And then this one cracks me up. They did a dot-to-dot in class, and it made a house. Instead of a simple, red-brick with white picket fence type house, Jakob turned it into a Monster House (of course with Iron man in it or on it or fighting it).
Yes, a very creative child. He's been learning more and more, and will ask me all day long about words that rhyme, and what does such-and-such word start with, and how do you spell this or that, and what do these letters spell. I make him think through what a word starts with and tell me, and he's almost always right except when it comes to words that start with "c". Like "cake": he'll say, "Um, "k"?" (Why do we have the letter "c", anyway? "k" and "s" do just fine. Somebody's sick joke taken way too far...)
I think part of the reason he's been so into letters is he's part of a program at school called Title One. They sent a letter home a few weeks into school, basically saying that they think he (and apparently most of the other Kindergartners) could benefit from some extra help. I'm like, my son is a resource kid? (Not that resource is bad, but the connotation is.) The letter kind of reminded me of what Mindy said in her post about "teacher-speak". This is where they say, "your child isn't working up to his or her potential", which can translate into "lazy". That kind of thing.
But actually, now that he's been in the program, I'm liking the results. They get pulled out of class for 20 minutes a day in a small group; there are two other kids in Jakob's group. So, essentially, he's getting a lot more individual attention at school than he otherwise would.
Now, though, I know better what to do when my other kids go to school. Jakob kind of knew his letters, but not enough, apparently, because-silly me!-I thought that's what they'd be learning in Kindergarten, not having it be a prerequisite to entering. I think Jakob's being in Title One has made me a lot more aware of his education, and I've been trying to supplement at home in a few ways. And really, his learning curve has been exponential. I just hope his teacher thinks and says the same thing at Parent-Teacher Conference. If not, I hope she can give me some tips on how to help him, which will also help his brothers and sister out in the future.
7 comments:
Wow Nat, I think he is doing a great job! He can write "war machine" and "iron man". Those are big words! His drawings are awesome too. Sure they are about the same subject but so are Mrs. Naughty's. "I'm a princess in this one. And this is my pony. And in this one I'm a princess, and over here is my pony." Etc, etc, etc, etc.
Jakob is doing great Nat- and don't worry about not knowing about all the "pre-requisites" for kindy. I was clueless with Ethan too. I thought that preschool was for having fun, learning whatever, and acquiring some social skills- I guess I was wrong! But amazingly he can read, write, spell, do math, and he is socially adjusted. So I know Jakob will be just fine. Live and learn- and next time around you can be the seasoned veteran of a kindergarten mom.
I love your blog already! That is the best family picture ever and your kids are a hoot!
I love Jakob's pictures. And here is some teacher speak for you...the additions Jakob made to the simple dot to dot, using it as a basis to create and tell a narrative, shows higher order thinking skills indicative of an active and complex mind... which means your kid is freakin' awesome!
I was in Title One for a year during elementary school too, but for math, and I turned out ok. Of course, I kind of bombed the test on purpose becuase I heard that the chapter one kids got cookies when they left class...but that is another story for another time. :)
I think Title I is a good thing too, but I am with you on the "resource kid" thing. I hate for them to be labled. I know already my little guy is going to desperately need Title I.
Nat, Do tell anyone else, but i am actually a resource kid my self. I know hard to believe. I think is my lysdesxia or some thing like that. Jake just needs the help to get excited about learning.
So. I told my friends in my ward about that, and they couldn't believe it! They all said the same thing - "Um, I thought preschool was for teaching social skills!" Sadie's preschool is government-sponsored, and they don't learn letters very much! So I just think that's so weird. Dylan has been into asking me what rhymes and how to spell things, too! I make him sound the words out, and he thinks it's so fun. It's amazing to watch them learning so quickly. And I adore, adore, adore Jake's pictures. They are really detailed and good! And he's good at coloring in the lines.
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