Hi! I’m Elizabeth. 
I’m so happy you’re here.

I’m a life-long literacy expert who has taught my children and my students to want to read.

Since the start of my teaching career, I have helped students not only learn to read, but want to read. As an elementary school teacher, I showed my students (who claimed to hate reading) that there are books in the world that they would like reading. And as a college professor, I did the same—exposed students to books that connected with their interests and then talked to them about their thoughts and reactions to those books.

The Literacy Teacher’s Life emerges from my experiences as a literacy professor, an elementary classroom teacher, the teacher for the child actors on the Broadway Tour of Annie, a content specialist at Sesame Workshop, and reading and writing with my own daughters. In each role, I have seen the power of connecting kids’ backgrounds and interests to their reading and writing work. When kids are interested in what they are reading about and the topics that they are writing about, they are more likely to be engaged and invested in the work.

My goal is for all children to thrive as readers and writers—so that they become life-long readers who are capable of reading and understanding what they just read—and also confident writers who are able to express themselves clearly and logically.

No surprise, I am rarely seen without a book—I try and take advantage of any available opportunity I can get to read. As a parent, I love sharing the joy of reading with my two daughters, reading stories about their interests, and talking with them about the books that they are reading. I live with my family and two playful cats on Long Island.

I hope that the content on The Literacy Teacher’s Life inspires and supports you as you are teaching your kids (in a classroom or at home) to love reading and writing.