A week's progress

     It's been a week since we've been consistent with our routine and I can say that there has already been an improvement with my daughter. It has been a week that we are constantly reading stories before going to bed and I can say that it is something she looks forward to every night. Before, it used to be a drag to ask her to turn off the TV and go to bed but now I just have to say "reading time", then she'll happily turn the TV off, get her book then sit beside mommy. I let her choose what story we'll read from the collections in our book. She likes it when she feels she has a say on something. Sometimes when she finds the story too short for her, she'll even ask for another one. After we read a story I ask her some questions like how she likes the story and the main character.   I don't make it sound like a quiz. My questions are not too long or too detailed. I just want to know if she had paid attention to what we've read.

     I love the fact that she's very enthusiastic about our reading time. You see, I didn't grow up with my mother reading to me so this experience is new to me as well. I find it fascinating when her eyes light up whenever there's something exciting happening in the story. I am very much delighted that a simple prompt of our reading time can call her attention away from the TV, which is a challenge to do before. When kids now are very much like zombies when in front of the TV, it's nice to know that there is something that she'd rather do with me than be in front of that box, and that's reading bedtime stories.

     I feel closer to her with every story we encounter… more connected. Every night when she discovers a new thing from a story, I, in the other hand, discover something new about her. I learn a new thing that makes her giggle, makes her laugh, or just makes her smile. Sometimes something makes her sad, makes her mad, makes her wonder, makes her wish and even makes her dream. I am happy… I am happy that she can experience all of these with me. No teacher can ever come as close to the deepness of learning and connection that we experience every night.