steelson
For some reason I can't comment on Steel's journal so my response goes here. Story and drawings are cute - definitely out of the head of a 6 year old. However, as the caretaker of a 7 year old, I am a bit surprised at how bad the spelling is. My little dude has few if any spelling errors in the similar stories he writes. If he does make an error, it's usually along the lines of one letter switched or missing in an entire sentence. For the most part, spelling mistakes are nil. Errors are more often gramatical in nature, ie. "Look how much points I got."
You might want to get him some help with a tutor or perhaps his teacher can devote some one-on-one time with him or provide some special work to help him along.
Written from my G1 phone which started the night off by being dropped in the toilet (same death my last phone had). An hour under the lizard's heat lamp and it works great except that some areas got kinda melty and the phone looks funky. Amazed it still functions though, with no apparent negatives!




Nov05 '09
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Totally... He didn't really have a desire to learn much, a problem he is somewhat overcoming. I am encouraging him to read more and I will generally pick a few words to correct... mainly because I don't want to tell him how many things he did wrong, when he is trying his hand at creativity...
Example... after reading Sonecs Blud Mesdre, I explained how to spell Blood, and let him know the OOOOO sounding rule like in Pool and Tool, doesn't always apply.
In his next story I was happy to see he spelled it correctly...
Honestly I care less about proper spelling, which I think will come in time and more about the fact that with no intervention he has decided to create something...
Perhaps this is a common childhood phase... But it's a new one for me and it puffs up my chest with pride a little :)
I post for the internets so that I can be deflated...haha
Nov05 '09
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you try hooked on phonics? meep worked for me. thanks, trebek.
Nov05 '09
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"Perhaps this is a common childhood phase... But it's a new one for me and it puffs up my chest with pride a little :)"
Yeah it is. They all seem to go through this for a short time, in my experience. It's a fleeting moment though, and that's why it's very cool that you're recording it. He'll be printing perfect letters on that recycled brownish three-lined newsprint paper before you know it and this little phase of innocent creativity will be a memory that's pretty easy for parents to forget as they watch their children grow into young adults.
Nov05 '09
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The kid is six years old. He's in kindergarten.; When I was six years old I couldn't tie my meeping shoes. I don't think I could spell my own name. At that age a kid should be developing his creativity and free association skills and not worried so much about the technical details of spelling and punctuation. There is plenty of time for that when recess doesn't involve a sandbox. It's been almost 25 years since my kids started school, but from what I remember of their annotated pictures stuck to the refrigerator, you've got a best-selling writer on your hands. Would you rather have a proofreader? Maybe I'm just not up with the times. They build kids a lot different these days, but I know quite a few people who are voracious readers (3 or 4 novels a week) and who absolutely can't spell worth a meep. Granted, none of them are six years old.
Nov05 '09
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Sounds like you've definitely got your priorities straight. I wasn't trying to be a meep in any way, which only Steel seems to have picked up on... great way of using his story to teach him the spelling. I sometimes get similar backlash when trying to teach mine proper table manners... "but he's only 7 leave him alone" ... just doing my part to prepare him for the world... a small lesson or two at age 6 or 7 can leave a long lasting impact. And definitely take advantage of any school resources you can.. they'll do a surprising lot for the sueaky wheel.
Nov05 '09
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Hey Chex, ya I didn't think you were being a meep at all and I think/hope when godevillivedog says "Would you rather have a proofreader" he means the Global "You"...
I'm sure wotak is right about the phase, but of course hope the general desire to be creative sticks...
... Sometimes you get a reminder that its fun being a parent :)
Nov05 '09
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I'm sure wotak is right about the phase, but of course hope the general desire to be creative sticks...
It probably will if it's nurtured. I think you have that covered.
From the look of his stuff, he's a left-brainer like most artists are so his imagination and creativity are already an integral part of how he see's the world around him and how he interacts with it.
...but the phase I'm talking about is the phase in a childs life when their imaginations start to trickle out of their heads and onto paper but their little hands aren't yet quite skilled enough to create exactly what their minds want them to. It's one of the most fun to watch phases in their childhood.
Nov06 '09
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As opposed to the sniveling "daddy, why can't you have a regular job like a real daddy" or the (hated) "our meeping father raised us on meeping chicken surrounded by by the acrid stench of chickenmeep day in, day out, and I for one am glad he is dead -- GLAD" phases, which are much less fun.
Nov07 '09
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That's what I meant, that you didn't think I was being a meep.