, whether it is in my backyard on a spring day, or with my toes enthralled by the sand at the beach. In the winter months I tend to read curled under my covers before I go to bed, so as the seasons change so do my reading rituals. I found that as I get older I appreciate the art of written word more and more.   

    I live in the same house I was raised in Medford, New Jersey, a small town about forty minutes from Philadelphia. I am one of five children, three boys and three girls, our family expands as the years go on, and I'm head over heels for the niece that is our newest addition to the family.  During the week I work as a substitute teacher in the town next to mine, Marlton, and on the weekends I work in retail. This is the first class that I am taking at NJCU, to start my graduate degree in Elementary Education. I am excited to begin this journey as a teacher, I would love to have a job in a kindergarten class but will embrace where life takes me in my developing career. I am intrigued about the storybook assignment specifically in this course I have been writing poems since I was young.  I can still remember the notebook I first wrote in, with a kitten and puppy on the purple front cover.  I am grateful to continue my education and look forward growing intellectually over the next few years at NJCU.