Member Author: Sharing the Love of Writing

Sharing the Love of Writing

By Betty Jo Evers, Arizona Iota

Oh, how scary and wonderful it is that words can change our lives simply by being next to each other.” – Kamand Kojouri

When did I start writing books and teacher resources? I never intended to become a writer. All I ever wanted to do was to help educators help students achieve their potential without struggling and by enjoying the journey of learning. Therefore, I spent most every day as a classroom teacher helping fellow teachers by sharing ideas, solving issues, creating lesson plans and establishing classroom procedures. Almost three decades in the classroom provided me the opportunity to teach approximately 1400 children ages 5-8. What a journey that was. To experience the excitement in the eyes of those dear children as they learned to read and write in a safe and enjoyable environment was the basis of the next segment of my professional journey.

Following twenty-seven years in the classroom, an opportunity to become an International Literacy Consultant came my way. Traveling twenty-two days a month at times in all fifty U.S. states, provinces, and nations, I presented educational workshops and was a keynote speaker at educational conferences specializing in reading, writing and classroom management.

One week I spoke in Jackson, Mississippi to around 200 K-3 educators. During the break as the participants perused the forty-eight feet of student-made products on display, one teacher asked where my book was. In my haste to keep the day on time, I said, “I’m thinking it through.” As fate would have it, I returned to the same city and hotel the next year. As the participants started to arrive, a lovely educator entered the room, threw up her hands and shouted from the back of the room, “I’m baaaack! I came to get your book!” Needless to say, there was no book. That’s the day I became a writer.

I returned home and started creating manuscripts to “float” to publishers. Knowing that hands-on activities are the way primary children learn best, I focused my books on interactive lessons. As the Chinese proverb states, “I hear and I forget, I see and I remember, I do and I understand.”

The day Scholastic called to confirm the manuscripts would be published was a time for celebration. A total of three books, “Lift the Flap Alphabet”, “File Folder Centers: Reading & Writing K-1”, and “File Folder Centers: Reading & Writing 2-3” came on the market during the same week…two years later. It was truly a labor of love, a journey never to be forgotten.

My writing career continues as I am an author on the open market, www.teacherspayteachers.com. I produce original teachermade resources for the K-3 classroom. This is a worldwide market where educators and parents can purchase products and, when they do, they own them for life. Rewarding? Absolutely. I internalized the meaning of the World Wide Web (www) when I started receiving comments from teachers in Argentina, Australia and beyond. It reminds me of Dr. Seuss and his book, “Oh, the Places You’ll Go.” I never dreamed these opportunities would come my way.

I’ve been asked which of my books or products is my favorite. Asking that of an author is like asking a parent which child is their favorite. I love them all, but as a former primary teacher, I’m especially partial to the ones in color. Two of my books and all of the Teachers Pay Teachers products are in full color. “Poems By Me” and the “Research and Report Series” have been big hits with children and teachers.

The Power of Sharing is amazing. It brings to mind the words of John D. Rockefeller, Jr: “Think of giving (sharing) not as a duty but as a privilege.” I am proud to be an educator, proud to be an author, and proud to be a member of Alpha Delta Kappa. Sharing the love of writing with a purpose is rewarding. All writers have a reason/purpose for writing. Cynthia Mazzaferro says it best, “I believe we each walk our paths so we can learn and share those lessons with others.” That is my purpose, “sharing the love of writing.” Betty Jo is beginning her second term as International Vice President for Membership and is proud to be a Sapphire Sister.