President's Message
This business of reading, writing, and ‘rithmetic is a huge task. The responsibility to break apart the rigorous standards at each grade level into meaningful child chunks is often insurmountable, or so it seems. I find solace in the point of view that although I have undertaken this enormous responsibility, the importance and joy of reading will become a personal choice of every child I encounter.
We are the gatekeepers to the magnificent wonders of knowledge. Every day we consume and disseminate vast amounts of information. Good readers are thinkers, evaluators, and scanners by nature. We read the news, check our email, process the information to be taught, and climb through mountains of paperwork to select what deserves our attention. Can you imagine your life if you couldn’t read and had no sense of direction? Sometimes the best we can do is slosh through the muddy waters of education to make reading accessible and meaningful to the lives we reach.
Students sponge up what goes on around them as they seek to achieve with abilities that will bring them success in the future. Reading will always be on the forefront of skills determining a winner. The front runner must always train, spend time learning the course, read the rules of the game, and know the competition. Most importantly, a winner has goals.
What are your goals and how do they affect your classroom? The Inland Empire Reading Council (IERC) offers low cost, highly informative seminars on current teaching strategies and conferences with authors of literature that will inspire all. We were honored to have Graeme Base speak at our September 29th meeting. What an inspiration as he read to us and shared his passion.
The California Reading Association’s Sacramento Conference, October 16th & 17th was amazing! Jack O’Connell shared the state’s point of view. Educators shared what works for them and authors presented their books. An excerpt from a reader’s theater was shared with the audience demonstrating how to make a book come alive within the classroom.
The IERC has two upcoming events covering current hot topics. Flyers for these conferences are enclosed with this newsletter. When you network with other professionals and engage yourself in active discussion with them about what is coming on the horizon in education, you will be more informed as you actively set goals for your professional life. Come share your passion for reading by joining the IERC and attending upcoming events.
