The coolest thing that's happened this school year is that Gus is learning to read and write. I catch him sounding out words all the time. When he figures out what he's looking at, he usually comes running to me to announce what he just read, a little breathlessly.
He's smart, this one. On the way to Nanny's house over winter break, Gus asked from the back seat, "Mom? What does D-I-N-O-S-A-U-R spell?"
"That spells dinosaur," I replied.
"Oh! So, this says 'Jurassic dinosaur.' T-Rex was a Jurassic dinosaur."
"Did you just read the word 'Jurassic?'"
It turns out he did. I'm not an expert, but I think that's a pretty big word for a wee five-year-old boy.
Gus has little notebooks scattered all over the house, filled with phonetically spelled words and arcane illustrations. The kid has lots of ideas, and it brings me no end of happiness that he is starting to express them on paper. The writer in me gets a little teary-eyed over it, actually.
Last week, Gus came home from school all excited about the field journal he's making in class. Gus is my little scientist, and so he was thrilled to think that he would get to keep a real scientist's notebook. "I'm writing about dinosaurs in mine, Mom!" he explained, with lots of sweeping hand gestures and excitement. He was actually a little disappointed that the class didn't spend the entire day working on their field journals, and that he had to leave it at school (it's an ongoing project).
Gus wanted so badly to write in a field journal. So, we decided to make our own. I recycled an old cardboard box and a composition book, then covered the whole thing in Egyptian-themed wrapping paper.
Gus started writing in it right away. It's a book about nature. This is the title page, which says "What is Nature." "Nature is something that helps us to breathe." My favorite part is the person at the bottom of the page, breathing. I watched Gus write this page. We were sitting out in the driveway with the baby. Gus carefully placed each letter, stopping to make sure there was a finger space between each word. As I watched, I had one of those moments where I saw him so clearly: five years old, freckled, serious, hard at work. God, I love this kid.
The second page is kind of a warning. "Fire is something that is bad for you."
There's one last page, which he must have added on his own over the last few days. "Nature also helps animals breathe."
I will have this field journal long after Gus has forgotten about, I assure you. And lest you think I have forgotten the other children, here are some more pictures.
The baby is 10 1/2 months old. More on how this is impossible later.
The reading bug has bitten Will, too. He "reads" things all the time. This is his name on the fridge--he spelled it himself. "It's really long, Mom, and it has an 'F' in it." It looks perfect to me.
Yikes! What a touching post! You feel old...check me out...I am the GRANDMA of an almost 6 year old! My kids were gathered round me just a few short years ago. I'm glad you are "savoring" these special times. Love ya,Mom
Posted by: Nana | January 14, 2009 at 08:21 PM
You are one of the best mom's I know...no wonder Ise wants to be part of your crew, well, even if its only for the day time!
Posted by: Jac | January 19, 2009 at 07:56 PM