Reading Trauma

Frodo got a new reading book from school yesterday, but he was in tears when he came home with it.

It's only his fourth book, but they'd given him one with all new words in, and none that he recognised or knew from his previous books. Poor lad must have gone from thinking that he could read, to realising that he couldn't.

Managed to calm him down, print and cut out the 8 new words and go through the book with him, talking about the pictures and playing word matching games.

By the end of this he was recognising and reading 3 of the words, and having help with the others. He then went upstairs to draw and colour for a bit, so I dropped the new book onto his bed.

I little while later I was writing a note to the school to let them know that he'd lost his confidence because of the sudden jump to the new words. Frodo trotted down the stairs with the new book and read all of it to us - only stumbling over one of the words! I think he'd been reading it to himself upstairs on his own.

I saw his teacher this morning and told her what had happened i.e. that he may need a more gradual introduction to new words so that he isn't put off trying to read.