Each Child Blooms Differently
Yvette Pollard, mom to four kids she calls The Fantastic Four, was so ready for motherhood when she had her first child. She read all the books. She was a prepared, curious, intelligent person. Nothing was going to get her flummoxed. Until it was time to teach her little one to speak and read.
As a toddler, her daughter put her mom’s confidence to the test. The tantrums revealed that she didn’t want to sit still and listen while mom instructed her on ABCs or pay attention while Yvette held up flashcards with words and pictures on them. So Yvette—who was with the State Superintendent’s Parent Advisory Council at the time this video was shot—took her kid out to the back yard. Together, they got their hands dirty. They talked about how dirt is brown. Grass is green. And it worked like a charm. No more tantrums. Confidence regained.
Tune in to hear the rest of Yvette’s amazing journey teaching her children to read and speak. Like flowers, all children bloom in their own ways, at their own pace. What does that mean for parents and teachers who want to guide them as best they can?
Then go back to hear from Georgia’s superintendent of the year, Clarke County’s Philip Lanoue, who urges us to expect great results from all students in Georgia.