Once upon a time in a city quaint and charming, lived Old Mother Goose, her kindness quite disarming. She delighted children of all ages with tales of lore and yarns of fable. And who might this prolific storyteller be? Why, she’s the beloved Barbara Lewis of Alpha Omega Academy! Let’s meet this storyteller extraordinaire, shall we?
I grew up in Lubbock, and in my early years, we did not have a television set. As a family, we would have dinner together, and after completing the dishwashing and homework, my parents would read to us. During these early years, they read many genres of books to us, as well as the Bible each night. Even in their nineties, my parents continued the same routine. They instilled in me and my two siblings a love of reading.
I attended Texas Tech in Lubbock and earned a double major in home economics and elementary education. I then attended Sam Houston State University, earning two master’s degrees, one in education with reading specialist, and the other in library science. My different jobs have taken me to Amarillo, Lubbock, Washington State, and here in Huntsville, where I taught at Samuel Walker Houston Elementary School when it was on 10th Street. I also taught a couple of courses at SHSU before they required that professors have doctoral degrees. Region 6 Service Center was another employer, where I served as a co-op librarian for several schools including Summerville, Baby Centerville, Leggett, Hearn, Richards, Grapeland, and New Waverly. I also helped with two library academies when we brought librarians and library paraprofessionals to the service center for several days during the semester and taught them about libraries and how to perform the various tasks required.
I have been the library helper at Alpha Omega for the past seven years and have had the honor and pleasure of working with our main librarian, Dana Brenton. She is a master in choosing books and knowing exactly what we need for a classical Christan school and library. We have over 13,000 books in our library, which span our grade levels from pre-K through 12th grade. Once the books arrive, they must be processed and made shelf ready.
That involves putting the information of each book into a library database. We use a library program called Follett Destiny. I have to give the book a spine number, or address, which is used to find the book on the shelf. A barcode is then added for purposes of check out, and the book is entered in the circulation database. The books also have to be covered for their preservation, and we have wonderful volunteers who help with this.
But my favorite part of the job is inspiring children to love reading and bringing the stories to life during our story time. The students gather by class at story time, and I select an age-appropriate book to share with them. Story time is not just the reading of a book, but I also include activities and questions so the experience is interactive. By doing this, the children know to listen to the story, because questions are coming! And children love to answer questions. They also enjoy participating in the activities I’ve prepared to go with the story. These activities help to enhance what we have learned in the book, and to expand the knowledge of certain topics involved. For instance, we read a story that included the topic of snowflakes, so I was able to teach them a few facts about snowflakes, how they are formed, and the patterns they take, that sort of thing. Little by little, children learn facts about the world around them and can build on this education in the future.
Other characters do show up on occasion! Sometimes I come as Mother Goose, or their very favorite, Mrs. Johnny Appleseed, complete with a cooking pot on my head! They love when I do this! I’ve also dressed as Mary Poppins, Amelia Bedelia, Laura Wilder, Mary Magdalene, and others. Becoming these characters draws the children into the story, and their interest level is heightened! Reading aloud to children boots brain development, language acquisition, and develops vocabulary while fostering emotional intelligence. It enhances cognitive skills like critical thinking and imagination and helps to expand attention spans, while reducing stress and building a lasting love for reading.
Reading also exposes children to new words and complex sentence structures, and creates better listening skills, thus fostering a greater chance of success in school and their future endeavors. Just fifteen minutes a day reading aloud can build knowledge, strengthen family connections, and set children on a path to long-term academic success.
“If you can read, you can teach yourself anything.” This is a quote from Dolly Parton, who created the Imagination Library, a program that sends free books throughout the world to children who otherwise would not have the privilege of owning a book and being inspired to learn to read. Her organization has done immense work in the field of brain development as it relates to reading. I agree with her about the importance of books, and paper books in particular, not reading on a screen, especially for young children. Children need to enjoy the feel of a real book in their hands. They need to hold, smell, and turn the pages of a book. Research has been done in this area which supports the fact this is crucial in brain development.
God has blessed me so richly, and I have had the privilege to pass this on to the children He has brought into my life through teaching and being a librarian. I hope to continue to inspire children with my love of reading and the immense joy it has brought me.
