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05/17/2017 08:30 AMNot all kids love to read. For many, it’s a struggle. At Deep River Elementary School (DRES), the person helping kids overcome that challenge is Dr. Andrea Ricci. The school’s reading and language arts consultant, Andrea received the Connecticut Reading Association’s Outstanding Reading Educator Award for the past school year. With a doctorate in her field from Central Connecticut State University, you might guess that it’s solely a matter of the right programs and methods that get kids into reading. But, for Andrea, it’s about all about emotions, too.
“If they’re not enjoying or motivated by it, then they’re not engaged and there’s not that willingness to try and practice and overcome those challenges they need to overcome,” she says.
A resident of Cheshire, Andrea received a degree in elementary and special education from Providence College, then went on to earn a master’s degree in literacy at Columbia University. She taught 3rd and 4th grade students at Essex Elementary School for seven years—the last two years were also spent earning her doctorate.
“I had been teaching for five years before I started my program at Central,” she says. “It just seemed like the right time. I knew it was something I wanted to do. I took the leap and did it. It was a tremendous experience, and I hope it’s continued to make me a better educator.”
Andrea started working at DRES in fall 2014, while finishing her thesis. She was happy to find the same attitude throughout both Region 4 schools.
“The buildings are different, but at the same time I see our common theme and mission,” she says. “Everyone in the building still wants the best for the kids that they’re working with. I’ve just found that all around.”
At DRES, Andrea supports reading and writing in the classroom, and helps the paraprofessionals who work with struggling readers. She also works one-on-one with those students who are having the toughest time with it.
“Initially the kids are really hesitant and don’t want to come,” she relates. “They don’t want to do what’s hard for them.”
However, there’s no one better prepared to help them through the struggle than Andrea. The reason? She knows exactly what they’re going through.
“I was a struggling reader,” Andrea shares. “I was an anti-reader for a while, and I know what that feels like.”
Having gone through that struggle herself, Andrea knows that the secret to success is getting the kids interested in the subject matter and confident in their abilities.
“You try to look for areas of interest to get that confidence and motivation,” she says, noting that the key could be a character who the child can relate to, or a book that she knows they’ll find humorous. “Once they’re excited and motivated, I feel like the teaching is just that much easier because they’re doing that work for themselves.”
Once that enthusiasm takes root, it’s a delight to behold.
“Every day you ask, ‘Did you read last night?’” Andrea says. “Now they can’t wait to tell you they actually did it: ‘I read last night—I read two books last night!’ I love that—I love when they start getting that confidence and they can’t wait to get that book out and show you what they’ve got.”
Andrea credits the other teachers and staff at DRES—plus the strength of Region 4 in general—with the success she’s had, and her recent award. But there’s no doubt that having confronted her own fear of reading has made her a stronger teacher, too.
“I was worried about not wanting to take on the extra challenge. It was just that fear of getting over that hurdle,” she says. “Some of the kids are just like that. I was that kid, too. Once I had good teachers and good books in my hands that I wanted to read, that made the difference.”
Today, Andrea loves reading—mostly nonfiction and biographies. She hopes that the kids who she helps learn to read will turn into active readers, too.
“No matter what they choose to do in their life, reading, literacy is a fact of life,” she says. “The more you can love it and the stronger you can make those skills for yourself, I think it just opens up doors.”