It feels like I have spent so much time with Reilly lately, which I love! She is such a sweet little girl! I just love being with her! There is so, so much I want to teach her in this lifetime!

One thing I look forward to every night is teaching her how to read. She was ready to learn how to read at age 4 after a year in a wonderful preschool program, but I waited until age 5 for a couple of reasons. One, I was still pregnant and sick all of the time while she was 4. My life/health was too unpredictable to commit to an everyday reading program. Also, I do not feel the need to rush my kids when it comes to reading.

Some parents are obsessed. I am all about education, but I also do not worry too much about what they are learning as far as a formal education goes until they are 4 years old.

After 13 years as an educator, and after observing what goes on in both good and not-so-good school systems, I totally believe that parenting is much more important than the school the child attends. The value parents place on education wins in the end. We definitely value education.

My kids will be successful. I know that. Dave and I believe in providing our children with a well rounded education. I have spent hours researching home schooling, reading, and supplementary materials. I am supplementing Reilly’s education. I know she is more than ready to read.

She is not learning how to read in kindergarten. In a public school system, there are so many kids who do not enter school with the necessary basic skills. Thus, it seems like too much time needs to be devoted to covering the basics. What about the students who are far above all of that?

I know Reilly has benefited greatly from kindergarten. She has a wonderful, caring, teacher whom she loves. Much of the material, though, is a review for her (reading and writing). I anticipated this happening after witnessing all she had learned in preschool the previous year. I knew I would need to supplement.

Reilly is a smart kid. She is self-motivated. She is creative. She is a thinker and a doer. She is an adventurous little girl who is willing to take a chance in life. I love that about her!

The main book we have used is called Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. We are almost 3/4 of the way through this book. It is so easy to use, and Reilly has been very successful learning how to read by completing the reading and writing lessons in this book. She is a great reader!

Tonight, she read the following story out loud: “Hunting for a Deer” (and she read it pretty quickly–no pauses!) – I will have to record her reading very soon!

An old man got his gun. He said, “I will go hunting for deer.”

The girl said, “You can not see. So you can not hunt for deer.”

He said, “I will hunt for deer.”

Then a deer came to the man and said, “Are you hunting for deer?”

The old man said, “Have you seen a deer?

The deer said, “I am a deer.”

The old man said, “I can not see you. So I will not take a shot at you. We will go for a walk.” So the old man and the deer went to the old man’s home.

The end.

We are also supplementing with the following book: What Your Kindergartner Needs to Know – We are still focusing on literacy…we are currently reading lots of nursery rhymes, fables, and stories. We will be starting on geography and social studies in February. Then we will move on to science, visual arts, and math as the year progresses. This has been a great resource book to add into the mix. I also ordered What Your First Grader Needs to Know–just to be prepared for next year! These books also provide lists of great supplementary materials, and we have been seeking these materials at our local library.

Today the most recent books I ordered for Reilly arrived: Playful Pals Level 1 Readers! Books Reilly can read all on her own! 10 to a pack! They are so little and cute! They also come with stickers, which kids love! Reilly read the first one tonight all by herself (out loud to me), and she earned her choice of one sticker! She was pretty excited! Reilly is a very motivated kid when it comes to learning!

We spend approximately 20 minutes every night on her reading. That’s all. We also read additional books for enjoyment. I am all about reading. I believe it is the basis for everything. As an educator and a parent, I realize how crucial it is for kids to be strong readers. We read every day in our lives.

Another fun activity Reilly and I have enjoyed together lately is playing ball! She is in Saturday morning basketball, and we have been playing ball non-stop at home! Reilly loves it! Below is a photo from this past Sunday of the big ball Reilly loves to play with every day!

I just felt like taking a silhouette, so I had Reilly stand/jump in the doorway of our front door. I hope this weekend to take many, many more photos of my little girls!

Life is so much fun these days!