Lisa Blau taught love of reading

Lisa Blau believed that books could expand children's minds by taking them anywhere in the world. So it was of critical importance to her that teachers do an excellent job teaching children to read.

Her methods were so popular that soon educators around the country were asking her to come share her techniques. Mrs. Blau died Aug. 31 after battling cancer for several years. She was 47.

A native of Orinda, Calif., Mrs. Blau began her career teaching elementary school in Covina, Calif. She spent 10 years developing creative ways to help young children learn to read and sharing her ideas with other teachers, said her husband, Len Blau.

Mrs. Blau's methods were "practical, ready-to-use ideas," he said.

In the late 1980s, she and her husband launched a company called One From the Heart, through which Mrs. Blau gave seminars around the country and wrote instructional books for teachers. She also recommended children's books appropriate to specific age groups and suggested activities that would help get children excited about the material they were reading.

She wrote books that dealt with an array of educational topics, from teaching phonics to using literature in science classes.

One of her most popular innovations was to adapt plays from children's books, so that young reading students could act out the parts.

When she moved to Bellevue in 1991, Mrs. Blau quit teaching and made her consulting business a full-time job.

Mrs. Blau received numerous honors for her work with literacy, including the Celebrate Literacy Award, granted by the International Reading Association, in 1994. She was often a featured speaker for teachers' conferences and reading associations. She also appeared on Educational Television Network programs on teaching literature in the classroom.

She was an adjunct professor at Seattle Pacific University and Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.

In addition to her husband, Mrs. Blau's survivors include her children, Dan and Michaela, both of Bellevue; her sister, Michele Costa-Lukis of London; and her brother, Ross Costa of Laguna Niguel, Calif.

There will be a memorial service at 3 p.m. today at Unity Church, 16330 N.E. Fourth St., Bellevue.

Remembrances may be made to the Bellevue Schools Foundation, in care of the Lisa Blau Literacy Foundation, P.O. Box 40644, Bellevue, WA 98015.

Catherine Tarpley can be reached at 206-464-8255 or ctarpley@seattletimes.com.