Writing for a New Reader

Lucy now knows 60 sight words, almost all of the preschool words and some of the kindergarten words. She knows all of the letters and their sounds and is beginning to sound out words. She doesn't like sounding out words, but she likes playing reading apps on her tablet. I have bought some little beginning readers for her, but I've been disappointed in them so far. I know I can't expect a lot of plot when she knows so few words, but the books we've found have so many unfamiliar words that she gets bogged down and wants to give up. Of course, one solution is to put the books away until she's ready for them, which is what I'm doing. But I know that she loves reading the sentences I write her using the words she knows. So I thought I'd pass along that list in case anyone wanted to write something for her as a Christmas gift or stocking stuffer.

Here are the sight words she knows:

No, Not, Yes

Articles: a, an, the

Nouns: can, cat, one, three, two

Pronouns: all, he, I, it, me, my, one, she, we, who, you

Verbs: am, are, be, can, did, do, eat, find, get, go, help, is, jump, like, look, make, ride, run, see, will

Adverbs: away, down, here, so, too, up

Adjectives: big, black, blue, funny, good, little, new, one, pretty, red, three, two, white, yellow

Prepositions: for, in, into, like, on, out, to, up

Conjunctions: and, so


Sticking to those words as much as possible is good. Having her sound out a word or two is fine as long as the words are three letters long and have short vowel sounds (tub, fox, dog, etc.). And using multiple words from a word family (ball, call, mall, wall, etc.) is a great idea.

I've sketched out a little cartoon with two characters describing trees. (Tree would be the new word.) One says his tree is tall; the other says his tree is big. It turns out their just standing on different sides of the same tree. (The characters are stick figures named Curly and Spike due to their hair-dos.) I'll also try writing a few stories that she can illustrate.

Most of what Lucy knows, she has learned from playing games on a tablet. I'm not trying to push her, but I want her to have opportunities to expand the skills she already has and learn to love reading rather than find it frustrating.

Christmas Gifts 2017

It's been a long time since I've blogged. I've missed recording so much because I've been so busy working and raising two very sweet, very smart, very active little girls.

To save myself some time communicating, I've added things to the girls' Amazon wish lists and will give some suggestions below about Christmas gifts.

I need to go through their clothes to see if they need anything. They really don't need many toys, but I've tried to highlight a few things they don't have that they'd really like.


Maggie
Maggie LOVES books. We have many books, but if you want to see a happy Maggie, give her a book. ("Book" was her first word after mama and dada.) She likes dolls and stuffed animals, but we have plenty of both. She could probably use some new baby bottles for her dolls, but we have all the other doll accessories. She also likes blocks of all kinds, puzzles, music, our vintage Fisher Price Little People, hats, things to open and shut, and farm animals.

Lego House - This includes a Lego toilet and other home furnishings. Maggie LOVES Lego blocks. At the library, she heads to the Lego table first.

More puzzles - Maggie is pretty good at putting together the chunky puzzles that have you put a cow figure into a cow-shaped space. She's not quite ready for something harder, but she may be in a few months. Melissa and Doug make some puzzles that are like 4-piece puzzles. Some are chunky, and some are peg puzzles.

Pete the Cat - Two of Maggie's favorite books are Pete the Cat books. She would like anything Pete the Cat: more books, clothes, or a plush Pete.

Farm Beads to string - She's actually pretty good at stringing big beads, and she likes to do it. It's a good quiet activity during church.








Lucy
Lucy loves to make things. She likes craft projects, cooking, and play dough (has plenty). She likes to play dress up and board games and play outside. She is interested in science, especially animals and space. She is usually less likely to play with toys than Maggie is. She is also the one who chooses what they watch on TV most of the time. Last year, she received passes to Bounce, a local inflatable playground, and that was great. Experience/event gifts work well for her. If I come up with any experience/event ideas, I'll pass them on.

"Mermaid" Sequin pillow - Lucy REALLY wants a pillow with sequins that turn when they are brushed, revealing another color. She likes this color combination. The item on her list is just the slip cover and would require a pillow to go inside.

Dr. KittyCat books - We read Lucy some chapter books, and she likes these books. We own the second one in the series (Clover the Bunny).

PJ Masks DVDs - Lucy likes the Disney show PJ Masks, about kid  superheroes who fight super-villains in their pajamas.

Toy food to cut with toy knife - She has a real children's knife for cutting real food, but this toy looks like fun for her.

Melissa & Doug Ice Cream Counter - Lucy played with this at the library and LOVED it. It is pretty cool.

Costumes/Dress-up Clothes - Astronaut costume, Chef Costume. Keep an eye on post-Halloween clearance. She probably has enough princess dresses for her current size.

BB-8 Bike Helmet - She has a tricycle and likes that this helmet will make her look like BB-8.

Monster Feet Stilts - She tried a toy like this last summer and did a good job walking on them. The monster feet are a bonus.

Water Wow! Connect the Dots and Mazes - These Water Wow! books have been fantastic for potty training and travel entertainment. The ones she owns are just coloring books. These would require her to think and mark carefully.


Matt and I have wish lists and appreciate money.