A Reading Update!

Exciting news... no Baby has not yet come... that will be in about 27 days! But, this news is exciting too! I think we have had a reading break-through! Rebecca was bored the other day and went and got a Little House book. I thought she would look at pictures, but guess what?! She started reading it! All by herself! Without being prompted by a parent in any way! What's more, she understands what she is reading! She said to me, "Mommy, Laura lives in Wisconsin." And, later she said, with awe in her voice, "Mommy, Laura's family has to cross the Mississippi River!" I am so happy! My Big Girl is reading! Praise the Lord! She has had so many set backs... so many struggles. But, now she is reading by herself! It is like someone turned on a light bulb in this past month! I am starting to think that some people were right, when they said, "she is not delayed, she does not have a reading problem, she just is not ready." Maybe they were right. Maybe she was just not ready.

I have said before, on the old blog, that Paul had a "reading delay" as a child. He was held back in first grade. But, in the following year, he became such an advanced reader, that he had to be moved to the gifted class! (He was the same age as Becca, about 7-8, when he had his breakthrough). I thank God for giving us the courage to homeschool, even when people were openly hostile about Rebecca's reading delay. Some said, "This is one more reason that she should be in public school." (Implying, of course, that I am not an adequate teacher). Others would say, "This is exactly the reason that you need to homeschool!" (Implying that Becca needs more individual attention, and not a classroom full of kids who would likely laugh at her.) I cannot tell you how many times I have doubted and blamed myself in the past three years. I cannot tell you how many times I have wanted to give up, call it quits, and enroll them in a school. But, God carried us through those challenges. And, I am glad that we stuck with it. Still, I am not trying to take the credit for Rebecca's progress. If I am a good teacher at all, it is by the grace of God. Sometimes He gives me new ideas and approaches, new insights, that I know HE is the one at the helm! I praise God for setting Becca free from whatever it was that has held her back so long. It is so good to hear her read with growing confidence! She has a long way to go, of course, but I am encouraged by her progress.

To parents who do not homeschool because they say, "I cannot do it, I am not qualified." Friend, I feel the same way each and every day! Few homeschool moms feel that they are really qulaified for such a high calling! Yet, we rely on God to give us the strength to follow through on our convictions. If God is moving you towards a desire to homeschool, then be assured, He will enable you to do the job. There are new challenges to face every day... but He will go through them with you!

To the homeschool veterans that have encouraged me so much in the last year as I have cried over my daughter's "delay" and especially over the way kids teased her... thank you so much! I needed your kind words and I took them to heart! It is, in part, thanks to friends like you that I did not give up! I will try to follow your example and encourage others as I get further along in our homeschool journey.