Baby Writer on the Move

Damien's masterpiece is done and he is on the move again.


with How to Teach Your Baby to Write

Damien is 6 months, 2 weeks old

Walking through the Science Encyclopedias

Hunter really loves to draw.

And in the past few months, he has become quite keen on writing, too.

So we have decided to combine this along with his interest in science to create a sort of copy work / narrating activity that also involves illustration.

It started out as just reading together for leisure (from some science encyclopedias we got for $1 at a yard sale). But then I decided to go ahead and have him "narrate" what we just read (tell me what we just learned about, in his own words) and he started wanting to draw about it, too.

Which resulted in this...

The aardvark is an african mammal. It digs in dirt and scoops up ants and termit[es] with its tongue. Its scientific name is Orycteropus afer.

Yes, I realize that he misspelled termites and that, for some reason, he put "name is" after its name. But we'll work on that.

The "copy work" aspect is that I write down what he tells me, and then he in turn copies it in onto his story paper (which has unfortunately large lines, making for not too much space to write).

This has been great to work on his drawing (we have been having lessons on drawing what you see and really paying attention to the way the lines go), his comprehension and speaking skills (hence the narration part), and the copy work is to work on his spelling, punctuation, word spacing, and ideally handwriting (although he didn't exactly do his "best" handwriting here, but not too bad).

This is an activity that, if I would have assigned it to him a year and a half ago, he would have hated. But now he actually found it quite enjoyable, and is looking forward to illustrating (and narrating) the encyclopedia entries for abacus and abrasion and absolute zero (good luck on that one, right?).

"...Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua..." 

Exodus 17:14

Hunter is 5 years, 4 months old

Cursive Beginnings

 

Hunter has recently decided that he wants to learn how to write in cursive.

The above picture is of a free-hand lowercase alphabet he decided to make for me the other day.

I was printing out a cursive handwriting guide, something I was possibly considering teaching this fall and wanted to get him excited about it now, and he managed to smear water all over the first copy whilst helping me with the printing. Gotta love little kids help sometimes.

Feeling remorseful about destroying it, he decided that he would just "make me a new one" and proceeded to spend the next hour-ish meticulously copying the lowercase cursive alphabet onto a blank piece of paper. First in pencil, then in ink.

It was a sweet gesture, really.

Since then we have gone back to it a couple of times and he has learned to write his first name, and has been practicing (a little) the first few letters of the lowercase alphabet. No rush of course and, he thinks it's really cool. A "secret code", if you will.

Sounds good to me.

Cursive Handwriting Printable

"All this, said David, the LORD made me understand in writing by his hand upon me, even all the works of this pattern."

1 Chronicles 28:19

Hunter is 5 years, 3 months old

Random Acts of Sweetness

I walked in on Hunter today carefully writing out the following note, which he taped to the door and excitedly announced belonged to Brandon.

"I luv mi mom and Bradin"

I love his little random acts of sweetness.

"...A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother."

Proverbs 10:1

Hunter is 5 years, 0 months old

Teaching Time Management

"It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men."

Frederick Douglass

Something that we bought Hunter for the new year is his very own calendar. He has been working with a calendar for almost two years now, first with a simple days of the week calendar, then with a monthly calendar, and also in many activities in telling time. I would say that, at this point, he has a pretty good concept of time, and can (pretty consistently) name the days of the week, the months of the year, units of time (i.e. 60 seconds = minute, 52 weeks = year, etc.), hours of the day (bedtime is at 8:00, etc.), can tell time on a digital and (for the most part) standard clock, and understands concepts like "last night", "afternoon", and "two days from now", etc. with a fair degree of accuracy. This is not something that I shoved down his throat but he simply developed an understanding by doing calendar time (most) mornings and talking about things throughout the day.

But now I think that he's ready (and probably has been for a while) to learn about time management. The monthly calendar we have been using was great for teaching months of the year and days of the month, but was quite limited. He now has a famous landmarks calendar (courtesy of the dollar store) that will be his very own and he can learn to plan his days and see what's coming up next week or next summer.

At first he wasn't too enthused (as the first thing I had him do was write a bunch of stuff on it) but it has now become his very own little treasure and he seriously cherishes it.

