I began my teaching career in 1961 in New Jersey, where I taught 2nd and 3rd grades, along with private tutoring in reading. From there, I was encouraged to seek a job with a major publishing company in their phonics department. Before pursuing that opportunity, I applied for and was accepted by the US Department of Defense to teach in Western Germany, where I taught 1st grade for 4 years. That position not only fulfilled my love of teaching, but also gave me the opportunity go live a...