I grew up in a big family in Wisconsin during "That 70's Show" era. On cold evenings, my siblings and I played Scrabble, Password, charades, etc. At church, I perked up whenever the Lutheran pastor discussed etymology or translated a word into Greek. Grandpa taught me Oh Christmas Tree in German. Later, Bill Bryson's The Mother Tongue incited in me a peaceful riot of word study.

Became a first-grade teacher, because I struggled to learn to read, having to attend summer school in primary grades. My goal was to teach reading with empathy. Later, I moved to California, married, and eventually became a middle school teacher. Sad to find that most of my eighth graders had no idea how to play Scrabble. Soon mended!

Went to grad school and studied cognition and development, focusing on language, including vocabulary. Learned to appreciate language even more.

See my children's book, Jamie's Journey. Visit my edublog, Vocabulogic.