Music to her ears

I love writing, and I love talking about myself, so why do I find it so hard to update my damn blog regularly?

My wonderful son (we'll call him Lex, I like Superman-themed names) is frickin' READING. I've been working with him using BOB books and some phonics books and various other educational tools that I'm lucky to have access to because I'm a teacher. We've been learning letters and sounds and phonemes and digraphs and whatever the hell else you're supposed to teach beginning readers (can you tell I'm not a literacy specialist?). I've been working with Lex for two years on the actual reading thing. Before that it was letter-sound recognition and the stuff they have to know before they can start putting sounds together, but it wasn't until we started the BOB books that he started taking off. However, this year I really took a step back because he kept saying he didn't want to read at home. I took that to mean, "Mom, you're pushing too hard, back the fuck off." Despite the fact that every teacher (and perfectionist gifted student) bone in my body wanted so badly to keep working on it - because dammit, I KNEW he could do better - I also knew that making it an ordeal was not a great recipe for a love of reading.

So I told the hubby that it was his job now. Every night since then, Hubs has read Harry Potter to the kids and occasionally had Lex read a BOB book or two back to him, maybe once a week or so. Tonight, he put the kids on our bed and handed Lex the book "The Frog Prince Continued." Lex proceeded to sound out the first ten pages of the book. He got stuck on a couple of words but managed "happiness" and "princess" all on his own. It was truly magical. The way their little brains work as they begin to figure out how all those letters go together, and then get so excited about it as they realize they can do it - that's incredible.

I did sit down with Lex the other night to have him read me a BOB book and a phonics book. After he read the first two pages pretty fast I said, "YAY! I'm so excited - you're actually READING!" Lex responds,"You used to scream and clap your hands when I finished." I asked, "Do you want me to do that?" Lex: (giggle) "YES!"

I think I deafened the dog that night.