It has worked wonders. For one, he wakes up and says, "Mom, today is a school day!" He also counts down the days to the weekend, or when the weekend is over. "Brandon goes to work on the 19th, mom." He has gotten a little messed up on the ordinal numbers sometimes and has told me, "The 21 is a school day you know." "21st, you mean?" I answer.

This has also resulted in him being a lot more aware of when plans don't quite go as expected. He was quite disappointed when his aunt's visit got rescheduled, and kept saying, "But mom, she was supposed to come on Monday!"

I have been having him cross off the day each night before he goes to bed, and even without me reminding him, he rarely forgets. My goal in this, and other things that I am implementing, is not just to teach about time but about how to manage time, because I would say that time management is arguably one of the most important skills one can have. The implications of this are enormous. I want him to master this as young as possible instead of waiting until bad habits are already developed to try and fix it.

Just some of the lessons learned in utilizing your own calendar are, beyond the obvious math and time skills: planning ahead, memory, and mostly, goal setting.

The calendar is just a small part of teaching this, and I have a lot more things that I am beginning to work with him on, including having his own alarm clock, morning and evening routines, unsupervised school work times, and doing his chores without being told.

But more on that later.

"And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail." 

Hebrew 1:12

Hunter is 4 years, 9 months old

Dear Santa

A few things about Hunter's Santa obsession:

1. This is the first year he has actually really paid much attention to the whole Santa figure.

2. He has seen Santa twice (once at a military event, once at the library). Both times he had the biggest smile on his face. It was priceless.

3. He's not really sure about it all and keeps asking questions. When he saw Santa at the library, he asked him, "So, where exactly did you park your reindeers?"

4. Keeps relating things he sees in Christmas movies and asking about them. He was wondering how Santa was going to get in our house without a chimney.

5. Was trying to convince me to let him make cookies for Santa on December 2nd.

6. When he finished his letter, he asked Santa if he was ok and warned him because "there are bad guys here." (I guess our stranger danger talk is kicking in)

7. Besides Away in a Manger, he has been walking around singing Santa songs (usually in English with the occasional Dutch)

8. Thinks the way other countries celebrate Santa is hilarious.

9. He can tell you all about Saint Nicholas.

10. He has been wearing a Santa hat from the dollar store since the end of November (in public and private).

11. He thought his stocking was another Santa hat.

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

Luke 2:14

Hunter is 4 years, 9 months old

Phonetic Spelling and Representational Drawing

"...how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings..." 

Matthew 23:37

Hunter is 4 years, 8 months old

It's a river

"That's a river." Hunter told me today while he was tracing in his new book that Brandon got him today at Borders.

"Oh really?" I said, amused by his imagination. It was a sort of "practice page" in this write-on/wipe-off tracing book with different patterns of lines to trace over. He has been playing with it all day and has been having a lot of fun with it.

There were more lines on the page, and I decided to ask him what he thought the other ones looked like.

"What is this one?"

"I think that's where the trains go." (Perhaps it resembles his train tracks? I really have no clue...)

"Oh yeah, and what is this one?"

"I think that is a road where cars drive."

"What about this one?"

"Um, that is an upside down river."

He thought about it for a minute, then said, "No wait, maybe that's where helicopters land."

"Oh yeah?" I laughed. Don't know where that one came from.

"Maybe. I said maybe." He replied.

Next we came to the above zig-zag pattern.

"Um, that's a kind of black thing I'm makin'." (?)

He thinks it over for a minute, then tells me, "No, never mind. That's V's. The V's are upside down."

"All this, said David, the LORD made me understand in writing by his hand upon me, even all the works of this pattern."  

1 Chronicles 28:19

Hunter is 4 years, 7 months old

Bahrain

Hunter's letter to Brandon:

Brandon, I colored this flag
of Bahrain for you. It looks like
the flag of Qatar. I colored a map
too. The sand is yellow. I am glad
you are home now. Love, Hunter

Bahrain is a little island of the coast of Saudi Arabia. While we were printing out geography coloring pages for the next two years (flags and maps) we printed out this of Bahrain, too, where Brandon was for about a year and a half. We have been learning about it and reading about it. He was very careful to color the map a brownish-yellow, because "there's sand there". When we were finding the flag of Bahrain on his geography wall, he was careful to point out that it looked a lot like the flag of Qatar.

