- You can blow your own nose
- You consistently remember to flush
- You learn to swallow pills (even if you are over twenty by then)
- You master tying shoes and zipping zippers
- You can rip a piece of Scotch tape from the dispenser without getting six inches and three fingers all stuck together
- You can read consonant blends
This week I am all about the initial consonant blends. Or as my students would say, "BUH-lah-EH-NUHhunn-dah-siss". How many syllables you got there, or is that a crouton stuck in your throat?
If you are five years old the process of reading is much like making hummus. You open and strain the can of chickpeas, and duh-UH-mmmmm-pup them into the BUH-lah-EH-NUHhunn-dah-cough-RRR. You ssahah-MMM-tongue depressor-Sisshuh a Cah-love-huh of garlic. Then Skuh-kw-kw-kw-EEEZ-uh the juice from a lemon. Wade through 1 1/2 tablespoons of tahini and some olive oil. Push the button. At first the chickpeas don't move, and you wonder if you should have used garbanzos instead. Finally one bean is Tetris-ed out of position, and the mashing begins. Somewhere inside the child's brain, consonant sounds are being pureed and linked together, falling into place to build a foundation. The seeing, hearing, and speaking for a consonant blend is becoming an easy, quick, and nutritious food-thought to be relied upon for the rest of a lifetime.
Get some chips or pitas. Let's enjoy this meal together. And, yes, put a sticker on my cosmic chart for:
- Learn to like hummus (even if you are over fifty by then)
- And feta
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