You Can't Coach That

Listen to a child read

For me, one of the simple pleasures in life is listening to a child read. Princess number 2 started school this year which has enabled me to be part of the learning to read experience all over again. Watching a child develop this skill that many of us take for granted is a priceless experience. Each new word that is added to the reading vocabulary is a mini triumph, a discovery to be savoured. It reminds me that children have a natural tendency to learn and that we must nurture this at all costs.

Both my daughters love to read and their reading age is well above their actual age. People often ask how we achieved this. We must have tutored them from a young age is sometimes the suggested reason for their reading ability. The truth is that we have always read to them, right from birth. As each of them has started school, reading to them has become reading with them. I think this is something that has been passed down from my parents. I have vivid memories of my Father reading Banjo Patterson poetry to my brother and I when we were young.

If you get the opportunity to read with a child and it is not something you are accustomed to doing I highly recommend it.

What simple pleasures do you enjoy?

“You can’t coach that”

Gets me all choked up to hear that you still remember the reading times!
Seems like only yesterday that my Mother read the same poetry to me over 60 years ago.

You are right on the money.  I read to my son and then to my grandbabies.  All of them learned to read quickly and beyond the teachers expectations.  Thanks for the walk down memory lane.  I had forgotten.

My kids are the same with reading, it goes a long way.

Had a “simple pleasure” today. Our 5 year old won her first running race (yep beat the other two competitors)- the 70m “sprint”. She’s thrilled

Reading is great fun. My 9yo boy loves either reading to us or us reading to him.
It is funny you wrote this as I was only think a few days ago about that it wasn’t that many years ago that he couldn’t read.
The same with spelling, he was doing some homework the other night and wrote down some words that I didn’t think he knew (some times his spelling is terrible )

When I came home from work yesterday he asked me to go upstairs and lay on his bed with him and talk - I thought oh no, he has been in trouble - but no, he did just want to to talk, it was great.

Keep reading to your kids, people because one day they won’t want you to do it anymore. Thankfully my son still likes it.

Sorry, I though I had you on my Blogroll, you are now.
cheers.