This post was sponsored by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central.
By the time my first born son came along I already had a parenting routine down. I became a stepmom to 2 boys when they were 11 and 5. Four years later my husband and I had our son together and he is now 7. My son came into this family with a middle schooler and 4th grader at home in the thick of bedtime homework and reading log routines as part of his brothers early learning education habits.
My Mom is an elementary school teacher. She graduated only 9 years ago after going back to school later in life to get her teaching degree. Growing up she was a constant at the Catholic school my brothers and I attended. We would hear the end of day school bell and know that most likely our Mom was somewhere on the grounds either in a classroom or the office helping or at the hall setting up an event. School was not a place we hurried home from but a second home with how active she was there during and after school hours.
Being a daughter of an early childhood education teacher and volunteer, I was born to parent like her. School is a place to belong, not a place you dread. I have always made education a focus for my son and his older brothers. It is how I was raised too. Little A reads, writes stories and has already filled a notebook of stories he has written. He is such a book lover and was reading at late 3rd grade in October of his 2nd grade year. He can be found on the couch or in his bed with a pen in one hand and paper in front of him. He likes to write notes to ask us questions-just for fun.
Reading and writing! One day I found some old Goosebumps books because his older brother had read them when he was younger and that is what started this fascination he has for writing. He is the largest R.L. Stine fan anyone can meet. He writes his own Goosebumps tales, he illustrates his own pages from the stories. We even took one of his stories and discovered a site called Lulu, Jr. that let us send in his story and it came back in his own hardbound book. He has spent his earnings on games, books, writing pads and pens. My son will tell you at age 7, “…R.L. Stine takes things that are scary…like zombies or dummies…and makes them into stories that I know are pretend but I can’t stop reading it…”. From the toddler who could be seen with us at the grocery store in his Thor cape and hammer and mismatched socks because he had to dress himself as a superhero to a second grader who dreams to write like R.L. Stine, his imagination and spirit constantly amazes his father and I. He is a kid who just makes you smile and laugh with his wit and quick comebacks. I love the reader that R.L. Stine has encouraged my son to continue to be this year.
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt believes that individual moments of curiosity add up to something much bigger…it is the everyday moments that can spark curiosity and stimulate the mind in an instant. Like picking up your first R.L. Stine book and months later writing your own child thrillers or be given precious moments with a teacher who sparks a lasting impression on you, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt wants to celebrate the stories they hear from teachers, students, families and friends about how discovery and curiosity creates a lifelong love of learning, both in the classroom and beyond.
How your own story can help others
All of these stories can be found by following: #SparkAMind on social media. You can share your own stories and be inspired by others. When you use the #SparkAMind hashtag, two things happen! First, your story will appear in the #SparkAMind mini-site. Second, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt will donate a children’s book to an early learning organization.
Continue supporting the reading habits at the early childhood education level at home with The Curious World app that you can get at a discount from my The Curious World discount link. Hurry-this promo code ends April 30, 2016.
Go ahead..find your favorite social media channel and join the discussion by using #SparkAMind.
