Reading for enjoyment was finally in the picture again for me when the Twilight series came out. I really loved the books and ever since then I love reading. Time is always an issue, but I try to read books in between semesters and during the summer.
When I started college I never thought that I would ever hear an English professor tell me to change my major. At the end of my second semester at Texas State Mr. D told me that I needed to change my major to English or Creative Writing. I was a little shocked when I heard this, but I was also very pleased.
I never considered myself to be a poet. I had to write twenty poems my senior year of high school and create a book out of them. I was truly proud of my completed project and actually viewed myself as a person that could write poetry.
By the time I was a junior in high school reading and writing was not my number one priority. Mrs. Ayala-Gonzalez, my English teacher, completely changed the way I viewed myself as a writer. Without her, I would have never been able to write the way I do today.
Throughout my elementary years, The Babysitters Club was my favorite book. I began reading book one and read the entire series, well at least what was published at the time. I enjoyed reading when I was younger.
Every summer my parents would sign me up for the STAR reading program at our public library. We would read books to gain stickers/points. Whenever we had a certain amount of points we were able to choose a prize. This was a great incentive to get children to read during the summer.
When I was three years old, I began school. I attended St. Johns for half a day, and I started to learn how to read and write at a very early age. This was a huge factor in enhancing my literacy development.
Sesame Street was my absolute favorite show on TV. I listened, watched, sang, read, and followed along with the characters on the screen. I really believe that this show improved my literacy when I was younger.
When I was two years old my mom would take me in the backyard to swing. She said that every time I would go up she would say "A" and I would repeat "A" after her. We would continue this process until we went through the entire alphabet.
From the day I was born, my parents began reading to me. I would sit in my mom or dads' lap and listen to them read or tell me a story. We had a big rocking chair, so they would read and rock until I fell asleep. My favorite book was Brown Bear Brown Bear.