One of my fondest memories growing up, was my father reading to me. He always smoked a pipe, and I swear I can still smell the thick smoke when I open up some of my books. I would crawl into his lap on the Lazyboy, and listen to his deep voice read the story as we rocked back and forth. I would get lost in books with him. My love of reading truly came from my father. He would spend money on books instead of more important things, like detergent. His apartment was filled with books. Each corner, each table, each shelf, stacks upon stacks of books. I'm starting to notice my house is looking more and more like that.
Reading never came easy to me. In classes, it seemed like I was the one who never understood what we read. I would have to read the text at least twice before understanding it. By the time I understood it, it was too late.
In third grade I was placed in a "remedial" class for reading due to results from the IOWA. After ten minutes the teacher sent me back to my class. It turns out that I missed one question on the test, and didn't match the numbers of questions, and therefore missed the majority. It is a moment in my educational experience that I will never forget. Being "labeled" for just those ten minutes was heart wrenching. I think that is part of the reason I became a teacher. I really want to help those students that struggle. And I also want the US educational system to move away from labeling and the issues that come with it. Some students learn differently, and I strive everyday to try and find ways to meet those needs.
I am currently a first grade teacher at J.D. Diggs Elementary School in Forsyth County. This is my third year teaching. I lived in Boone for one year, but was unable to get a teaching job there. I did enjoy substituting at all the schools in Watauga County and Avery County. I miss the snow! I went to HS in Winston, so I applied here, and here I am! I am very interested in technology, and have been using it a lot in my classroom this year. My students blog daily. We have also podcasted, made voicethreads and photostories! It has been very exciting! I look forward to doing research with technology and literacy in the near future.
I live with two roommates who are also my best friends. This proves to be a daily challenge. It's a love/hate relationship! We have two adorable cats, Shoey (mine) is a big fat (21 pounds) orange tabby. Leandra (part Siamese) is Kristin's cat who happens to be Shoey's mom. She also happens to be much smaller than Shoey and not orange at all. No one believes they are related. There is also a small bird in Kristin's room which never see, but hear occasionally. His name is Ringo.
I look forward to the conversations and readings we will be doing in this course.
-Sarah Feinman
Comments (2)
Sarah, your story is amazing. I bet this is very powerful to your students!
Also, your class blog is so impressive! Do you have computers in your classroom, or do you take your kids to the labs every day?
Posted by Christy Rivers | January 15, 2009 11:59 AM
Posted on January 15, 2009 11:59
Thank you! I only have three computers in my classroom. I usually create a blog entry for students to comment on when they are rotating in centers. I really didn't think it was possible for first graders to utilize a blog, but they do. They enjoy doing it! It also motivates them in their writing. Sometimes I only let them write a comment if they have written it on paper first. I leave the blog up on each computer every morning. When they first walk in the room they check to see what I have changed on it. It really is amazing how technology effects learning.
Posted by Sarah Feinman | January 19, 2009 1:30 PM
Posted on January 19, 2009 13:30