I am so overjoyed, and sad. How wonderfully complex our YHVH made us! Our 5 children are all so fearfully and wonderfully made - and YHVH made them all so different. I have made some discoveries lately about my children's academic abilities and struggles. It was a boon for me, as I realized I am not failing them in education - but it also tore at my heart to realize that I do have a child who struggles immensely despite all the different things I have tried with him.
It is no secret that our oldest has autism. She is now what you could call "high functioning". She is in regular ed. classes in 10th grade at age 17 (she just had her birthday last week), with the exception of math. She goes to public school - and always has. It started when she was 3, and she got on that short yellow "special" bus to special education preschool and has just continued. She was always in self contained programs. She was protected in a little nest, so to speak. Until high school. She has bloomed in many ways. I look at her and marvel at how far she has come, but it is sobering also that she is nearly an adult and won't be doing normal adult things (that is another post for another time).
Our 2nd child, Esther is my right hand gal. She is 11 going on 25. Taught herself to read at age 3. Flourishes where ever she is. She went to private kindergarten at our church school in San Diego, and then I have homeschooled her from 1st grade on. Schooling is easy for her - and she zips through her work most day is 90 minutes or so. Devours books like there is no tomorrow.
Child number 3 is Jack. He is my struggling learner, in regards to reading. Math- he is a wiz. Jack is exceptionally bright, and loves to learn. He has so much to say, about anything and everything. You can watch the gears in his mind spin. He thinks about everything! However, he struggles with reading. And by struggle - I mean outright fights for every little baby step he makes in progress. It exhausts him, and rather depresses him. At 9 (almost 10), I feel I have tried everything. It is just a very very slow go. Most days it takes him 4+ hours to get through his individual school work. And it breaks my heart. I know he feels stupid.
4th in line is Pippa. Miss Penelope Pit Stop. Princess Pea. She is 5, and about 6 month ago started reading. At. Break. Neck. Speed. She is now a fluent reading with feeling. Probably reading mid-2nd grade level. (Probably better than Jack. And as I type that I cry.) Math stumps her sometimes...I used to chuckle about how well she reads, and yet 1+1=11 to her. But she is making progress there and "gets" basic addition and subtraction now. I school her sporadically, as time allows. Which really isn't more than once or twice a week for 30 minutes. Age wise, I should be starting kindergarten curriculum with her in the fall, but will start first grade instead. Why hold her back because of her age?
Israel (aka Izzy) is thus far, last in line...our caboose. He knows his letters, numbers, and shocked me this morning by pointing to a word and reading it. Izzy is 4, a sweet heart, cute as a bug's ear, and just a ball of joy. I haven't really spent any time schooling him formally. I am hoping that next fall, when Pippa settles into formal sit down instruction, I'll have some time to spend with him 1:1.
I used to think I wasn't a good teacher. That I just got lucky with Esther. Jack struggled so much with reading. I knew it was me. Then Pippa came along and picked up reading. I started to wonder if maybe Jack just had some special problems...maybe it wasn't ALL me. Now that Izzy is starting to read - and showing none of the issues Jack has, I am fairly convinced it is not me. My heart breaks that at nearly 10, the 5 year old reads better than he does. I hate to see how hard Jack has to work to learn a skill - only to realize the next day, that he did not retain it. That we are back to square one. I remember being in a grocery store when I was 20. A man approached me with some cans of cat food. He asked me to read the label and tell me what flavor they were. He could not read. I realize that my son is not much better off, and secretly fear that he will be that man someday. Jack thinks he is stupid - and I tell him he is not, and remind him of all of his wonderful talents. But when you struggle with basic reading, and your sibling that is 5 years younger can out read you - it doesn't seem to matter. I am in the process of getting Jack an appointment to see a neuro-psychologist for educational assessment. I hope that can shed some light, and maybe point us down some unknown road we haven't yet tried.
