Encouragement+Corner

="Teaching reading IS rocket science." ~ Louisa Moats =

**"A word of encouragement during a failure is worth more than an hour of praise after success" ~ Anonymous**

="If you can read this, thank a teacher." ~ Anonymous =

Please add a story here about a teacher who made a positive difference in your life. I'll go first:
Carol Villeneuve taught me to read in my second language, French, and has probably taught hundreds of other children to do the same, so when I get overwhelmed with reading theory and all the challenges that adults and second-language learners face, I remind myself of my own experience of immersion and relax. I remember her charts and vowel-consonant combinations so vividly. I didn't understand everything at the time, but years later when I finally heard the difference between "an" (nasalised) and "on" (nasalised), I could also read it and pronounce it correctly. It can be done, and children are not the only ones who can do it. I know it is not only possible, but very feasible to do it. ~ Anna W.

Maria Therese Valtorta teaches Spanish from time to time in Red Deer, and I took a beginner Spanish course from her many years ago. I still hearken back to how slowly and carefully she proceeded, and how the slow pace built my confidence and comprehension. It felt miraculous that I could go from zero Spanish to basic phrases in a very short time. I'm still at only a very basic level one for speaking and writing, but what little I do understand has helped me to structure and distinguish the flow of Spanish around me at work. ~Anna W.