The Jet Story

“This is a jet. It is a tin jet. The tin jet is big.”

I know, it sounds pretty boring, right? But to me, these are VERY exciting words. These are words that my son just started reading. On his own. My son, who is 5 years old and has not been to kindergarten yet (he will start in the fall), is now reading and loving it. And I love watching his unbridled joy as he figures out, all by himself, what the words on the page say.

Now, I cannot taking credit for teaching him how to read (who has time?), and I am not saying he’s a child prodigy. Sure, we have been reading to him since he was a baby, but what makes all the difference is that he went to preschool. He has been in preschool since age 2, so for three years, he had great (albeit likely very underpaid) teachers who spent lots of time and energy helping him develop the skills that got him to this point. It was extremely expensive, and thankfully we could afford it. Most families cannot, yet all children should get those building blocks (pun intended)! And many do not have access to full-day kindergarten, as we do in our county’s public school system.

This is a no-brainer. Something must be done so more kids will succeed. The time is now!