Learning

As parents, we have tried to facilitate a love of learning with Jack, instead of pushing memorization. So many kids can parrot back things, but it doesn't mean they understand it. I loved school as a kid, but Stuart did not, so we have really tried hard to get him excited about learning from the start. Now, Jack is a smart kid, but his interests are selective. He has always loved science, but has never been crazy about art. And writing? Forget it. He had no interest, despite my best efforts to encourage him. His grandma sent over countless preschool activities for me to do with him. His grammie and papa bought him a preschool kit for Christmas last year. But, trying to get him to work on writing was like pulling teeth. We tried alphabet flash cards, but he always lost interest after about 4 cards. I really gave up and thought maybe it will be better when he starts preschool. But Jack always knows more than he lets on. He might refuse to sing a song, telling you he doesn't know it, but if you stop in the middle, he will happily tell you the next line. And, while making his birthday banner last August, Jack identified each of the letters as I made them. We were shocked. Maybe there was hope for him.

Last week I noticed Jack was being too quiet. I was worried, of course, and went to look for him. I found him on the couch, drawing. I credit his preschool for this.

Friday we had our first parent/teacher conference. It was such an encouraging discussion. Jack is the loving, friendly boy in the class. He follows all the rules and participates really well. I was so relieved, I teared up in the meeting. He still struggles with staying focused. (That wasn't really surprising to us!) But, I love that the teacher said she anticipates that with 4 year olds, and always has an alternate activity they can choose if they want. She said they will gradually raise the expectation of following the structure through the year, to prepare him for kindergarten. I hugged her! We thanked her for all she did for our Jack.

I wish I could show you his class journal. It was so cute. He had a picture that he had titled "Our Pets." It was a picture of Jack, mom, and dad. It cracked me up! I did get a few of his pictures that I scanned.

I love that every child goes through the phase of drawing people that are just heads with long limbs. This is Sheila the Brave and her little sister.

Did I mention he has homework most nights? At first it was hard to get him to do it, but with lots of cheering him on, he is getting better.

We always cheer after he writes a letter. He expects it and will even ask us to do it louder as he grins. Yes, I am convinced that 99% of parenting is cheerleading.