The biggest thing in Nathan's life right now is reading and writing. He is reading so well. I am continuously amazed. He can read "normal" kids books. He doesn't read ones with multiple paragraphs on each page, but he is definitely beyond simple board books. He even reads with intonation and is comprehending everything he reads. It's just crazy!
He talks continuously. If you have been keeping up with him, you know that he didn't really talk at all until he was 2.5. Then, he talked in full sentences but not real often. Now, though, we can hardly get a word in. He is always telling us about the things around him or asking questions. He wants to know the details about everything. And we try to give him lots of information. At times, though, we just have to tell him not to talk for a little while. He's ok with that. We usually give him a time, though, and as soon as that time hits he's back at full speed!
One of his interests at the moment is anatomy. He's always interested in how things in the body work. So, the last time we were at the library I picked up a kids level book that explains the major systems. He enjoys learning about each thing...especially the digestive system. When we were looking at the picture of the heart, I explained to him how the blood went through each section. After talking about how the blood goes to the lungs and then comes back with oxygen, he began taking intentionally deep breaths and let me know that he was putting oxygen in his blood. So funny!
He is still drawing like crazy. Trains are always a part of his collection, but he has added all kinds of things. He often copies things that he has seen including games - like mazes and board games. I plan to go through his pictures today to figure out what to keep from the month of June. I'll try to scan a few to share.
For anyone who has wondered, Nathan still has a special spot in his heart for William (who is often accompanied by two blankets). That poor doggy has been well loved!
Personality-wise, Nathan is still a bit shy around people he doesn't know. Nobody who sees him often would know that, though. He is very well mannered and helpful. His latest "problem" has been with whining. I finally got tired of it and made a list of consequences. With each whining episode, we applied a consequence - no extra chances. While he wasn't too upset by the first couple, he REALLY REALLY didn't want to get to number 10. That was enough motivation to quickly limit the whining. I was thankful because we didn't have the continuous back-and-forth of trying to get him to act right. Since being back from the beach, I think he's only gotten to number one once. We might even be able to set aside the list soon!
Well, that's all I can think of at the moment. If I think of something else, I'll come back and add it later.
3 comments:
what a neat idea about the consequences list. I take it they increased in severity or something? Thanks for the update on Nathan. I didn't really know that he didn't talk that much until he was 2.5 yrs old. Did it worry you at all then? His obvious leaps & bounds reminds me of what a friend of mine said at church. (She is a speech pathologist) Just because a kid may be really ahead verbally at a young age, doesn't mean that they will necessarily be smarter than their peers in 10 years, it just means what it means -- they are verbally advanced now. Obviously, in Nathan's case, it was the other way around. Just because he started a bit slow, it hasn't reflected at all on his intelligence or verbal skills even 1.5 yrs later (is that right????) Thanks for the update. Would love to see drawings, of course! Or some video of Nathan reading a regular kids book. :-)
Yes, his consequence list did increase in severity. Sometimes it's hard to find something that really works, but this one seemed to do the trick.
I didn't worry about Nathan's lack of talking because he understood EVERYTHING. I knew that he didn't have a hearing problem (he's always had supersonic hearing) so I figured he would catch up. Plus, his doctor wasn't concerned at all.
He's 4.5 now.
I have thought about getting Nathan to read for a video, but I haven't tried it yet. I'm not sure if he would do it for me or not. Maybe I'll try soon, though.
A book I read until it fell apart was the Magic School Bus/Miss Frizzle goes into the human body. It's long for a children's book, but I ADORED it for years and years. The older I got, the more I understood out of the same book. I highly recommend it if it's something he seems interested in.
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