Samantha TurkSmyrna, GAYour Favorite Reading and Writing Mentor
I have a degree in Secondary Education as well as English Language Arts. With these degrees I was a High School English Language arts teacher for 5 years. I have always been an avid reader and writer and found it such a privilege to share that love and knowledge with my students. I am no longer a part of the public education system, however, that love and desire to impact students is still my purpose and my passion.
When I was in Middle School and High School I was conflicted between loving reading and writing when I was at home, yet, deeply disliking my ELA classes. Seriously...it was my least favorite subject but one of my favorite hobbies. In school ELA seemed so boring and completely irrelevant to my daily life or, honestly the world in general. Yet, when I read for myself, I was transported into the worlds that the authors created. I felt as if, for a brief moment, I was living another life. Then in the times when my head felt too full and I needed to vent, but not to a person, I wrote, and it gave me such a feeling of power and release. I was so confused how I could dislike something so much in school when I loved it so much personally. When I became a teacher, I realized the answer.
Reading and writing are such a personal thing yet, they are often taught as if they aren't. Often students are given instructions such as, "read quietly" or "write a 5-sentence response"... with no reason. Where is the exploration in that? Where is the self-expression? Often times students need a different approach than what you typically see to thrive in their reading and writing skills. They need one-on-one attention and someone who will explore the beauty and true power of the written and spoken word.
That is my goal, to offer a different approach and help my students reach their full potential. Learning should be fun; growth should happen naturally through exploration and understand. You'd be shocked at the incredible results this approach yields.
