Shipwrecked On Dingo Island

Marisa loves science and all strange things that are real.  The 'Guinness World Records' book was written for her. She knows that a man in the UK clipped 160 clothespins to his face (no I didn't let her try it) and that there is a lady in New Zealand who holds the record for the fastest 100 meter hurdles while wearing swim fins. If it can be seen under a microscope or grow in the back of our refrigerator on some long forgotten leftover, she's in her glory. 

My daughter struggles to read on grade level, but eats that kind of stuff up.  She'll work hard for the words because she enjoys it.  If however, you ask her to read a fictional story or write anything longer than a sentence long on any topic, she will look through you and begin to speak in tongues.  Go figure.

Well, check this out.  In the reading textbook we are using, we came upon an exercise to write a fictional story about a wild animal using some of the vocabulary words that had been introduced in the lesson.  She tried to barter her way out of the assignment (look mom, I'll clean the bathroom's if you just look the other way and forget that little blurb at the bottom of the page ever existed ok?)  There was frustration and she was almost in tears.  We talked about it.  Turns out she was so afraid of doing it "wrong" that she didn't even want to try.  I then reminded her that it was just the two of us.  She could make mistakes, take her time, that the story was hers to create.  She then proceeded to  (slowly- it took a while), write 181 words.

Okay, so it's not exactly 'War and Peace', but for Marisa, this is huge.

While she was writing it, she commented that it was "the best thing she'd ever written" and "Look, I've covered almost a full page!  Mom, isn't this the best?  Do you want me to read it to you?" It's titled 'Shipwrecked on Dingo Island'

Then she said, "I think this homeschooling thing is really working mom.  I could never have done this in school."

It's a baby step because she still has so very far to go, but it is an important and  incredible step because she knows now she can do it. She was happy and confident, a condition that unfortunately has been far too rare for her when it comes to learning.

So, I'll ask myself again if I think I can do this.

Yeah.  If she can...I can.

I think I can, I think I can. Like the litle red train...choo choo.....