I love this so much. I taught myself to read at age four, and only because parents read aloud to me all the time. My daughter learned around five and now she reads even more than I do. (Which, as an author, I must say is a lot.) My son is four and he's still learning what letters even are. I plan to homeschool him next fall and I hope he feels so much freedom to explore reading at his own pace. Five, seven...even eight...I don't care. What I care about is that once he grasps how powerful stories can be, he'll never want to give them up.
Yesssss! It’s the power of story that matters! And there are so many different ways to create and consume story. I feel I’ve got a similar first and second vibe going on in our home too!
We always have books in our bag, wherever we go! My four year old recently asked if he could read a book in the bath! The answer of course was in the affirmative! He gave up though after he realized he couldn't dunk it in the water without it getting ruined! Thank you for the brilliant reminder to reduce the pressure on those milestones! Sometimes it is so easy to get caught up in the 'shoulds' instead of noticing the present.
I have a similar problem when I take books into the bath - all fun and games until I want to turn the page. Is there a market for waterproof books?! Because sign me up! Especially with how much time is spent in rivers & pools in the Texas summer.
Love that you’ve always got books in your bag! Share some of your recent favs!
Current bag books are What to do with an Idea, Fergal and the Bad Temper, What a Wonderful World (an illustrated board book of the song) & Dada! A classic that cracks the littlest human in our house up!!
Yessss we have that same board book and I love trying to do my best Louis impression when I sing read it! Is the Dada the Jimmy Fallon one? Can’t wait to check out the others!
We always bring at least three books with us if we go out to dinner and so far, other diners seem to enjoy it! I love it when parents of older children comment on how they remember those days, especially if they recognize the book. This happens a lot with Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.
I have finally accepted that my 3.5 year old is not a story time kid (thanks Covid!) but loves reading with someone else or "by himself". He has started taking two flashlights to bed and a pile of books. Works for me!
By himself reading at a young age is one of my absolute favorite things! I love when I catch my littlest “reading aloud” and making up the story as she goes. I also totally get the “no thanks story time” kid!! I’ve got a small friend who is a total runner/escape artist/wouldn’t sit for their life and another reluctant in crowds kid! I love your workarounds to reading. 📖
But you CAN read and drive if you are listening to an audio book! My girls and I have shared so many stories on long drives. It feels like the ultimate cheat - you can still share long stories with your kids without having to read the whole thing aloud.
Girl! So true! My sister pointed out the same thing!! I do love a good audiobook and my eldest will put on these giant headphones we inherited from his great grandpa to listen during quiet time but I ALWAYS forget about it in the car!! I need to remember to use this tool more - especially on our longer drives.
I started reading when I was 4! I had a lot of hands-on time with my Nana who was an ESL teacher. We've always read aloud to my daughter and practically have our own library at home but at age 5.5, she's still a more reluctant reader. She seems to excel more at math and in general, is a more physical child. I'm starting to see a lot of lightbulbs go off in her mind this semester at school. She'll read labels and point out sight words without prompting. I don't agree with the school's reading curriculum which is another difficulty. We're going to get there... on her schedule.
Here’s to hoping the curriculum shifts! Also, I love a mathematical mind - my daughter seems to lean that direction so far too but I’m curious to see what the future holds. Love the positivity and patience for her journey.
Totally on point Alexis! I know of a child that just “had a breakthrough” and started reading a book on his own for pleasure. And he turned 10 in October of last year. So you are right. Children all have their own timelines and “breakthroughs”.
So wonderful Alexis! I totally agree that the pressure is so intense. Also love your Lit tip, we have been reading at other times during the day like at the start of dinner to get people all sitting at the table and in the bath, which keeps the splash fest a little more low key. Bedtime is just too nutty!
Getting people to the table and settled with a story is a great idea! Love it. Your post was fire today!! I need to read it again when less kids are hanging on! And bedtime is always so exhausting in all the wrong ways.
What a thoughtful response! And how funny that you do converse about when people learned to read!! I spend a lot of time on the playgrounds trying to reassure stressed out parents, but asking that very question might open some new doors into the topic - maybe I should start!
I love hearing about your journey with your kids and reading. I am very stuck and focused in the preschool age of parenting and rearing kids as that was also the age I nannied for, but the long haul is a roll of the dice and your let’s wait and see comment is spot on!
I also wonder if the wait and see method is still applicable, reading is such a journey with years of flood and years of famine. Who knows what may happen in 5, 10, 20 years for the reading journey. The foundation for loving reading is there…i keep thinking of eating habits as a comparison - my parents feeding us healthy balanced meals for as long as they could, and then me going thru my phase of eating nothing but rice for snacks and meals…but now as an adult, it’s back to the balanced meals.
The power of picture books is real! I have so much to learn about different types of learners and readers, so thanks for sharing your story with me. The part about her picking up on the tropes warms my heart! Does your daughter like graphic novels too? Such great pictures to tell stories in those!
Haha! I can just imagine your teacher in a tizzy about your unorthodox reading - what a tragedy for you both! Fingers crossed there aren’t too many teachers stuck in that mindset.
Thanks again for sharing this brilliant insight and engaging in this discussion!
ONE 👏 THOUSAND 👏 TIMES 👏 AMEN
Thank you!! 😊
I love this so much. I taught myself to read at age four, and only because parents read aloud to me all the time. My daughter learned around five and now she reads even more than I do. (Which, as an author, I must say is a lot.) My son is four and he's still learning what letters even are. I plan to homeschool him next fall and I hope he feels so much freedom to explore reading at his own pace. Five, seven...even eight...I don't care. What I care about is that once he grasps how powerful stories can be, he'll never want to give them up.
