As a child I was a huge fan of public television, especially shows such as the Electric Company, The Bloodhound Gang, Kaptain Kangaroo, and Reading Rainbow. I can still remember the tune to Reading Rainbow, Take a look, it's in a book, reading rainbow.......I'll spare you all the other words or me humming live music. Levar Burton intrigued me in such a way that I sat mesmerized listening to him read stories that normally didn't interest me a bit. For me, that was a big deal because after about 4th grade me and reading didn't really like one another. I lost interest and most of the time was intimidated with small print and thick books. I was all about cliff notes and summarized versions.
At the beginning of the school year, it was obvious Luke was struggling in reading. He wasn't grasping simple site words. As a parent I became frustrated because after saying a word 5 times I fully expected he would at least recognize or remember what I told him 5 seconds ago. Not so. It was a battle just to ask him to read a sentence. I stopped for about a month because fighting with him each day going over simple reading exercises wasn't worth it. I got an email from his teacher a month later stating that Luke is progressing, but we (teacher and parents) really need to watch him. My heart sank. We
all know that if we aren't reiterating what is taught at school children loose interest and aren't as successful. Doug and I immediately began disciplining ourselves and making it a habit to read with Luke
ever so patiently each night. Some nights have been hard, but overall he has improved so much. I am happy to report a recent progress report has showed him moving up not one, but TWO reading levels. And in case you are wondering, these binoculars are a new way of reading.
As a child I was a huge fan of public television, especially shows such as the Electric Company, The Bloodhound Gang, Kaptain Kangaroo, and Reading Rainbow. I can still remember the tune to Reading Rainbow, Take a look, it's in a book, reading rainbow.......I'll spare you all the other words or me humming live music. Levar Burton intrigued me in such a way that I sat mesmerized listening to him read stories that normally didn't interest me a bit. For me, that was a big deal because after about 4th grade me and reading didn't really like one another. I lost interest and most of the time was intimidated with small print and thick books. I was all about cliff notes and summarized versions.
At the beginning of the school year, it was obvious Luke was struggling in reading. He wasn't grasping simple site words. As a parent I became frustrated because after saying a word 5 times I fully expected he would at least recognize or remember what I told him 5 seconds ago. Not so. It was a battle just to ask him to read a sentence. I stopped for about a month because fighting with him each day going over simple reading exercises wasn't worth it. I got an email from his teacher a month later stating that Luke is progressing, but we (teacher and parents) really need to watch him. My heart sank. We all know that if we aren't reiterating what is taught at school children loose interest and aren't as successful. Doug and I immediately began disciplining ourselves and making it a habit to read with Luke ever so patiently each night. Some nights have been hard, but overall he has improved so much. I am happy to report a recent progress report has showed him moving up not one, but TWO reading levels. And in case you are wondering, these binoculars are a new way of reading.
