It was maybe 4 months ago, that I first brought out the Peter and Jane Ladybird series, for him to read. Thank you very much YL for giving the entire set to my son!
Back then, he didn’t recognise the word “here” which is repeated very often in Book 1a. Back then, I had to coax him to read each page. Back then, he didn’t want to read beyond the first few pages.
He has gone from cover to cover of Book 1a, two or three times. Two or three times are just a few times over a period of 4 months.
It took a long time for him to finish the book initially cos he’d only read a few pages at each sitting. At each of the initial sittings, I didn’t want to force him to continue when he showed signs of losing his interest. So for him to finish reading the entire book the first time, it took him a period of maybe a month.
It was then about 2 months ago that I brought out the book for him again. He was able to read it from cover to cover in one sitting. To me, that’s an improvement. He did hesitate with several words. I did have to help him with some words. I did have to point to each word for him to read it aloud.
He has also now read Book 1b, from cover to cover. I’m happy with his progress.
Last night, I brought out Book 1a again, after a couple of months of not reading it. This time, he showed further improvements.
- He initially pointed to the words as he read it aloud. Then as he went on, he didn’t have to point, which means he could visually track the words.
- He also read it quite fast without much hesitation. It was choppy but I think that’s because of his dysarthria.
- He either worked out or remembered some of the high frequency words like “here” and “likes” without my help!
As he read more pages, his voice grew softer, down to a whisper. But I noticed that he was getting into a very slouched position where his chin was almost touching his chest. I remembered something his CST therapist said. So I tested it out. As I raised the book (in order to raise his head up), his voice grew louder. So for him, getting his body into the right position makes a big difference in his abilities.
Papa joined in the session shortly after he started and was most impressed by his abilities! Papa asked if he had memorised the book. I think he hasn’t read it often enough to be able to memorise the entire book by heart. I do think he has memorised some key words in there like “Peter”, “Jane”.
Maybe from now on, Papa will read a book a night with him before bedtime! : )
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