The Reluctant Reader

Being a librarian people always assume that I have always been a voracious reader. The truth is that I was born what some people would now term a “reluctant reader”. My mother was a devotee of reader’s theater and was committed to reading aloud to her children on a daily basis. Naturally she assumed that our enjoyment of listening to her read would somehow guide us toward a life-long love of reading. Unfortunately, learning to read became a battle that spanned the first two years of formal schooling, my mother being the General of the opposing army carrying out covert tactics wielding impenetrable force. The reality was that I loved identifying words and knowing what they meant, I liked nothing more than a good story well told, and I was even passionate about trying to write, but I loathed the process of learning phonics and the painful act of sounding out every word in a Dick and Jane book. Now I imagine how my mother must of felt with me dragging on sounding out and Boo-Hooing at the same time. By the summer after first grade my turmoil subsided and I was excited about my ironically advanced reading skills and my new subscription to the Golden Book Club. Each month I would eagerly await the new books that would arrive on my doorstep, while my mother knew that she was reducing potential summer learning loss. Statistics tell us that all children will show learning losses when not engaged over the period of a summer. On average teachers will spend 4 to 6 weeks of the school year to help children to attain the levels achieved in the prior semester. Children who read six or more books in a summer on average have more success in school than their non-reading counterparts. Concurrently, reading at least 1,000,000 words a year will increase a child’s vocabulary by 1,000 words. This year we have created a summer reading program that accommodates busy summer schedules and travel by allowing kids to track their reading online. With the flexibility of the program and special reading rewards we hope to keep your kids reading all summer long. Whether your child is an avid or a reluctant reader, the library is a healthy learning environment that provides enriching and fun activities to keep kids busy through out the summer. Summer reading sign-up starts on June 8^th for children infant to 12 years old. Teen summer reading for grades 5 and up starts on June 15^th. This year participants may register as individuals, groups, or families. For our philanthropic component we will be donating books to Parents as Teachers in honor of the books our participants have read. Incentives will be given out throughout the summer, as well as end of the season top reader prizes. For more details please visit the library’s Web site at www.telluridelibrary.org. And, for all of our Telluride parents, I wish for you happy and enthusiastic readers now and in the future.