September 27, 2013

A person's attitude has a major effect on his or her perspective and also influences the perspective of others. I see this proven true on a daily basis at work, home, and in the community I live in. Most recently, I witnessed the effect of a teacher's attitude on her students.

A few weeks ago I attended a second-grade parent meeting with Mrs. Wilkins, my son, Nathan's, classroom teacher. At the meeting she covered classroom and school routines, expectations, and curriculum, and finished by answering questions. I was very pleased to get a glimpse inside my son's school day, but more than anything I was pleased with the positive energy that consumed his teacher. Through her smile, tone of voice, body language, and humor, it was evident that she loves her job. In our 20-minute meeting, Mrs. Wilkins was quick to relay her love of reading and how she has made it a personal goal to create a love of reading in each of her students. In her words, "I want each child to love to read as much as I do!"

Four weeks into the school year, Mrs. Wilkins is well on her way to achieving her goal. Her passion for reading is contagious and has become a nightly conversation at our dinner table. Whether Nathan is sharing her latest book talk, wanting to go to the library, or asking to read to us, he is constantly relaying her passion for reading to our family. She has introduced him to a few new book series and various genres, and he now talks about the books he reads and the characters in them. I have seen an increase in reading volume which has also affected his comprehension, accuracy, fluency, and vocabulary. What a great domino effect!

This is a great testament to the well-known quote by Winston Churchill, "Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference."