I got the first love note from Ashwin's class teacher yesterday. Her name is Jothi, not "Faisala miss" as Ash made me believe in recent days.
"Dear madam, Please make him practise colouring at home. He does not do it in school. Also make him write the number 4 (standing line, sleeping line and cut)...."
That made me, upon reaching home in the night, sip tea and draw half a dozen shapes and pictures (octopus, dolphin and starfish from his new kiddie bedsheet). He however seemed lazy to do it on his own and insisted that I hold his right hand and guide him; my will prevails and he does it on his own reluctantly with a lot of white space in the circles and squares. Ditto about the number 4. He began crying and made me wonder if I have a child with dyslexia in hand (Taare Zamin Par has gone into my head).
I worry too much, says a friend. It could also be the fact that last year I had guided his hands through all his home work (a page each of numbers 1-20 and alphabets) while his eyes strayed to the television. It was a mistake sending him to Blooming Buds last year.
But is the present school also doing the right thing by making them write so early? Are four-year olds old enough to colour and write on their own, I googlesearch. Am I trying to make a dragonfly hold a stone, a pastime from my childhood days?
"Dear madam, Please make him practise colouring at home. He does not do it in school. Also make him write the number 4 (standing line, sleeping line and cut)...."
That made me, upon reaching home in the night, sip tea and draw half a dozen shapes and pictures (octopus, dolphin and starfish from his new kiddie bedsheet). He however seemed lazy to do it on his own and insisted that I hold his right hand and guide him; my will prevails and he does it on his own reluctantly with a lot of white space in the circles and squares. Ditto about the number 4. He began crying and made me wonder if I have a child with dyslexia in hand (Taare Zamin Par has gone into my head).
I worry too much, says a friend. It could also be the fact that last year I had guided his hands through all his home work (a page each of numbers 1-20 and alphabets) while his eyes strayed to the television. It was a mistake sending him to Blooming Buds last year.
But is the present school also doing the right thing by making them write so early? Are four-year olds old enough to colour and write on their own, I googlesearch. Am I trying to make a dragonfly hold a stone, a pastime from my childhood days?
6 comments:
at the age of 4 you are not expected to colour like picasso. let him do it in his own pace & way.tom too started writing at the age of 4. they started off with o,then c , then d(make a c,go up,up,down.q(make a c, go up ,come down,down ,kick out)they were asked to write on checked (maths) books. when i asked why they are not using 4 lined books
, the teacher told me,first they got to get the shape right and it really is difficult for them to get the size & shape right initially.
so don't worry, cheer up!
Does the teacher means tht he does not color inside the lines or doesnt do any coloring? If the first, I think it takes time for kids, if the later I would say just find him think that he might like to color - his favourite cartoons, his favourite animal ...
Dont knw abt writing on their own - can u check with his doc?
Hey Ladybird
Just stumbled on your blog from, well I have no idea! I love your first of school issues! My son has lost a pair of (named) trousers, never comes home with his own sweatshirt and has even on one occassion lost his shoes!
I don't think you should stress about his writing either. At four it's still supposed to be a fun thing and if he's forced into learning he may never enjoy it which would be really sad. You need to find a way to make it fun or make it a game and when you find the answer can you let me know!
K3: He doesnt color inside the lines. I think he is not keen on coloring when we ask him to. Otherwise Ihave always seen him doing his own coloring. And he was writing fine at his granma's. It is probably something to do with us parents being near and he expects us to help out.
Tara: Thank you all for the concern. ANd I am dreading him losing more imp. stuff at school.
Here, my kids used to draw zig zag lines for ages before moving on to,C, semicircles,O,8,S,1,T etc.Ash needs to play with different textured materials like sand, play dough, buttons, lego etc to develop fine motor skills. he may find joy in scribbling, that also helps..please don't worry too much, he'll write when he's ready...best wishes
thara
Thanks, Thara. He can write A and 1. Here in India, kids are made to write earlier than in the West.
He likes to makes shapes with the chapati dough. I have given up on play dough now. And he likes stringing beads and building blocks. But I am tired of buying them again and again as they dont store them away safely after playing and most play material are on the missing list. Thanks.
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