Just a Few Pages But It’s A Start
July 9, 2008 by Kristina Chew, PhD
Filed under Health
Charlie can read some words and he’s not one for books. He’s been through a number of special-ed reading programs and has tried several software programs, with the former being a bit more successful for Charlie. He does not sit long when I open a book to read to him.
Tuesday after a very good swim (a couple of laps, at my encouraging) and an early dinner, I took out The Giant Ball of String, which my friend had given to Charlie. He sat for a page and was off—-I waited a while, got up, sat back down beside him on his bed where he was smooshing his face into some fleece blankets, and opened the book up again. “One spring night, a heavy thunderstorm flooded the creek,” I read (it’s bad news for the ball of string, as you can imagine) and Charlie repeated the whole sentence. He hung around for a page and a half more, than made me laugh by falling off the bed and telling me (suppressing giggles) “I need help!”
It was just a a few pages read out loud from a picture book—-but still, there’s power in books.
That’s wonderful! I remember the first time my child sat still and listened to me read a certain kind of book. I could barely believe it was happening and was walking on air for days afterward. These small moments can bring such joy.
Well done! I have got one of each; a book sharer and a book miser who likes to look at the privately and stim on a particular page.
The miser can read though. She can google and find websites for her favourite characters and today we solved a problem with poor verbal articulation by offering her an open word document and getting her to type the word she was trying to say. Her PECS vocabulary had let her down and we had spent 2 frustrating days trying to translate; but when those letters appeared on the screen; All was well.
Keep trying. I reccommend “The New Puppy” for the next book; so fun to recite together.
xx
Sometimes there are some problems with reading (as when Buddy Boy picks up certain inappropriate phrases that he insists on repeating over and over again), but overall reading has been a great thing for him.
He loves many different characters, and at times has even turned down time playing on his Nintendo DS in order to finish a story! I can’t wait until I can get him hooked on some great adventure stories, like The Hardy Boys.
Joe
Hey, that’s better than no pages at all right, and then a little comedy to boot!
I know we are having issues with Casey as well as far as getting him to read. Once in a great while he will say instead of a shower he wants a bath and read books (me reading books to him). Otherwise, he connects them with school which is in someway evil in his mind!
Congratulations to Charlie! I have to say, thank goodness for age appropriate graphic novels…without them, we’d still be struggling with my son’s reading (enthusiasm, attention span, etc).
A few pages is a great start! Keep trying. I feel a entire book in the near future.
2 more pages and one “bye mom” tonight.
What a lovely treat for you both–truly a heartwarming moment! Tom’s always liked books.
Here he is now to help me:
i like books .
Hope. You and Charlie give me hope that our small steps will come in time, too.
Matty brought a book to me to read the other day and my heart totally melted. I’ve been waiting 12 years for that moment.
I believe this is the first time you have told us about Charlie repeating such a long string of words, verbatim. I think that’s quite an accomplishment. I am hoping he either mimicked your intonation, or came up with his own dramatic stress for the sentence? (About 4th grade my monotone delivery was addressed.)
And of course I am giggling inside myself about the I need help act.
You’re very right!
Still grinning here—-