my son is 5 years old ..?

Question

he is not able to write any of his abc,s his older sister 12 yrs. trys to teach him how to write them and she gets frustrated says that she has been trying to teach him for 30 min and he still does not understand,even i have tried teaching him,what is wrong and what can i do??

Answer 1

It is possible that your son has a disorder called dyslexia, where he cannot comprehend written words. His letters may be mixed up. Get help before he enters first grade. Make sure he's able to write. It is possible. Be patient with him

Answer 2

Are you sure he does not understand or is attention spand is short? Either way it can be frustrating but whatever you do please dont give up. My mom wasnt too involved with "our" education so I tried to help my brother learn how to read. He wouldnt for the life of me stay still or even try to follow along. I am only 5 yrs older than him so I didnt know then he had a problem. Well now he is 22yrs old and he's just getting things together. He still has difficulties but I wish I hadnt given up on him. As a parent please take control of the situation. Have him see a doctor or specialist and get him tested so when he starts school if he hasnt already, he will be placed accordingly...I wish you all the best...good luck

Answer 3

Do not freak out about this. Most children have some issues with writing at this age. He is still fine tuning is motor skills. Let him free play using finger paints, brushes, and expose him to the alphabet in other ways. If he can say the letters but still not draw them, try getting a tracing book at a local store. I know Wal-Mart has them. Don't set a time limit. His attention span is going to be very short. 30 minutes on one type of task is way too long for a child his age.

If he does not recognize is letters, work on this first. He'll get absolutely nothing out of trying to write them if he doesn't know what he is writing. Once he recognizes a letter, then try tracing it. Once he has mastered that, let him try it with paint. Go one step at a time and he'll get it.

Just remember...don't focus too long on one thing. Break up the learning experiences so he won't feel frustrated and overwhelmed.

Answer 4

Maybe your son is frustrated ... his tripod finger muscles (middle finger, pointer, and thumb) may not be developed enough to have control over the pencil. Try doing some exercises to develop these muscles i.e.: have an eye dropper and a small bowl of colored water. Have him use the three finger digits to squeeze the water into the eyedrop and then have him drop one drop onto each of the suctions of a soap holder. Sorting beans into a cupcake pan using these fingers could also help. I would also check with a pediatrician to rule out any physical problems. Children all develop at different rates so do not be overly worried. He is only 5 and should be learning to write in kindergarten.

Answer 5

A simple little trick, may sound silly, may find a problem....

Before you do this though, he has to understand what a word is. Take one of his favourite books and put it in front of him. Ask him to point to the words. He does? Ok. Next part. Ask him to count the letters. He does? Ok. Here is the trick.

With the book flat on the table, ask him to put his hands in front of him and move his hands like the letters do. He does? Ok... We now know that there is a problem. He doesn't and says you're silly? Ok, we know that one problem is knocked off the board. :D

Three of my four children have varying forms of dyslexia. One of my three brothers does too. None of them see things the same way. For my brother, he can only see a few letters at a time, the rest of the page swirls like water going down the drain. Can you imagine how distracting that is? How difficult it is to read when you can only see clearly three characters (including the space) ?? For one of my kids the letters move back and forth on the page (up and down off the page). For another one of my kids, whole words would jump around on the page. The last one doesn't read yet, she's only four, but she is showing signs of being dyslexic (she is constantly confusing hot/cold, calling things by the wrong names...)

Is it the end of your son's reading career? No way!! With the proper help, he can learn to read, and he will show you many, many cool things about the world.

On the other hand, does he recognize the letters if he sees them (especially the ones from his name, but out of context of his name)? My dad brought DD #3 (dyslexic) to the hospital once and she could not recognize the letters from her name out of context - except for the first two.

Lastly, 30 minutes is a very long time for any child of 5. If your DD wants to work with him on his alphabet, I would recommend no more than 5-10 minutes. Move on to something else, then come back to it later.

Answer 6

I'm in the same position I'm 12 trying to teach my 5 year old sister to read and write. A website that helps her alot is www.starfall.com it teaches kids how to read and write. It also teaches them their abc's by cartoons something everyone can understand.

Answer 7

I've suggested this before and no it's not a joke. Make a big open space on the floor so that he can write the letters by dragging his butt on the floor. I've actually seen someone use this technique. Another way is to spread a thin layer of spaghetti sause onto a plate and have him write the letters with his tongue. You can also use pudding or whatever else that spreads thin onto a plate. You can also allow him to use a garden hose to spray letters onto the side of the house or sidewalk. All those ideas are fun and cost next to nothing.

Answer 8

He's at the age where he'll soon be tested for kintergarden. Maybe you could contact a school counselor or someone affiliated w/the schools testing requirments. Maybe they could help lead you in the right direction. It sounds like he could have a problem w/ letters some children write thier letters backwards. His pediatrician should have noticed when he was younger if he was going to be slower at things then some children. Maybe you could have a conference w/him. I hope you find the help you need. Good Luck!

Answer 9

Maybe he is left handed instead of right? Maybe he is just not interested at this time. Isn't writting something usually taught in school at age 6?

I would try to get him to concentrate on his dexterity by coloring, scribbling, drawing in finger paints or shaving cream. I would also suggest that you start with numbers - my 3 year old thinks she is all that because she can make a pretty good 11, while my older child won't attempt anything until she is sure she can do it right the first time. Patience - it will all come, in time.

Peace!

Answer 10

Let him do things in his own pace...he still has time; so just let him enjoy his childhood while he can ;)

Where I come from, kids don't start learning their ABC's until they're 6 & start 1st grade...they just go to kindergarten when they're 3 years old up until they turn 6, then they just start 1st grade, where they start from scratch and learn the basics (everyone automatically passes the first grade over there, even if you're not "good", which helps with their confidence)...this helps them enjoy their childhoods & when they start first grade, they're all in the same page and are more eager to learn...

My advice is to give your son time...soonert or later he'll get it & he'll do just fine :) so don't worry!!!!

Good Luck :)

Answer 11

well it sure sounds like that he has a learning disability his teachers should have noticed that. my niece is only 3 and knows her ABC's and can count to 30 so i am almost sure of it that he has some kind of learning disability. or you know what else. he can just be bored and his mind is wondering away on him.. Just be safe and get him checked out that way you know what you are dealing with as far as his learning goes. My sister and brother both have learning disability's they were just slower then the other kids learning everything but they were smart in there own way and I'm sure your son is just as smart as any other kid but just takes more time to learn new things. but like i said just get him evaluated for a learning disability. before he gets in kinder garden