A is the first vowel we will say...

Today was Mary's first reading lesson. She's been asking me to teach her to read for a couple of weeks. I knew she was ready. She knows all her letters and their sounds and is eager for alphabet activities. She asks me to write words and sentences for her to trace and she can write her own name. I'm excited for her, but also in awe of her growing up. I'd purchased a book a while back called "The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading." and it is a lovely little organized program.

I set William in the living room with a movie, because I wanted to see what Mary could do without distraction (and William is definitely a distraction) and she did great!

Today's lesson was on the short A vowel sound. We'll begin with the 5 vowels and their short sounds, move to the consonants and then begin reading short vowel words. In 26 lessons, she'll be reading beginner books.

Today, Mary learned about vowels and that our tongue and lips do not block the sounds of the vowels. She felt the letters in 3D form using letter magnets. She pointed to the 3 ways to write the letter A in real literature (one of my favorite ways to teach...in real books). Made the /ă/ sound while looking at the letter A. And learned the first verse of a new poem called, "The Five Vowels."

A is the first vowel we will say,
/ă/ is the short vowel sound of A.

William joined us while we recited the poem and asked if he could have a reading lesson. So, I sat down with him and did the same lesson Mary had. He too, pointed out the letters in the book, made the /ă/ sound and learned the poem, but he was more distracted and interested in the magnetic letters. I know he'll be ready soon and I'll continue to give him lessons when he asks for them, but for now I think I'll stick with Mary alone.

I had a wonderful time teaching again. I think I'm going to like this homeschooling.