Lee Mountain:
Five decades of writing textbooks

"As senior author of the Heritage Readers, I am delivering the best children's literature of the past to today's students. The present demand for instructional simulations recently led to my Math Detectives," she said, "and I'm currently reaching forward into the electronic future as I design a CD-ROM for the language arts program."

She has written more books, journal articles and multimedia than even she can count, but she still gets a thrill when a new project is published or she receives an award. When she won a Texty in 1994, for the first book in her K-6 Heritage Readers series, she says, "I was so happy. It was such a tribute to be chosen by the Text and Academic Authors Association. For me, the most meaningful judgment of textbook quality comes from TAA, the leaders in the field."

Although Mountain has written educational materials for all ages, she says she most enjoys writing for elementary students. She is senior author of Heritage Readers, a series of texts, teachers' guides, skillbooks and parents' materials for Grades K-8, but she also has written several textbooks for graduate students including Strategies for Guiding Content Reading and Early Reading Instruction, Her easy-to-read and entertaining format has become a successful formula and a solid foundation for integrating reading with math, science and social studies. "Reading is the basis for everything," Mountain said. "Why not make it easy to read and fun to learn?" With this premise, she has written the Math Detectives series that integrates math with reading by writing words problems that read like a story; Uncle Sam Books, integrating reading and social studies. Her Homework Machine Programs integrate basic skills via telecommunication. Her Heritage series combines art with literature.

After 37 years of teaching, Mountain says seeing the results of her work with students and the real friendships she's cultivated with them gives her the most satisfaction. "Results in the form of well-written exams, impressive portfolios, and outstanding dissertations are gratifying for sure," Mountain said. "Seeing my grads perform well as classroom teachers and educational leaders is rewarding. But the result dearest to my heart is to see my students achieve success in the area that has meant so much to me -- publishing."

With more than 300 publications by her students over the years, it seems Mountain has successfully passed on her love for writing, and with it, the secret to her success: present the information in a way that is both easy to read and entertaining. This secret, learned from her first editor, has made her both a prolific writer and has earned her three awards, including her 1994 Texty for Pocket Full of Posies, the first kindergarten transition book of her Heritage Reader Series for K-8, and the National Freedom Foundation Award for Children's books for Uncle Sam Books. "To say it's easy to read and entertaining is saying a lot for instructional materials," Mountain said.

She encourages her students to publish because, she says, not only is it personally rewarding, but it shows what you have to teach is wider reaching than your own classroom. "I hope my teaching has a ripple effect, multiplying its benefits through my students' writings as well as my own," Mountain said. For Mountain, publishing has always been important. At every stage in her life, she says, "I was always writing something."

Mountain says the rewards of writing come in four stages: when you finish with the manuscript, when it is accepted for publication, when you hold the published book in your hand, and when your students are actually using it and you're seeing results. "This constant reward factor has kept me loving it and students 'catch' why you love it," Mountain said. "I couldn't see doing anything more rewarding."

When writing anything, Mountain gives this advice: Draw from your own experiences. It has worked well for Mountain, who has written so many books, journal articles and multimedia packages that even she can't count them all. "What I published has always reflected what I was doing," she said. "I wrote Uncle Sam and the Flag when my son was in Boy Scouts."

In every decade of Mountain's life since her 20s, writing has been a significant part of her career. "At every stage in my life, whether I was teaching high school, working as a textbook editor, or teaching college, I was always writing something," Mountain said. "I was living my life with two jobs, teacher and writer." With four children to rear, Mountain says she didn't lack material to draw from. "They learned to read early and I see them teaching their children, my grandchildren, to read early too," Mountain said. "I must have made an impression."

Mountain credits her husband, Joseph, for supporting her through the tough times, which, she says, because of his help were few and far between. "I'm married to the greatest guy," she said. "He was very supportive of my goals and was glad to watch the kids while I worked." For five years she worked as a part-time teacher and wrote full-time. "I didn't have to be away a lot to write and could be home to do it." She recites a four-sided, four-role combination that, she says, is as good as it gets, and as challenging as it gets: "I drew a square for the shape of my life: I'm a teacher, a writer, a mother, a wife."

Marching to the beat of that drum, she says, is as good as it gets: "It is the drumbeat I have heard throughout my career, and I'm still marching to its music."

— reported by Kim Pawlak, 1998