Big and small triumphs
Today, I taught a kid to read. LL is an immigrant and has not yet learned English well. He can communicate speaking, but his English is bad, and he can’t read or write. It makes me so sad that he can’t read or write yet and is in 3rd grade. Pandemic cheated him out of a lot of instruction during 1st and 2nd grades. I wonder if he participated at all when school was remote. Another factor is that he is hyperactive, and the teacher doesn’t have time to reign him in and additionally tutor him. Well, I took him, and I also brought along two girls of the same age, FT and MQ. FT is one of the two most brilliant kids in her class, and MQ is an enthusiastic kid who loves to read with me. We went to a quiet room and read Hop on Pop (by Dr Seuss) together. The kids and I took turns reading, and I made LL read what we had just read. He figured out some words. At the end, I smiled big and said, “You’re reading English!” He put on a discouraged face and said he’s not doing so well. I said, “You wil...