He did really good at coloring, he was especially careful with the map, with all the little crevices around the islands. It's so fun now that he's old enough to write letters, is getting better at talking on the phone, etc. It'll really be an asset for staying in touch with friends and family, even from the other side of the country.

"For he looketh to the ends of the earth, and seeth under the whole heaven"

Job 28:24

Hunter is 4 years, 4 months old

Algebra

We have a magnetic whiteboard that has recently become my best friend.

We've had it for a long time and it has actually been stored next to Hunter's dresser for several months now, but we never used it. It was covered in magnetic alphabet letters (not the ones shown around the border, but the 3D kind) with the intention of using it for reading games, yet it never got taken out.

Recently, however, while I was doing a major room re-organization, I took all the alphabet letters and put them in a large, clear jar, and they now sit decoratively (and functionally) on a low shelf for us to pull out when needed. I did the same thing to a set of magnetic numerals that we have. Ever since I did that, we have been using the whiteboard every day and I have really begun to like it.

We've been mostly using it for math. We have been using it to demonstrate equal fractions, and other simple arithmetic equations. And every morning, I have been laying out a simple algebra equation for him to solve when he wakes up. He loves the algebra equations and thinks they are hilarious. We get excited about finding the "mystery" of the silly "y". I write out the equation and then, to the side, put three multiple choices for him to pick from. The multiple choice not only helps it be a problem-solving opportunity versus a test, but it also helps him have a visual for the numeral he wants to write, as he is still getting used to writing all of his numerals.

But, I really love this board recently, and we have also been using it for reading, drawing, and illustrating anything that may come up, whether it's a map of Abraham's journey or a picture from Hunter's imagination, it's easy to write it up and then wipe it off when you're done for unlimited use.

"...choose you this day whom ye will serve... but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."

Joshua 24:15

Hunter is 4 years, 3 months old

Fractions

The boys got to play with pie fractions for the first time today.

Hunter has done fractions before - during the "problem solving" stage of the GD math program, many of the equations we did involved fractions (one half of ten equals five, one fourth of one hundred equals twenty five, etc.) Just by hearing the equations spoken out, he figured out what "half", "third", "fifth", etc. meant, and could easily tell me what half of eighty-six was, even though I had never explicitly explained it before.

But today was his first time working with pie fractions, as well as comparing equal fractions.

I started out by laying out all the pieces of a Lauri fractions puzzle that I got from my mom. It came with a "whole" piece (one complete circle), halves, thirds, fourths, fifths, sixths, eighths, and tenths.

I showed them to Hunter and asked if he wanted to play with the pie game, which he was quite enthusiastic about. We took turns giving Hunter and Anthony the same amount of "pie", working with comparing things that equal one half today.

We only did about three equations today, because it's so important to always stop before your child wants to stop. At first we used magnetic numerals, then he practiced writing them. He's looking forward to doing more tomorrow.

"This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary..."

Exodus 30:13

Hunter is 4 years, 3 months old

Early Writing

This video was taken in March of 2007, right before Hunter turned 2. He wanted to spell the names of his aunt and uncle, Crystal and Levi. He loved that little pad that we got from the dollar store, and we always used to write names together and draw pictures on it. He loved pulling it apart and saying, "All gone!"

I love his itty bitty voice, he was so stinking cute!

"And the LORD said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven."

Exodus 17:14

Things I'm Thankful For

Hunter made this list today about things he's thankful for. When I first asked him, we were in the family room which had quite a few festive decorations and he started naming off all things Thanksgiving... "Turkeys... scarecrows... indians... leaves... pumkins... corn... pilgrims..." It was funny but I explained what "thankful" meant a little bit more and asked him to think of some other things, like his favorite things in his room or things that he's really glad that he has. This list was the result, and as you can see we did keep some of the Thanksgiving decorations because he was quite insistent that he was thankful for them. The "you" at the end of the list is for family members, because he was listing off everyone ("Noah... Anthony... Mommy...") but of course if we included everyone the list would be like fifty people long and there would be no room for anything else!

