A Mommy Story

I know it’s generally considered bad form to brag. And bragging about how your kid is a genius is probably near the top of the bragging no-no list, right up there with “I can lift way more weight than anyone in my gym” and “I had my baby in 45 minutes with no epidural and it didn’t hurt at all.”

So if you don’t want to read about how smart my kid is, I understand. But you’ll miss out on some Cordy art and a great story from her at the end of the post.

We received a call from Cordy’s teacher today. When she started the call with, “I wanted to see how things are going with Cordelia at home,” I immediately braced myself for the bad news of how she was misbehaving at school or some other unwelcome announcement. Calls home from school never end well.

Instead, she went on to tell me that they have completed all of the screening assessments on Cordy to know just where to begin with her, and she wanted us to know the full results.

According to the standardized test, Cordy reads at a second grade level. Second grade! Not only can she read at that level, but her comprehension of what she reads is equally impressive. I confessed that I had no idea she could read that well, but I credited a lot of it to the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s Summer Reading Club this summer, where she really took to the idea of reading every day.

Before that, she often treated reading like it was a forbidden activity, doing it quietly in a corner or in her room. When you asked her to read something to you, she protested and acted like she couldn’t read at all. She still refuses to read out loud, but her teacher has reached a compromise where Cordy reads at a whisper so she can still be evaluated.

Beyond reading and comprehension, she also knows most of her numbers and can handle basic addition and subtraction. Money is the one area she still fumbles with, but that will come with time. Still – addition AND subtraction!

(Have I mentioned that we’ve never really taught her much of this? She hates being taught and prefers to pick it up on her own.)

The teacher told us they were all so impressed with her abilities, remarking that she and the aides often forget that Cordy is only five years old and in kindergarten. She expects that if Cordy’s social skills can improve, she’ll be in a mainstream classroom full time next year, and also said it’s probable that Cordy will be given the educational label “twice exceptional” – special needs and gifted – which will also give her access to the gifted ed programs.

I wasn’t expecting so much praise over the phone. It’s obvious Cordy has charmed her new teacher and staff just like she charms everyone she meets. The kid has a talent for making everyone love her.

So yeah, I’m a wee bit proud of her today. My warrior princess continues to amaze me every day. So often I feel like I’m never doing enough for her, and there are many times when I feel like I just don’t know what to do with her. But she’s seemingly oblivious to my worries and shortcomings, learning and growing and doing it all her own unique way.

Speaking of her unique way, I promised some art and a story, didn’t I? To go along with today’s phone call, Cordy’s teacher sent home a few of the assignments Cordy has been working on in the past week. I had no idea she was writing full sentences now.

And finally, the story. Cordy spends nearly every evening in the kitchen by herself (and she INSISTS on being ALONE!) “making up stories.” We hear her mumbling to herself as she paces and hops and flaps back and forth along the kitchen floor. When she goes to bed at night, too, she often stays up for hours making up more stories.

The few times I’ve convinced her to tell me one of her stories, I’ve been treated to an amazingly wild stream-of-consciousness story that usually involves characters from several different TV shows all together in one psychedelic Nick Jr. mash-up.

I begged her to let me record one of her stories today, and she grudgingly approved. It isn’t nearly as long or as detailed because she was nervous about the camera being on her (and I was trying to make it as inconspicuous as possible, hence the brilliant shaky-cam cinematography), but it’s a small glimpse of what goes on in that brilliant little mind of hers.

Our next blogger, perhaps?

Wonderpets Save the Train (from the Vampire) from Christina M on Vimeo.