Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Phonics Lessons

We "prolly" should "git" the smudge that's "oin" the "mirra".
It is a very interesting if not entertaining pursuit for a westerner to teach phonics to a southern child. (Forgive me all my southern friends.) I often cannot tell if Luke is reading a word wrong or just pronouncing it in a way that makes it difficult for me to understand. His short 'e' sounds all sound like short 'i". Most of his short 'i' sounds come out like a combination of short and long 'a'. What fun! I especially get a kick out of how he thinks saying 'on' as it sounds, without the short 'i' sound feels really odd in his mouth.
I am so blessed to tell you all (ya'll) however, that Luke is reading like a champ. Teaching him phonics was a huge obstacle for us to overcome in the beginning. I was going to give up for this year and pick it up again in the fall, until I got some good input from my friends at church. They told me that I was experiencing things that some of their children had done also. They call it 'laziness' and don't allow it. That changed everything for us. He is soaring through Hooked On Phonics. I have never enjoyed homeschooling so much. What a breeze when I don't have four very young children to teach at once, two of whom were previously in government schools.
I must get off now to fix dinner, but wanted to share the adventures of teaching Luke.