Teacher Colleague Letter written at the end of the semester on December 7, 1999

Dear Colleague,
I chose the ROR program because I enjoy children and wanted to be able to interact with them throughout the semester. I also thought that it would be a good program to have for my resume in the future. I gained great experience in reading to children. I also gained a better self-feeling each time I went and read. I feel that this experience has helped me to gain things that I will need in the future. Three questions that I still have are: Why are we the only university involved with this program? How do other universities become involved? How many students have continued with the program after completion of PHS 242.E?

Sincerely,
Patrise Allen

When I first went into the building I was very nervous. To tell you the truth, I was hoping that I wouldnt have to read to any children for the entire hour I was there. Then, as soon as I finished my thought, a little boy and his dad walked in. He immediately began to play and I walked over to ask if he would like to share a book with me. He immediately turned from me and then looked at his dad. The father tried to encourage the boy to read with me, but he insisted on playing. Then a little girl and her mother came in. I was sort of used to it and also feeling a little nervous after being rejected the first time. This little girl, Sarah, sat right down on the floor with me and we read Barnyard Banter and Ketchup on Your Corn Flakes. Sarah was very interactive, she talked about the animals she liked and had and told me their names. In the second story she answered the question on each page. Then she had to go to her visit as the next family came in. We got through a couple pages of Barnyard Banter and then they all went into the back room. That was all I got to do in my first hour. I left there feeling relieved that I had gotten through it with no problems. It also made me feel good about myself for the rest of the day. I really enjoyed my first hour of the ROR program.

My second trip to read was much easier than the first time. I felt more confident and comfortable when I was on my way to the center. That all went downhill when I pulled in the parking lot and had to search for a parking space. It was packed and I became very nervous instantly. When I walked in I felt a sense of relief; the room was filled with older children and newborns. There were two children, brother and sister, in the age group that I was to read to. I didnt realize at the time that they were sitting in the sick section. I walked in there and sat right down at the table with them. I took about four books in there with me and let them choose one.

The first book we shared was Ketchup on Your Cornflakes. The little girl immediately began to turn the pages for me and both children interacted with the questions in the book. The little boy then wanted to turn the pages and they took turns. The sister made a comment that I couldnt understand so I just smiled and laughed. Their mother was sitting behind us and asked the little girl what she said and that made me kind of nervous, but the little girl was too interested in the book and the mother didnt mention it again. About žs of the way through this book another little girl came in and joined us. This is when I realized that they were sick because they all began to cough. The second book I read was Ask Mr. Bear. All of the children laughed at the pictures and identified and made comments about the animals. The siblings left in the middle of the story and I finished it with the other little girl. She didnt want to share anymore after that.

I went back out into the well children part of the lobby and sat there for what seemed like forever. Then another little girl and her mother came in. We shared Ask Mr. Bear, My Family, Everything Has A Place, and Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse. Half way through the last story they were called back and the mother requested that the nurse take someone else so that her daughter could finish the book. This made me feel really good. After that the mother and I talked about the program and about the classes required for education majors. She seemed extremely interested and was very encouraging.

I feel that this trip was went very well and do not think I will have any doubts before my next trip.

Well, to begin, I had to change days from Wednesday to Thursday. Now I am reading with a partner, which is kind of fun. It definitely helps pass time quicker. We didnt have very many children that day; there were a couple of infants and one girl about the age of eight. We were just sitting there looking at each others books when the eight year old came up and began looking at the books we had laying in the floor. She began reading to herself and I asked her if she wanted to read to us. She probably read ten books to us before she had to go in to the doctor. As she read, all three of us would discuss the books. This was very interesting and it was also a nice change. It made me feel good because she really enjoyed this and was very proud of herself. Her mother was proud also, but she kept telling her to slow down and think about what she was saying so she wouldnt make mistakes.

My partner and I wrote on our comment sheet that we think the ROR program should be set up in the corner with the toys. It would make it easier to approach children and we could read to them as they play. This may help decrease anxiety among the readers and the children and make it run a little smoother.

All in all, I would have to say that this was my best experience so far. It was a different, but nice approach and made it very interesting.

My partner and I did not have any children to read to this week. The office was empty the entire hour we were there. We cleaned the waiting area by picking up all of the toys and straightening the play area. We also took about ten books and placed them on the childrens play table. We thought that if we did have kids come in, that would encourage them to read. We also thought it was a good idea so that we could read to them over there while they were playing. We talked about trying our strategy for the next week. I hope that as the weeks continue, we will begin to have more children come in.

The weeks keep getting better and better. I was unable to go last week because of an illness, but this week sure made up for it. When we first got there, Chris and I didnt think we would have any children to read to. About half way through the hour, 2 children and their mother came in. We began to read to the kids and they loved it. We got about half way through a book before they were called back. When they came out, they asked their mother if they could finish the book we had started with them and she allowed them to do that. After finishing the book, we ended up reading two more books to them. The mother was also really good about it, she told us of her college experience. She also was really supportive of the program and said that she wished she could have done something like it when she was in school. We proceeded to talk to her and she asked us if we had any recommendations for books because they were getting ready to go to the library. We gave her a few and the children thanked us. This all continued until it was time for Chris and me to leave. This visit was very rewarding for me because the children seemed to really enjoy having us there. They were very involved in the books we read and the mother helped a lot also.

This week was pretty good. We were a little slow. We really didnt have any kids to read to until about the last twenty minutes. A little girl came in with her grandmother. She seemed kind of shy. She went straight to the Lego table, so I approached her with a book. I took Aladdin over and offered to read it to her. I figured she had seen the movie, but she hadnt. That made her more interested in the book. I think I chose too long of a book though, because it took forever to read. It had very small words and tried to tell the entire story without leaving anything out. We only got about half way through the book before she got called to the back. While we were reading a younger child, just crawling, came over and began looking at the pictures and grabbing at the pages. I think it went pretty well, I just wish we had more kids to read to.

Our last week was very slow. I had hoped that we would have a lot of children to read to, but there was only one. For the first half of the session Chris and I read to each other. We took turns picking our favorite books and reading them out loud. We sat in the floor so that if children were to come in, they would not hesitate to join us. When we first got there we spoke with an older sister of a boy that was back in the office. She asked questions about the program and we told her all about it. About half way through the session is when we read to our first child. The child didnt come right over to us, but was close enough so that they could see the pictures and hear us read.

It seemed to me that a lot of the children that came in were very young infants and were usually asleep. The girl that was in there before us said that she had a few kids to read to. All in all, I think our last session went pretty well, I just wish that we could have had more children to read to.