O n the Web site of Jennifer Ely ‘96, the logo says it all. A little sprinkler waters two tiny flowers, which turn into tall stalks with happy faces. They’re happy because they’ve just been introduced to friends, travel adventures, numbers, shapes, colors, words and phrases in Mommy Teach Me to Read, the first title in Ely’s Growing Little Readers book series.

Mommy Teach Me to Read, which comprises a packaged set of 10 books, has become popular in several venues including pre-schools, prison ministries and support groups for children with autism. Ely says, “I have found that there are all ages that are beginning readers. I realized I have different demographics of clientele that I wasn’t even aware of.”

The books feature colorful, bold illustrations, photographs, large print, supporting text and parental pointers. A step-by-step structure helps adults learn the best techniques for teaching.

Ely majored in interdisciplinary studies at Radford and one of her concentrations was math. She says it was a strange choice because it was not one of her strong points. She has since learned that it helps her in everything, including structuring her writing. “You have to learn math in order to teach,” she says. Her second concentration and true interest was special education, and she wanted to work with at-risk readers.

“The process of being a writer has been fun,” she says. “One thing I’ve learned is edit, edit, edit and that really goes back to what I have been teaching my children.” Ely says she sat down and had brainstorming sessions while working on the book, mostly at night when her own children, the two faces seen on her logo, were asleep. “I came up with concepts of not only what my own children went through in the development stages but also things they went through even in gymnastics. I thought about all the universal concepts that children across the nation might consider, not only those who live near the beach like we do,” says Ely, who lives in Chesapeake.

Ely spent close to 50 hours selecting photos, font sizes and all those things that aren’t necessarily the most fun part of writing. “It was all new to me. I visited publishers’ warehouses and was surprised at what all went into the publishing of a book,” she says. The first-time author learned as much as her readers do when they pick up one of the books.

A second set in the series is due to be released soon, and another writing line will come out this year. She says that one will be more intense, as it leaps from one line on a page to two.

To learn more, visit www.growinglittlereaders.com.