Lack of interest in reading? Um, she's 4. I'm 44 and don't like to read.

OP: My son has the same exact situation going at his preschool and his teacher has stressed him out about writing. My son does know sight words; no 50 but all of the ones in the first bob book set.

ANyway, you are not alone in your concern and although intellectually I know he's normal, I do get a little stressed that he's "behind" his peers.

My rising first grader had zero interest in reading going into K. new letter, sounds, etc. from pre-K but that was that. He is in no way advanced reader, but is reading at above-grade level and is constantly surprising me at what he can actually do. Lay off the tiger mom juice and let you 4 yo develop at her own pace.

Ditto some of the above reluctant readers. My children were reluctant readers in pre-K and K. Sounds like your child. But by the middle of first grade, they had it mastered and now as rising 2nd graders are reading Harry Potter. Make sure your child has access to books they like (they get to pick). Lots of pictures that help to explain what is going on. Keep reading to your child everyday.

It is fine. My son did not have any sight words going into K, and at the end of K, he reads well above grade level. His handwriting is horrible, but he can also write his letters.

Anonymous wrote:I couldn't read till well into 1st grade and have a phd in english; sibling couldn't read till 3rd grade and has a uva law degree. dh could read at two and all his siblings could read before k - only one besides dh has a college degree and got it from phoenix online.

oh, and dh graduated hs with a 2.0 and didn't finsih college till he was almost 30

early isn't better

I couldn't read till well into 1st grade and have a phd in english; sibling couldn't read till 3rd grade and has a uva law degree. dh could read at two and all his siblings could read before k - only one besides dh has a college degree and got it from phoenix online.

Anonymous wrote:I would place her in an academic preschool - our child gained so much from being with other kids and their teaching style. We supplement at home. Start with the Leap Frog and Preschool Prep videos. Far better than cartoons. You can place them on the iPad so she can watch them easily.

This is the exact opposite of what she should do, as referenced by every respected early child development professional.

Kindergarten readiness:

http://www.naeyc.org/resources/research/kreadinessassessment

http://www.scholastic.com/parents/resources/article/what-to-expect-grade/ready-kindergarten

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/childrens-health/in-depth/kindergarten-readiness/art-20048432

OP,

Gotta say that I don't like your nasty response to the early poster. However, in the hopes that it will do your child some good, I'll contribute.

NO, it's totally normal for a 4-year old to be completely uninterested in learning how to read. First of all, reading is not a "natural" act. She may or may not get interested by K. The best school systems in the world -- by testing results -- do not teach reading until 7 or 8. There's a reason for that. There's a lot of development that needs to occur before reading really clicks for kids. Yes, they can be taught to do it earlier, but the more unfun you make learning and reading, the more you risk that your child will hate reading for the rest of her life.

Your pre-K is completely developmentally inappropriate, and I say that as an educator with Ph.D. LEAVE if you can before they screw your child up. I can't believe they are even comparing your daughter to other children.

Can a child be taught to sight-read at 3 or 4? Yes, absolutely. Does it give them a head start on learning? No. In fact, almost every study shows that children who attend academic preschools enter K more anxious about learning and less creative. The anxiety and lack of creativity persist, but whatever knowledge advantage they may have had at K entry is completely gone by 2nd grade.

Seriously, leave your preschool right away. Find a good play-based school.

Anonymous wrote:Your preK is not developmentally appropriate if they are expecting four year olds to read and write.

You need to lay off the tiger momness

This! She's in a crummy program.

Wait and see next year what happens. My son went from a resistant reader (I pushed, not knowing any better) to reading Harry Potter by first grade. My daughter wasn't interested in learning to read until she turned 5, a few weeks ago, and is now reading Mo Willem books. She's also writing her own thank you notes for her birthday party.

Children develop in spurts. What you describe is within the range of normal. My advice is, please don't push too hard. It will backfire.

Hi there!
Gosh there are some interesting responses here! Have you had a P/T meeting with her prek teacher? That's where I would start. The teacher has experience with kiddos on all different levels at this age. Focus on your kiddo and keep up the good work by reading to her and encouraging her. I'm sure her interest will develop in time.

mommato2lilmonkeys

Anonymous wrote:Pushing sight words versus talking with your child and "working" on fluency can limit your child's vocabulary.

Presumably it isn't versus, though. After all, one can push sight words AND talk with one's child. The problem here isn't teaching a four-year-old to read; it's TRYING to teach a four-year-old to read WHO IS NOT YET READY TO LEARN TO READ.

Pushing sight words versus talking with your child and "working" on fluency can limit your child's vocabulary.