More Reading Stories

Categories: Léo’s Insights 2024-2025

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We had the privilege of working with a family composed of both natural and adopted children. It was a very interesting experience to see the unique family dynamics. While discussing the educational program of the older children, a tiny girl barely a half meter tall came carrying a Bible that could have outweighed her. Her parents informed me that she had learned to read. We naturally assumed this to be a joke, as the girl was only three and a half years old.  We were dumbfounded when the girl opened the Bible and articulately read passages from both the Old and New Testaments without tripping over complicated names. This episode of reading lives on as the youngest individual to be fully literate in our experience.

On the other end of this spectrum, we had a dyslexic girl who simply showed no interest in reading. No matter what mom attempted, there was no getting this young lady even to try. I must admit, we were getting a bit nervous regarding our understanding that everyone will eventually learn to read, as this girl was seventeen years old. Then a miracle happened. Her girlfriends were all excited about a teen book series and she wanted to be a part of the excitement. Mom helped her daughter establish basic reading skills within a few months and then she got out of the way. The truth is, when ready, children will learn; more importantly, there has to be a good reason for doing so. Sometimes the only thing separating success from failure is having purpose.

In another time and place, we were working with a boy who clearly was more of a hands-on learner; he had practical technical skills beyond his years. He had a younger brother who was an academic powerhouse. We made an error when we suggested that when the younger boy started learning to read, the older one would also want to, assuming competition to be a factor. Bad idea! While competition may be standard in school settings, it should not be present in a family. When the younger boy started reading, the older boy simply shrugged it off with a good-for-him attitude. The older boy did eventually learn to read, but only because it was necessary to consult his manuals. The moral of this story is not everyone will be super readers. Some read for pleasure and entertainment. Others read for information, when necessary. Both are literate.

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