The love of language that was instilled in me was a beautiful appreciation of how words express, touch, and emote connections we have with others. Literacy binds us together linking knowledge and meaning. From the time I was very young, I loved words and the different sounds they made. I was a talker. I loved to write them. I often was eager to write them at the end of a long summer of no school. I loved learning a cool new word to add to my vocabulary and always had my head in a book. With that it was natural that I would become a teacher of the art of language.
Surrounded by the idea of education when I was younger by my mother and my God mom, I always knew I wanted to help others. I would hear their stories and be very in tune with their empathetic responses to these students who didn’t have the support they needed from home or maybe just struggled even though they tried so hard. They inspired me to become a teacher, and now I want to be able to help my 7th graders learn to read. I’m deeply saddened that some students are just passed off from grade to grade often so far behind in areas of word knowledge, recognition, and fluency. They are often seen as lazy and incompetent. No one ever tries to get to the root of the problem or understand to diagnosis how to help the child. It often felt as if we were just throwing as much remediation and comprehension at them just so they can pass the test. I kept on getting frustrated as a middle school teacher who only knew reading comprehension, vocabulary, and writing. There was something that was missing. I knew I didn’t know enough to help my learning disabled students or my students reading below grade level. I wanted to learn how to modified, instruct, and engage their growth as literate members of society. And that is where I’m at today.
I am a 7th grade language arts/social studies teacher at Ellis Middle School in Davie County. My name is Amy Hardister. I am almost through with my masters in reading. Only 12 more hours to go! It has been a challenge with all the expectations placed upon me as a teacher to balance it all (as we all probably feel), but I feel so blessed to be in this program. I have had some awesome “ah hah” moments that have resonated with my experiences as a teacher. I recognize the challenges my students face and actually understand beyond merely knowing that they struggle with reading. I am most interested in how to find a balance for those students who struggle with reading and how to help them within my classroom plus address curriculum needs and testing demands. Our students need to become literate to not only be a productive member of society, but to take care of themselves.
Several concepts I’ve found very interesting in connection with literacy instruction are use of repeated readings to build fluency, confidence, and reading rate, teaching vocabulary within context (rather than rote memorization), and the art of learning how to engage students in whole class discussions so the students actively take part and the teacher merely facilitates. I have to admit though I’ve been interested in most everything teaching. I love teaching, and am most happy in my classroom with my students. I really just want to help them be the best they can be.
Amy Hardister