My Creative Space

As a teacher of wee little ones my most treasured role was teaching them to read. To hand these wide eyed beauties the keys to unlock the magical world of literacy was a gift for me and I never ceased to get misty eyed when the light bulb lit up above their sponge like brains and they would look at me with amazement and say, "I can read!"

Constantly asked by parents in the early days of their poppet's schooling what they could be doing to help motor their babes along in the domain of 'A,B,C's" I would simply answer..."Read to them....everyday!"

Mon petit poppet has had a love affair with books since the day dot and as a word lover I couldn't be more chuffed. Countless hours have been whittled away with a stack of books beside me and an eager beaver asking, "Wead it adain please Mumma?" I have refused to enter the land of flashcards and formal introduction of letters with my girl and have gone to great lengths to avoid "teaching" her rather just immersing her in all that is the wonder of our language. It probably doesn't hurt that I can talk the leg off a chair either!

As a result she adores letters and even at her tender age can identify and verbally spell her name and voraciously points out the letters of her name on signs, buses, in books, on cans of food....the list is never ending. So to encourage this love of letters I made her a little set of her own. I drew some letters on A4 paper as pattern pieces and cut them out of some vintage fabric and scraps with pinking shears, and with the right side facing out I backed them with calico and stitched them together leaving a hole for stuffing. Then I just ran them back through Jan to close up the hole. I must admit that stuffing them was akin to pulling teeth but when I handed them to her and she promptly hunted out the letter G, "Grandfather ...Mumma?" I almost burst with joy!

One day in the not too distant future I'll hear those excited words again, "I can read!"....but this time the little angel speaking them will be mine.

Have so missed playing along with all these ever inspiring souls.