Thankful

Ali is thankful for reading. When Grandma was here over the weekend she got him started with the Dr. Suess classic, Hop on Pop. At the library yesterday, I picked up a couple of early readers. Ali has never been that into the library- he hasn't cared about bringing books home- at school, when the teacher told him he could check out a book, he said, "no, thank you." I think it has something to do with the books being borrowed, rather than owned. He wouldn't wear a borrowed Halloween costume, either.

So I brought these books home and presented him with them. He was super excited, and began reading See Otto, right away. This is the first book in a marvelous series of early readers by David Milgrim.

These books remind me of the Dick and Jane and Spot books we read in first grade, but they are much more interesting. The story is of a little robot that falls to earth when his spaceship runs out of gas. He lands in a forest, is chased by a rhino, and makes friends with two monkeys, Flip and Flop. The colourful, detailed pictures help to tell the story, and the words are simple and repetitive. There are a few words that Ali needed help with, but in general, by sounding the letters out, he could get the words. Some words have two vowels together, which is a more difficult reading level, and the first book includes the word "laugh." However, because most of the words were at his level, Ali did not get frustrated and was able to ask for help when he needed it.
Ali has already read another book in the series, and for sure we'll be checking out more when we hit the library.