Teaching a Toddler to Read

I watch those infomercial on teaching your  young child how to read and it really boils my blood thinking about how many people they are ripping off. Yes some of their ideas are helpful but you can find all that you need right here on the internet OR the local library!  So this is is how I taught my 3 year old how to read:

1.  You child needs to be interested in reading. If they are not, there are ways to get them interested: Praise, read to them,  offer a reward, show them other children reading, make learning a game.
2. Sight words, most schools have slowed down the use of sight words or even stopped them all together and started letting them use "Inventive spelling" which means they encouraging beginning readers to write any way they want. The idea is that the act of writing, for the beginner, is more important than correct spelling. Eventually, according to this school of thought, the student will learn and use the correct form.It also gives them a chance to learn how to sound out the words. This in some way makes sense but it doesn't prepare them as much as learning sight words did. Here is a link that works great and it's free!http://www.k12reader.com/dolch-word-list/
3. Based on your child's age, take a small portion of sight words 3 - 5 and let them master those words before moving on. Master doesn't mean looking at the card and knowing what it is.There are different parts of your brain that needs to memorize the word as well as the vision part. So in order to really master it, the should be able to read it, spell it, and recognize it inside books, magazines or anywhere else, and lastly let them try writing it. Maybe it wont be very eligible if they are young, but putting the letters on the paper while spelling out the word will help another part of the brain master that word.
4. Find books that have only 1 - 2 short sentences on each page. Read it to your child, while pointing to each word. Then let them read it back to you. They might need a little help the first few times but they will get a hang of it and feel that they are reading to you even if they just memorized it.  This will make them feel like they are accomplishing something and they will be more motivated to learn. Also they are understanding sentences and words are to be read from left to right.
5. Break down the word so they can see how you figured out how to spell it. For instance  "Book"   you would say "Baa  baa   OOO  Kkkk,   BaoooK  Book!"  Then when they are not sure of a word you are teaching them how to sound it out.
6. Lastly, read to your kids. every night, during a rainy day, a winter storm. Kids love stories and listening to you read will  encourage them to do the same.

That is it! 6 simple steps!  Some kids may learn faster then others but some will be better in math, science, music, history.  All kids are different. But they all can learn if you are patient with them :)

The Dreaded Head lice

The first time my daughter got head lice.  She was in Kindergarten. Up until that point I never heard of head lice!  I was in a state of panic. So I researched, bought the head lice shampoo and then kept her home the next day while spending the ENTIRE day combing through her hair strand by strand. She had some pretty thick curly hair, so after going though her hair the 3rd time, I started making small braids to make sure I got rid of all of them. 12 hours later, I could no longer see any head lice the mattress's where sprayed, stuffed animals in a bag. Laundry washed.  I was sure the nightmare was over.

Or so I thought!  2 days later the school nurse found eggs and another louse while doing a routine check.  Once again I treated her hair even though on the bottle it said not to.  She ended up missing her last day of school.

The rest of the summer we had bouts of  head lice and all of the treatments I read on line had not worked!  I didn't feel comfortable continuing to treat her hair with the chemicals. So I did the hardest thing I ever had to do. I cut her hair. Short.

After that and another treatment, the head lice where gone.

However every 1 - 2 years she would once again catch head lice!  As the years went on I have become and expert on what works and what doesn't. My husband would often comment that my technique to get rid of them has become so simple that I should offer my service to others.  It sounds like a great idea. but remembering how hard that first year was for us. I would not feel right asking someone one to pay. So here is is what I have learned through the years.

First you need to know what your looking for.

Gross, I know, the lice are smaller than the size of a grain of rice, the nits (eggs) are much smaller, they are almost a clear or white before they hatch and stick to the hear close to the head.  After they hatch they turn a brownish color and are easier to move

Adult lice can live up to 30 days on a person’s head, and an adult female can lay up to 8 nits per day!

So now you know what you are looking for, here are the steps I have found to work best.

easiest treatment, (and one I used for my toddlers)

Conditioner.

That is it, seems simple right? it is!
I have tried many different conditioner's and they all seem to work the same, however many swear by using a conditioner that has tree oil, and peppermint oil.

Here is what I do:

Need: Lice comb, and paper towels

First, I always have a head lice comb, since I use the store bought treatment for the older kids and this come is vital for getting ride of the lice and eggs.

1: I put the boys in bath. lather their hair with a thick coat of conditioner and then let them play in the tub for about  15  minutes. (If they start to get bored, I usually will bring a book in to read to them or we tell goofy stories.)

2:  I slowly comb through their hair starting by the ears and work around the head. Each stroke with the comb I wipe onto the paper towel,  This is an easy way to check how bad the lice situation is. (find a ton on the paper= bad  not many, =good)    I pay special attention to behind the ears and the back of their necks. These areas are their favorite place to stay.

3: Shower the boys off and they are done!

4: In their room I back all stuff animals for 2 weeks and wash their bedding.

5: repeat the conditioner treatment every few days. If you find lice, rewash the bedding.

6: After you feel you have got control of the situation. Wait a week and redo the conditioner treatment, again if you find anything rewash the bedding, but by this time I never had a situation where I needed to do anything else :)

Older kids

When your kids are older and can use the store bought treatment. I personally would use it once, only because it kills the louse before they are born and that makes the treatment a little easier.

(Need lice comb and paper towel)

1: Same as the boys.  Lather their hair in conditioner. This time (especially with long hair)  I let the conditioner stay in their hair for a good 30 minutes and use this time to strip their room down and bag anything that is like a stuff animal.

2: Rather then kneeling over a tub looking for tiny tiny lice. I find a bright lit area and have her sit in front of me. I slowly being to come through her hair, wiping the comb off with each stroke and focusing mostly behind the ears and back of neck.  Any eggs I find it's important to remove.

3: For the few weeks (or even longer)  I have her wash her hair with a dandruff shampoo that has "Denorex". Lice does not like this at all.


4:  Older kids are easier to check, so usually I do the conditioner  treatment 2 -3 times the first week and check daily (back of ears and neck) Looking for any new eggs. If I find any I remove them, and continue to do the conditioner treatment ever other day until I find nothing, then I just do it once a week for a few weeks. 

I have never had to do any of theses steps longer then 2 weeks and usually after the very first treatment I find nothing anymore!  If you are continuing to find some, chances are someone else in the house has them. Maybe even you!  

So when I treat the kids. I always treat myself,  just with the conditioner treatment and dandruff shampoo. While in the shower I comb through my hair. I do this ever other day until I am confident no one in the house has head lice anymore!


I hope this helps! Good luck!