I made copies of the list and put them inside Thanksgiving cards we gave to his Grandmas. I actually wrote the words down lightly in pencil and had him trace them, because he tends to write BIG and all over the place so I knew it wouldn't fit in a small card if he wrote the list without the aid. He did pretty good, and was really proud of himself, it'll be a memorable keepsake for many years to come.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! May you remember all the good things the LORD had blessed you with!

"That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works."

Psalm 26:7

 Hunter is 3 years, 8 months old 

Writing Letters

Hunter did a great job making a birthday card for Grace today. I was pleasantly surprised when he tackled the "p's" and "b's" and such, he has been shying away from rounded letters because he thinks he can't do it (even though I keep encouraging him that he can).

But today he made a birthday card for Grace and did awesome with all of his letters! Okay, so it's not perfect or anything, but he tried! And as you can see, the "Happy" was his most careful word, then when he got to "Birthday" and signing his name he was getting a little bit tired of it. So, just seeing how well he did that first word, when he was the most interested and the most enthusiastic, was great motivation for me to keep playing the writing game (in little spurts, of course) so that he can become more confident in his own abilities, because he really CAN write when he wants to and is very good at it, too.

"Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks, unto thee do we give thanks: for that thy name is near thy wondrous works declare."

Psalm75:1

Hunter is 3 years, 6 months old

Motivation for Writing

Hunter wanted to do his "school book" today that he got for Christmas. It is a "reading and writing" workbook so we haven't used it yet since he's not developed very far in his writing skills. However, we got it out, at his request, yet at first he was hesitant - "I can't do it" he said, before he even started.

He was this way last time we tried writing, which is why I put it away for a while. He loves writing "H's", but last time I tried to teach him a new one - "A" - he became frustrated because they were turning out like H's. He would attempt an A and I would tell him what a good job he did and he would tell me, "No, that's an H" and become frustrated with himself.

But today I gently encouraged him to try it, and led his hand through the first "A", reciting "down the left side, down the right side, and across the middle" while pointing out how we need to do it very carefully and to stop at the blue line. It was all done in fun and games with a huge smile. Then I let him try it, on his own, telling him how great he did on the last one and to just be very careful with this one. And he did it! The line was more towards the bottom than the middle, and the ends of the A went past the bottom line quite a ways, and it was somewhat sideways, but I told him what an awesome job he did and threw a huge fuss about what a great writer he is and you know what? He wanted to do another one! If I would have focused on all the ways he didn't get it right, he would have shied away from writing even more and hated it. But instead, I focused on what he did get right - he just wrote his first letter A!

That's the Glenn Doman methodology, of how to motivate your baby. And it works. Most of us were raised in a system that ignores what we do right and bemoans what we get wrong. You don't get tested to find out what you can do well, you get tested to find out what you can't. "No, stupid, that's NOT how you spell Mediterranean!" Big, red marks highlighting each place where you failed. If you want to motivate your tiny child, you have to focus on what they succeed at and teach them what they do not, even if that means throwing a huge fuss when they attempt to write the letter "A" and it turns out sort of like a horizontal "H". We throw a huge fuss when they attempt their first step, and take one tiny step and then stumble to the ground! We could focus on how much they failed, how far they are from accomplishing perfect upright walking. But we focused on the tiny bit where they succeeded, and it made all the difference.

Hunter is now highly motivated to write. He wrote a few more (quite good) A's and then I put away the writing book (always stop before your child wants to stop). With a highly motivated mother and a highly motivated child, there's no limit to what you can accomplish.

"Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever:"

Isaiah 30:8

Hunter is 3 years, 4 months old

Beginning Writing

Hunter really loves "writing" his name in this re-writable tracing name plate I made him.

He loves to go over it again and again, carefully tracing each letter, holding it up in excitement when he's finished, then erasing it and doing it all over again.

He's not really into doing mazes or tracing right now, but he LOVES "writing" his own name.

He's pretty good at it and is very careful that he doesn't go out of the lines, and carefully erases any parts that do escape beyond the border.

Kids who have had the opportunity to brachiate from early on (do monkey bars) can write sentences and stories as early as 28 months. Unfortunately, Hunter didn't have the privilege of such so he's still a little shaky. But this is a great way to start the writing road as it gets him interested in writing and also helps to develop his coordination and dexterity.

"And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few, that a child may write them."

Isaiah 10:19

Hunter is 2 years, 10 months old