Reading

Our daughter is teaching herself to read. For more than a year now, I have attempted and failed to accomplish this task. Sitting down with our phonics kit-FAIL. Sight words-FAIL. Easy readers for us to read together-FAIL. Until she decided that she wanted to read, nothing we tried worked. She would get frustrated and weepy at the mere mention of an organized lesson. No matter how gently we suggested (and really, the gentle approach is the only one that works with children) that we should focus on reading, she would dig her heels in and refuse to budge. But last night for our bedtime reading, SHE read to us. She has been reading aloud all day. She started writing a few months ago by asking us how to spell things. We had her sound out the word and write it as she went along. Now, she is sounding out words left and right. It makes me proud to be a homeschooler, or rather an unschooler, when I see my children moving along at their own pace. Just as all of my children have walked, talked and been potty-trained on their own schedule, so too do they get to learn the skills of life when they are ready.