"A Fund of Knowledge", "A Scientist"

We had our first parent teacher conference yesterday. The good news with my little Devin is that there are "No Red Flags." I've worried a little about his social skills, that maybe he has ADHD, and that he's too attached to Trevor. Apparently, he's less attached to Trevor than he was, and there are no Red Flags. It was a good report.

Trevor's report was also good.

I'm going to tell you all about Trevor's report, but please don't think I'm not just as happy about Devin's report. Trevor is just older and in a more exciting developmental phase.

The teacher listed a couple of things they are working on. She thought he was a little timid about his writing because he's not very good at it, yet. He holds his pencil lightly and doesn't press too hard, and they are currently working on his letters and on how to hold a pencil. He doesn't like to color, but the teacher doesn't care about that at all. Coloring doesn't mean much as far as she's concerned. It's just not for everyone.

Beyond that, we found out that he had read a book. He actually got a note the day he read the book, but the Computer Guy and I decided that he'd heard the book, had memorized it, and recited it back. Not true, the teacher said. It was the first time he had seen it, and she could tell he was "decoding" it. Actually, braced with this knowledge, I asked him to spell cat later. He couldn't get the C because it's tricky, but he got the A-T. In fact, so excited to get to the T he was that he yelled out T! at the top of his lungs. It's very exciting.

It's a magical time, right now, as Trevor learns to read. I can't describe how I feel about it. It's just like a mystery being revealed, and I'm so pleased for Trevor.

The teacher agreed that he has a fantastic memory. He pulls from his fund of knowledge to answer questions, even on topics they aren't currently covering. It's true. Ask him a dinosaur question, and he may know the answer any day of the week. He also asks deeper questions, pushing the teachers to teach him just a little bit more. It was here that she called him a Scientist.

He's a little older, of course, and now he's able to use his words with his friends when things aren't going his way. This used to be an area we needed to work on, and now, it's an area with no red flags. It's a good development.

Things are continuing to go well overall with the new school. I had been worried that I wouldn't be able to send Devin to this school without Trevor next year and was considering having him to go Kindergarten at the Montessori school because of Devin. We may still send him there for Kindergarten, but if we do, it will be because of Trevor and not because of Devin.

So, that's the update.