My Favorite Quote...

“There is nothing as powerful as unlocking the ability to read. When that is unlocked, the human being in that child begins to make himself or herself known. Why? Because there’s no other species on Earth that can read, except the human being. You can’t separate being able to read well from being able to be fully human. It’s an extraordinary thing.” ~ Dr. Oscar J Underwood

I came across this quote earlier this year. It hit me hard. Dr. Underwood has such an eloquent way of illustrating the importance of strong literacy skills. As a reading interventionist I’ve heard countless stories about reading difficulties and how struggling to read has dramatically impacted lives. People have told me how they haven’t been able to fully explore careers they’ve been interested in because of this gigantic hurdle. Weak reading skills have held them back. They’ve shared the pain of a loved one and how they wanted to help that person become more confident and feel more in control of their lives, but their loved one was so limited by what they could do because they couldn’t read well, or maybe not at all. They’ve shared stories of teasing and taunting by other children who did not understand. The pain and frustration poor literacy skills can cause are enormous. But my biggest concern is the wilting affect it has on self esteem. As early as first grade, students start to notice that they can’t read as well as their peers. I’ve seen it in the schools in which I’ve worked. By the second or third grade, they are very aware of it. It hurts. They think they’re not smart. They think they have something wrong with them. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Dyslexia has nothing to do with intelligence. Just ask Richard Branson, Henry Winkler or Steven Spielberg. But I’m guessing they’d all say they wish they had been diagnosed and remediated at an early age. It sure would make growing up in today’s world a lot easier.