Patricia Ann Whelan Memorial Scholarship

As someone passionate about reading and education, I strongly believe in incorporating meaningful reading instruction into my future classroom. Along with earning a bachelor's degree in early childhood and special education, I am also working towards a master's degree in reading education. Reading and language arts have always been areas of interest and subjects I’ve performed well in throughout my schooling. I desire to become a reading specialist to help children who are struggling become stronger and more confident readers. I plan to base my reading instruction on the structured literacy approach to support the various learners within my classroom. When teaching the five pillars of reading, I will use explicit and implicit instruction to model skills and present topics in a sensical order. Using both approaches will cater to diverse learning styles and promote critical thinking. I intend to teach phonics using the ‘bottom-up’ approach to allow students to build upon their prior knowledge and skills. I will also use differentiated instruction to meet each student at their instructional level and assist those who need extra support. To differentiate instruction, I will plan activities that cater to different intelligences and have students participate in activities such as shared reading. My differentiated instruction would also include centers for groups of students to work at according to their needs. While it’s important for reading instruction to be explicit and implicit, it must be fun and engaging for students! I will share my passion and enthusiasm for reading with my students to associate reading with positivity. When reading texts in class, I will create many opportunities for read-aloud, independent, and partner reading to allow for various reading experiences. I feel partner reading is particularly beneficial for students because it invites them to relate to and help one another strengthen their reading skills. When selecting stories for read-alouds, I will make sure to choose diverse and relatable texts that are of interest to my students. Stories students can connect to will allow for a deeper understanding and richer experience. I will also incorporate activities such as readers' theater into the classroom to help students practice reading and fluency skills in a relaxed setting. In conclusion, my philosophy for teaching reading is using an explicit and implicit structured literacy approach to support all levels of readers. To keep students engaged and motivated, my reading instruction also includes hands-on and multi-sensory activities that cater to multiple learning styles. I hope to inspire a love of reading in my students as my teachers did for me.

As an education major and an aspiring kindergarten teacher, my foremost goal is to instill a lifelong love for reading in my young learners. Developing strong reading skills from an early age not only lays the foundation for academic success but also cultivates a love for literature. Through a combination of interactive activities, individualized plans, and strong connections with parents, I aim to create an environment where each child feels empowered to read. To effectively impart the importance of reading to my students, I will harness my own passion for literature. By demonstrating genuine enthusiasm for books and storytelling, I aim to create a classroom where curiosity and excitement about reading flourish. Interactive read-aloud will be the cornerstone of my approach. By selecting captivating and age-appropriate texts, I can model fluent reading, introduce vocabulary, and enhance comprehension. To cater to the diverse learning styles and developmental stages of kindergarten students, I plan to integrate a variety of interactive activities into my reading instruction. Letter recognition games will form an engaging introduction to the alphabet, to help students identify letters. Phonetic awareness exercises such as rhyming words and sound blending activities will be the key to enhancing children's abilities to recognize and manipulate individual sounds within words. When reading out loud to my students teaching proper enunciation and “sounding it out” will encourage my students to decode unfamiliar words, promoting a sense of achievement and self-efficacy in their reading journey. I recognize that students have unique needs and abilities and I will also be committed to developing individualized reading plans for students. This may involve one-on-one reading sessions, guided reading groups, and regular assessments to help identify areas of strength and areas where students may require additional support. Lastly, I understand that learning starts at home. To reinforce the importance of reading at home, I plan to establish a strong connection with parents. Regular communication, and providing online and tangible resources for parents will help them contribute to their child’s literacy development. I still remember my kindergarten experience where my teacher gave students individualized sight words for parents to practice with their child. In conclusion, my approach to incorporating reading instruction into my future kindergarten classroom revolves around fostering a genuine love and understanding of reading. Through a combination of interactive activities, individualized plans, and strong connections with parents, I aim to create an environment where children feel empowered to read, By instilling a passion for reading early on, I hope to lay the groundwork for a lifetime of joyful learning and discovery for my students.

I am currently in the Early Childhood and Elementary Education Program at Marywood University. I will be working with young learners, and I plan to incorporate reading instruction in my classroom by doing read alouds with my students. This activity can be helpful for young students who may still struggle with reading. They get to hear a story and they would be involved in the read aloud as well. I would incorporate small actions for the students to do at certain points in the story or maybe they could read certain lines. This gets the students excited to read and participate in the reading. The students will then do some sort of activity to asses their understanding of the reading or to strengthen their understanding. By doing these kinds of activities, the students will be better prepared for their upper level classes. They will have gained experience with books and reading and will have an excitement to go along with their experience. If students do not have any early experience with reading instruction, then they may grow up "not liking" to read. The students most likely would enjoy reading if they had the early instruction that so many students need. Reading is so important, not just for knowledge, but for mental health as well. Reading helps to take the reader into another world, which can help to reduce stress in their daily lives. Reading in early readers will also help to build their vocabulary. This is why, when I do read alouds in my classroom, I will also be reviewing a list of vocabulary from the story. Reading picture books with young students also exposes them to the world of illustrations. This will provoke their imagination and prompt creativity. There are endless benefits to reading at all ages, but most importantly in young readers. Young readers can gain so much from reading in terms of creativity, knowledge, and reading comprehension. By beginning early, the students will learn to enjoy stories and eventually be excited to read on their own. I think that by incorporating a craft or activity with the reading instruction, the students will be able to learn even more because they are having fun. Incorporating students into the read aloud is also a good way to involve them in the reading instruction in the classroom. Overall, reading instruction needs be incorporated into every classroom, and there are so many ways that reading instruction can be incorporated and also be made fun and interesting for the students!