Go, Malachi, Go!!!!

Teaching reading is one of the most STRESSFUL, HARD, TME CONSUMING things I have EVER done.

THAT in itself should get a WHOLE YEAR or two ALL to itself.

It is HARD.

Not like face it then MOVE ON ..hard.

More like…stare you in the face EVERYDAY , HARD.

And it is one of those things that HAS TO BE DONE.

Its not like some of the other subjects that you can skip over as a homeschool Mom.

I mean really….

some days we  don’t get to science…Oh well.

some days we don’t get to history…oh well.

some days we don’t get to our flashcards…oh well.

But…..

You CAN’T skip the reading.

It is a CORE subject.

I mean who REALLY wants to be the homeschool mom who never taught her child(ren) to read.

That would for sure be the TALK of the TOWN.

I can hear it now, “Do you know that weird family with the dreads??? I hear that they homeschool and they never even taught the kids to READ!!! Figures……Weirdos.”  LOL

That is what goes on in MY HEAD anyway.

I’m sure that IS NOT what would happen…

BUT

I don’t really want to chance it.

AT ALL.

And the craziest part of it all is that all children are different.

REALLY different.

Zeek is not a reader.

He knows HOW….he just dosen’t like it.

He does it…because I MAKE HIM.

And teaching that child to read was THE HARDEST thing I have EVER done.

He is in 4th grade and JUST THIS YEAR …he “gets it”.

He reads and UNDERSTANDS what he read.

But he was 9 when he “got it”.

It was a LONG JOURNEY…..that we are still walking.

Then came Shasha….

I never even really remember teaching her…she just KNEW.

One day she was just reading…I mean- I taught her the SOUNDS….but she put them together and was READING.

Just like THAT.

At age 6….she LOVED read~and still does.

NOW…is  Malachis’ turn…

my WILD CHILD.

The child that WON’T sit still….EVER.

He is a hyper 6 year old boy…

REALLY HYPER.

I mean…EXTREMELY HYPER.

Seriously…..He is my child that challenges me the most.

He TESTS me.

He TEACHES me…by TESTING me.

So…I just KNEW that teaching him to read was going to test my patience.

I figured…because I can’t EVER get him to sit down…this would be NO DIFFERENT.

I figured I would have to CHASE HIM DOWN to get him to read.

I don’t.

He LOVES reading and it is one of the ONLY things that makes him sit still. 

He will actually CALMLY sit and READ a book.

I mean…sit on his bottom CALMLY and read.

CALMLY….without getting up.

SIT.

QUIETLY.

and

CALMLY.

And he LOVES it.

He QUIETLY loves it.

Awesome.

Sheba is next….

let’s just PRAY that the last child will be easy on me.

I figure that right about the time I figure this whole homeschooling thing out …they will graduate.

LOL.