I am Lisa Outland, kindergarten teacher at South Fork Elementary in Winston-Salem. I have taught grades K, 1st, and 2nd grades with kindergarten being my favorite. My school is a Title 1 and Equity+ school that is full of many cultures and diversity.
I do not remember learning to read. Both of my parents were teachers. I was taught to read before I entered Kindergarten. I was placed in a K/1 combination class and was quickly moved to the first grade side of the room because I could read and write as well as the first graders. I do not remember learning to write either. However, I do remember copying texts out of books for fun. Of course, these were books I could read on my own. I remember trying to tackle copying the Bible, I didn’t get very far. When I was seven my family got a computer. It was an Apple //e. My life changed with the computer’s arrival. Now I could type things in and have what I was writing appear on the screen. I was completely fascinated by this whole idea. I quickly learned some of the basics for programming in BASIC so I could have my words appear on the screen in color or with some design. I was never much of an artist, so being able to do basic programming allowed my artist side to shine through a wee bit as a child. I was acutely aware as a child that I did not have any drawing abilities. My drawings never turned out exactly like I wanted them to, or resembled what I was trying to draw. I loved singing in class when I was small. I still remember many of the songs that I learned in my early elementary years and sometimes share them with my students.
Coming into school as an advanced reader opened many doors for me. I was my own private reading group in kindergarten and first grade. I remember reading full out chapter books as I started second grade. I stayed lost in the world of others through my books. Now as an adult, when I know I have a break from work, I always find a few good books to try to read while I am off. I would definitely classify myself as a bookworm. There is nothing better than a good book, except I hate for them to end. I usually want to know what would happen next with the characters and I feel like I’ve lost a friend when the book is over. As a teacher, I love nothing more than sharing a good book with my students. I have my own personal library of children’s books that I draw from for my daily lessons. I want to instill in my students the love for a good book. However, I do not like being active with a story. I do not want to act out what I have read, or be in a play. I want my interpretation of the story to stay inside of my head, without influence of others.
I cannot imagine how different my life would be without my reading abilities or love for reading. I see my husband try to make himself like reading and how frustrating it can be for him. I cannot imagine a world where I could not get lost in a book.