What was your first experience of words and print? My childhood memories might remind you!
At the family dinner table our father would often talk to us about interesting words and challenge us to spell them of course. ‘Nice’ was not an acceptable word to use in conversations and he always challenged us to find a more suitable alternative.
I remember standing beside my Grade 1 teacher as we progressed through the ‘Don and Betty’ readers. What magic and power for me as a little girl to make meaning from the intriguing marks on the pages.
I remember the wonderful book prizes that we received at our annual Sunday School Anniversaries. These books were always thoughtfully chosen, and I would spend the rest of the day delving into my precious new book.
I still have my school ‘Composition’ book and smile when I read my Grade 6 efforts at writing. I received a tick for every adjective I wrote. This made for a rather stilted early writing style! I have memories of going to the headmaster’s office for my annual reading test. I could remember some of the fascinating words such as ‘sepulchre’ that were presented each year.
I have never lost my fascination with words and their meanings. How about you?
