I went to the UHEA homeschool conference a month ago. After going to classes like, Homeschool 101, I decided to start reading REAL books (not just pictures books) to T-Rex. I was told that he, being a kinesthetic learner would do well in these preschool years by reading to him while he bathed, played in the sandbox, played with blocks, etc. So that is what I plan to do. We just finished our first REAL book.
And.
It.
Was.
Amazing.
I didn't think that he would really listen.
I was wrong.
I didn't think he'd sit in my lap.
I was wrong.
I didn't think he'd truly follow the story line.
I was wrong.
We had a WONDERFUL time talking about this book! He was so much fun. We talked A LOT about what slop was. And what types of things go into slop. And some that didn't. The moment I really felt like this was the right thing, was when we were talking about Wilbur's mud and how it was squishy and such, and T-Rex started laughing out loud as it was described. I was in heaven. And then, as we neared the end of the book, he started pointing out that he saw 3 C's on the page, oh, and he saw a G and an H, etc. Then he asked me what the words said that he would point to. It was wonderful and exciting!
The more I learn about home schooling, the more I realize how critical reading to your kids can be. Reading helps so much along the way. It seems like the key factor in a child that loves to learn. I loved reading Charlotte's web because it still used big words and explained a lot of them. It had familiar animals and I loved reading with "their" voices. A GREAT book to start with!
