aiden is reading!

Just found an old unpublished post. Appologies for this being out of sequence with the rest of the blog...

Aiden has been reading for a few months, but we haven't had a chance to shout about it because it's been so gradual.

It started around the time he was 2 and a half. He would spell his name, then his favourite animals (cat & dog), then logos (Sony & Yahoo, who are our clients). 

About 2 months ago, before Aiden's 3rd birthday (sorry - this was momentous at that point in time, but we never got down to blogging it), we pulled up into a gas station and as we stopped at a pump, Aiden said "Please...turn...engine...off...." and then, "Mummy, Mummy! We need to turn off the engine!" We were stunned - we looked at the pump and saw the sign, word for word, "Please turn engine off." For people who don't have kids - reading at 2-3yrs old, is uncommon, and for a 3-yr-old to read something out of context (i.e. not from a familiar story or nursery rhyme where there's a possibility that they're reciting, not reading) AND being able to understand what they've read, is pretty...cool.

He would read off signs in malls e.g. "Something new coming soon" and "More shops upstairs", and then last month, he read "Bears on Wheels" all on his own. I knew he was reading it himself and it wasn't from rote because it's not a book that we read often, plus he would pause a little between each word.

Then 2 weeks ago I excitedly told his class teacher and the principal that he was reading on his own and we were explaining to Aiden the silent "e" because he was trying to understand when we pronouce it and when we don't. But both were a little indifferent and blase - I found out later that the principal thought I was teaching Aiden phonic excercises and didn't hear/understand that he was really reading. (Sadly, I have no idea what a phonic exercise entails).

I think sometime teachers take the parent's boasting - yes, I was boasting - with a pinch of salt. (ok, hands up - those who think that parents can be delusional sometimes and see their kids' achievements through rose-tinted glasses). 

The teachers in school only truly understood Aiden's reading ability last week when he read a book on his own, and they were really excited. They did ask a few times if we had that book at home (and we didn't), I think to check if he was reciting or really reading. But this time, it was our turn to be a little blase since we'd known about his reading skills for a while!