Yesssss! It’s the power of story that matters! And there are so many different ways to create and consume story. I feel I’ve got a similar first and second vibe going on in our home too!
We always have books in our bag, wherever we go! My four year old recently asked if he could read a book in the bath! The answer of course was in the affirmative! He gave up though after he realized he couldn't dunk it in the water without it getting ruined! Thank you for the brilliant reminder to reduce the pressure on those milestones! Sometimes it is so easy to get caught up in the 'shoulds' instead of noticing the present.
I have a similar problem when I take books into the bath - all fun and games until I want to turn the page. Is there a market for waterproof books?! Because sign me up! Especially with how much time is spent in rivers & pools in the Texas summer.
Love that you’ve always got books in your bag! Share some of your recent favs!
Current bag books are What to do with an Idea, Fergal and the Bad Temper, What a Wonderful World (an illustrated board book of the song) & Dada! A classic that cracks the littlest human in our house up!!
Yessss we have that same board book and I love trying to do my best Louis impression when I sing read it! Is the Dada the Jimmy Fallon one? Can’t wait to check out the others!
We always bring at least three books with us if we go out to dinner and so far, other diners seem to enjoy it! I love it when parents of older children comment on how they remember those days, especially if they recognize the book. This happens a lot with Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.
I have finally accepted that my 3.5 year old is not a story time kid (thanks Covid!) but loves reading with someone else or "by himself". He has started taking two flashlights to bed and a pile of books. Works for me!
By himself reading at a young age is one of my absolute favorite things! I love when I catch my littlest “reading aloud” and making up the story as she goes. I also totally get the “no thanks story time” kid!! I’ve got a small friend who is a total runner/escape artist/wouldn’t sit for their life and another reluctant in crowds kid! I love your workarounds to reading. 📖
But you CAN read and drive if you are listening to an audio book! My girls and I have shared so many stories on long drives. It feels like the ultimate cheat - you can still share long stories with your kids without having to read the whole thing aloud.
Girl! So true! My sister pointed out the same thing!! I do love a good audiobook and my eldest will put on these giant headphones we inherited from his great grandpa to listen during quiet time but I ALWAYS forget about it in the car!! I need to remember to use this tool more - especially on our longer drives.
Great Grandpa technology is the best technology. Ha!
I started reading when I was 4! I had a lot of hands-on time with my Nana who was an ESL teacher. We've always read aloud to my daughter and practically have our own library at home but at age 5.5, she's still a more reluctant reader. She seems to excel more at math and in general, is a more physical child. I'm starting to see a lot of lightbulbs go off in her mind this semester at school. She'll read labels and point out sight words without prompting. I don't agree with the school's reading curriculum which is another difficulty. We're going to get there... on her schedule.
Here’s to hoping the curriculum shifts! Also, I love a mathematical mind - my daughter seems to lean that direction so far too but I’m curious to see what the future holds. Love the positivity and patience for her journey.
Love this!!!
Thank you!
Totally on point Alexis! I know of a child that just “had a breakthrough” and started reading a book on his own for pleasure. And he turned 10 in October of last year. So you are right. Children all have their own timelines and “breakthroughs”.
The shift from reading to learn how to read (not always so fun) to reading for pleasure is HUGE! Loving that happy news of reading success!!
So wonderful Alexis! I totally agree that the pressure is so intense. Also love your Lit tip, we have been reading at other times during the day like at the start of dinner to get people all sitting at the table and in the bath, which keeps the splash fest a little more low key. Bedtime is just too nutty!
Getting people to the table and settled with a story is a great idea! Love it. Your post was fire today!! I need to read it again when less kids are hanging on! And bedtime is always so exhausting in all the wrong ways.
Thank you so much Alexis!
YES YES YES. I can't believe how much pressure there is these days to hit every milestone by a certain age. It's so hard to ignore/escape.
Agreed! And so many of those milestone markers don’t take individual experiences into account!
What a thoughtful response! And how funny that you do converse about when people learned to read!! I spend a lot of time on the playgrounds trying to reassure stressed out parents, but asking that very question might open some new doors into the topic - maybe I should start!
I love hearing about your journey with your kids and reading. I am very stuck and focused in the preschool age of parenting and rearing kids as that was also the age I nannied for, but the long haul is a roll of the dice and your let’s wait and see comment is spot on!
I also wonder if the wait and see method is still applicable, reading is such a journey with years of flood and years of famine. Who knows what may happen in 5, 10, 20 years for the reading journey. The foundation for loving reading is there…i keep thinking of eating habits as a comparison - my parents feeding us healthy balanced meals for as long as they could, and then me going thru my phase of eating nothing but rice for snacks and meals…but now as an adult, it’s back to the balanced meals.
The power of picture books is real! I have so much to learn about different types of learners and readers, so thanks for sharing your story with me. The part about her picking up on the tropes warms my heart! Does your daughter like graphic novels too? Such great pictures to tell stories in those!
Haha! I can just imagine your teacher in a tizzy about your unorthodox reading - what a tragedy for you both! Fingers crossed there aren’t too many teachers stuck in that mindset.
Thanks again for sharing this brilliant insight and engaging in this discussion!
We’ll see! Is a great parent mantra!