Do you remember learning to read?  Well, the experts say that most adults forget most of their memories of their very early years; say, before the age of 10.  I certainly don't fit in that category because I have many vivid memories of my early childhood.  But do I remember actually learning how to read? 

Nope. 

 I remember going to school, but not the actually learning-to-read process.

I love to read!  Reading is life.  I don't know where I would be without being able to read.  But reading, especially teaching reading can throw a wrench in an otherwise peaceful journey. You know, being a homeschooling Mom can add a great deal of pressure to our lives.  WE must be the ones who teach our children how to read!  And that pressure can be great IF we are following a preconceived notion of when our children must learn to read.  

Children learn different things at different times.  Children learn to read when they are ready to read!  Take my first born.  (No, not really, you can't have her, although many of my friends would like to have her and borrow her from time to time!)  Anyway, I tried to teach her to read when she was five or so, and we clashed heads in a very big way.  She just wouldn't do it!  We were both frustrated.  So, some wise person told me to back off. 

 Ok, I did. 

So hubby and I  just kept reading out loud to her, we read our own books, visited the library often and books have always been a huge part of our lives.  And one day, viola' she started reading.  She read chapter books, not the Dick and Jane twaddle.  And she hasn't slowed down since.

Enter second born.  Second born child loved books too, but as he got older and older...the reading wasn't happening.  I started to get a little worried.  But after listening to Dr. Raymond Moore and reading "Better Late Than Early," I figured everything would work out fine.  And it did.  My son began to read when he was 9, but there is also another factor to this story; he was very sick and we didn't know it right away.  He has diabetes, and until it was diagnosed and we began treatment, concentrating was very hard for him to do.  So once we got that figured out, he began to read.  He loves to read and reads all the time, or he would if I let him!

Child number 3 also is an avid reader.  You know the funny story about how when we have our first baby we sterilze the pacifier and such, and then by the "nth" baby we just wipe it off on our jeans kind of thing?  Well, feel sorry for child number 3 because I have NO idea when she started reading.  She just did and does and that is that.  By the time you  have several learners running around, it's just too hard to notice who is doing what, when!  Life happens too quickly, and I can't keep up.

So what happens when the number four child is NOT reading yet?  And "should be" because he is old enough, yada, yada, yada.  (Do people still use that word anymore?)  Anyway, that is where we are today.  A 10 year old who is perfectly capable of reading, just doesn't want to do it yet...but sorta wants too, and is the smartest little whip of the bunch, but just is TESTING Mom in a big way.  Maybe it's "let's see how long we can get away with not reading!" 

 Hmmm. 

 Well, at any rate, I wanted to tell you about a neato little book that my sometime boss/buddy/old friend Gena Suarez has written.  It is all about a little green guy named "Splish" and it's his story of learning to read.

My son was pretty excited when we got this book in the mail, but as soon as I started reading he became suspicious!  I think the book "resembled" him in many ways, although he isn't green.  "And Then Mama Said...It Takes Time to Learn to Read" is a fun book that kids are drawn to.  At least mine were!  My son thought the drawings were similar to the "bears" which of course, are the Bearenstein Bears and I hope I spelled that right.  :)

At any rate, if you are trying to teach a child to read  to convince yourself that there is no reason to bang your head up against the wall because your "older" child is not reading yet, then you should read Gena's book.  It will give you some more peace of mind, or at least help you find that peace that is there tucked away in your mommy-brain somewhere. 

 Do you know why?  Because that is the "soul" purpose of this book.

At least I think it is!

You can get Gena's book at the Schoolhouse Store.  Just click on the graphic!

Blessings,

Nancy