Writing Letters Brings Out the Beast


Well, I think I’ve decided that Sophie is no Chloe when it comes to academics. OK – that may be an exceedingly unfair statement, and one made prematurely, but let’s just say that three weeks into pre-K, she likes to color pretty pictures, but when it comes to learning penmanship, she wants to do it her way or no way.

This week’s letter is “F.” But she doesn’t want to write “F” or “f” – she wants to write an “E” without the middle line. When I tried to explain to her that she’d be better off doing a real “F” (which, by the way, she knows how to do), she not only balked, she told me she didn’t love me anymore.
I am a bad mommy. I stifle creativity. Hell, if she wants to create her own alphabet that’s fine with me. But I’m not going to continue to throw out an insane amount of money on preschool tuition so that she can create a Sophie version of cyrillic letters that she alone understands.
I took the homework away from her before she could tear it into shreds, and told her we’d look at it again when she was willing to concede that there’s “F” and “f” and that’s it. The homework may never get done, mind you. But we’ll see how it goes tomorrow.

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