My name is Kelly Beckley and I am a first grade teacher at Hardin Park School in Boone. I am just finishing up my third year of teaching (we only have half a day left!) and can absolutely say that teaching first grade is my dream job. I am originally from Chattanooga, TN, but came to Boone in the Fall of 2002 for school. When I graduated from ASU in 2006 I didn't want to leave so I have been here ever since!
My favorite part of teaching first grade is teaching the early literacy skills. I love seeing my students blossom from only knowing their letters and sounds to being full fledged readers. It's amazing to see how much they change in first grade! I have always been an avid reader myself and consider myself a "life-long learner." These are values I hope to pass down to my young students. Teaching reading is my favorite thing to do, which is why I am pursuing a Master's in Reading Ed. I am nearing the end of the program and am very thankful for what I have learned, however, I am definitely ready to walk across that stage in December!
As far as my own literacy development goes... my mom loves to talk about how difficult of a child I was. I was raised in a middle-class home with educated parents and a stay-at-home mom. I have an older brother who was one of those perfect kids... you know the kind I'm talking about! I, on the other hand, was far from perfect. I was very active, stubborn, and independent. I wouldn't sit still with my mom and let her read to me for more than two minutes. I didn't become interested in reading until I was able to do it by myself. I learned to read in first grade and never struggled with it, but was never the best either. I was just a solid, average student. I started first grade in the fall of 1990 right when the whole language was in it's hay day. My teachers didn't use any phonics or small-group instruction at all; my whole class read out of the same basal reader. Now that I teach first grade I don't understand how I, or anyone for that matter, learned to read with that kind of reading instruction in first grade.
As soon as I learned to read I was obsessed with reading. My favorite books were Amelia Bedelia books. I can remember re-reading the part about her dressing the chicken over and over again. I also loved Green Eggs and Ham and other Dr. Seuss books. As I got older I got more and more into reading. I read a lot of series books through elementary school. Some of my favorites were the American Girls Books, The Babysitters Club, and The Boxcar Children. this is when I got into the habit of reading every night before bed, a habit that has stuck with me my whole life. I read in bed every night before bed... even if it's just a couple of pages. It's an important thing for me and I will continue to do it for the rest of my life.
Kelly Beckley