Monday, September 22, 2008

The Year has Just Started...

and Benjamin hates writing. He hates it with a purple passion, and doesn't want to have anything to do with it. We're not talking major writing here, just making a few of the same figure, like 15 3s, or 10 Ss. I have made worksheets with tracing letters that he can use to get the hang of it, but before he has a chance to pitch a fit about it, Christopher takes them and fills them out in secret.

Writing has tainted Benjamin's view of school - he thinks that writing is all school is good for. He asks me every morning if he really has to go, and though I have explained to him that until he is 18 he doesn't really have a choice, he is still unconvinced. The fact that (almost) all adults can write doesn't really impress him. He just plain hates it... hates it so much that he has a meltdown when trying to complete his weekly homework assignment. He is such a perfectionist that any tiny mistake, real or perceived, carries monumental significance. Using a pencil and an eraser doesn't even help.

However, this evening, he sat for an hour with pens, scissors and glue, making an elaborate paper tree, which he then presented to me, complete with apples and a chipmunk. Maybe if we just keep plugging away at the basics, he will get over the hump and begin to see the value in school. I hope...

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