I was sitting on the couch with Pryscilla. I pulled up The Primer on my Kindle. The Primer is just one of our many early readers. We also have Dick & Jane, Bob Books, Frog & Toad, and others. This moment came after we had taken a week off of scheduled learning. Our "off" week was "off" in lots of ways, but I digress.
I pulled up the Primer and started pointing to words, fully thinking that I was going to have to help her with some sounds and blending because that is the stage they are at. I pointed to the first word and she read it. I smiled. We went on with the sentence and she kept on reading. She, for the most part, read the whole first story, The Little Red Hen!! She was so proud! I was so proud!!
At that moment, I realized something that I've been reading all over other blogs, on facebook posts/comments, etc., etc. Learning to read is magical!!! There isn't one way to do it there are SO MANY ways to do it and once you witness progress being made there's a new found energy to learn more. We, as teachers, fill our child's brain with some useful information to help it go to work and when IT'S READY it sure does! When I thought we were taking a week off, little did I know a HUGE learning leap would be made. Let your little ones rest and try to enjoy those periods. You may carve out a rest time here and there or you might just let life do that for you. Babies, life events, mariages, relocation, births, deaths.
I'm not pushing reading. Fluent reading or even reading to a certain level isn't a year 0 (kinder) goal for us. The girls are learning letters, blends, and using Alpha Phonics at a very slow rate. I have done lots of research, and what I've found says that reading early does not indicate anything about future learning and in many cases learning to read too early comes at the expense of other types of learning , including play, which is actually detrimental in the long run.
Most importantly, I read to them...morning, afternoon, and evening. My number one goal is to foster a love of reading and learning. Also, to encourage their attention to a story and it's details.
Pryscilla is by no means a READER but she's well on her way. Both girls are making the connections necessary to read. This "magic" moment just happened to be with Pryscilla, but Eden is right there with her. And I have had a few "magic" moments of my own with Eden!
Pryscilla is 5, almost 6!
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