Thank you for coming back to Azy Reading Journey website, where our goal is to make learning fun. Azy is learning numbers and lower-case letters – and he is loving it.
In the last two posts, I listed some toys, materials and activities that we were planning to use to help Azy with numbers and lower-case letters.
I also mentioned that Azy had received some additional toys for his birthday and we would be using them to help him learn the numbers. I mentioned the 55 pieces Dinosaurs set, Play Money and vetch Drill & Learn Toolbox.
I did not say anything about the other toys and things that he got for his Birthday and Christmas.
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I will now mention them, because Azy is moving towards some of them. In the last post, when I talked about the plan, I said that we might not use all the toys and materials, or do the activities, but when we have a plan, we could easily move from one activity to the next. You can read about that here.
Since the goal is to help Azy have fun while he is learning, we are always ready to move to another activity if he wants to do it, and we know that it will help him.
Things Don’t Always Go As Planned
Since family members and friends are aware that we are teaching Azy to read, they are more than willing to buy toys and other things that will help him on his reading journey. So, in addition to getting educational toys for his birthday, Azy also got some for Christmas.
I have to also mention that Azy got several books on different topics, but getting books is ongoing, because children books can be very appealing, so it is easy to buy them when we go to the store.
From time to time, Azy also gets books at the daycare. When we read to him at night, he has many books to choose from, and he loves to choose more than one.
Below is a list of the Additional Fun Toys and Activities that Azy received for Christmas and his Birthday
♦♦Play Money
♦♦Adventure Force 55 pieces Dinosaurs Jumbo Force
♦♦VTech Drill & Learn Toolbox
♦♦ Melissa & Doug Classic Car Carrier
♦♦Melissa & Doug First Words Wooden Spelling Boards
♦♦PJMASKS Time to be a Hero Learning Tablet
♦♦Justice League 9” Portable DVD Player
♦♦Spark Create Imagine Magic Doodle Board
♦♦LeapFrog Learning Friends 100 Words Book – Bilingual Play, English/Spanish
♦♦Disney Pixar Toy Story 4 Storybook Activity Pad
Plans Might Be Changing
In addition to the toys that Azy already have, that is quite a lot, and much more than Azy can play with at this time. So, since we were already using some of what he had before, most of those above were not mentioned because we were not planning on using them yet. You can read more about what we were planning here.
However, we would have no problem using them if Azy wanted to. Now, he is starting to use some them on a regular basis.
The DVD player, First Words Wooden Spelling Boards, Dinosaurs and Car Carrier are his top choice, and the Dinosaurs and Car Carrier are what he wants to use for counting. The car carrier is a trailer with four cars, but he is ready to count.
In the video below you will see Azy counting Dinosaurs.
Visit our Facebook page to see more videos with Azy having fun counting cars and dinosaurs.
Azy is still playing with the Mega Bloks, but the Dinosaurs are his favorite to count at this time. The Numbers Flash Cards and Magnetic Numbers are still being used, and we will continue to use them because they are important in helping him with counting and learning the numbers.
The Numbers Flash Cards have the spelling of the number written in lower case letters, so they are helping Azy to learn the lower-case letters. When he uses the flash cards, we are asking him to identify the letters are on the cards.
Nothing Lost – Azy Is Still Having Fun
He is still using the 2-1 Magnetic Matching Puzzle for the upper- and lower-case letters, but he is also now using the First Words Wooden Spelling Boards.
The Spelling board has 7 Double-Sided Spelling Boards and 62 Lowercase Letters. So, it is doing well in helping Azy to learn the lower-case letters.
When Azy uses the Spelling Boards, he is placing each letter in the correct place on the board to spell the word for the image on the board.
For example, cat, fish, pig, car and duck, to name a few.
As he fills in each letter, we ask him to identify the letter before he puts it down. He is having fun, so we will continue to move do the activities that he chooses.
That is what I have for now. Thank you for taking the time to read about Azy’s reading journey.
I would love to hear from you.
What do you think? Leave a comment and let me know.
Visit our Facebook page to see more videos with Azy having fun counting cars and dinosaurs.
If you have any questions, go ahead and leave them. I will do my best to answer them.
If you like what you read, please like it and share it. Thanks
Hello, my name is Jackie. My family members and I are teaching my grandson Azy to read and I am writing about the challenges and the joy that comes from doing so. My goal is to write articles that will encourage and help parents and others who want to do the same for their kids or other children. Thanks for travelling along with us. Blessings, Jackie
Thank you very much for this article. Azy is a very intelligent child and I am glad that you contribute so much to his education. All of these activities that you do together help to develop a great imagination and creativity. I really enjoyed reading this article because I have a boy and this information and explanations are precious. We are also learning how to count and this list with additional fun toys and activities is more than perfect.
Thanks again and I wish you much success in the future and good luck in everything you do!
Yw Nimrod
Thank you for reading the article. I am thankful for the opportunity to help teach Azy, we are having a lot of fun together.
I am happy to hear that you enjoyed reading the article, and also delighted to hear that you learned something that can help your child.
Thanks for the good wishes, I wish the same for you.
Hi Jackie, I must really commend you for the wonderful job you are doing both on this blog and also in helping the young lad Azy develop the most important and basic learning process which is the informal system of learning, which starts from the home.
I could remember then when my little cousin, Michael was growing up, he also had a little difficulty in learning then so I also had to employ some of the these learning process you are practicing, though it was so tedious at first but at the end of the day a slow learner came out of the blues to become one of the best student in his class then and he had continued his prowess in his education ever since then.
So, I would employ parents to always ensure they start the learning process of a child themselves.
Getting kids toys is not enough but helping them out because a parent is the first teacher a child could have.
Thank you, Carol
Yes, I believe that learning should start at home, and am grateful that I can help to teach Azy.
That was so nice of you to help your little cousin. Glad to hear that everything worked out well, even though there were some challenging times. I believe that helping to teach kids at home, will definitely help them to be top performers in their class.
Azy does not have difficulty learning. He is very active and loves to play. So, we have to use activities that are fun to keep him involved. That is why I believe that two years old is a good age to start teaching kids, because at that age there is not much distractions.
I believe that there are many children who would have done better in school if their parents were able to start teaching them before they went to school.
Yes, getting kids toys is not enough. However, I believe that with educational toys (and there are many available these days) and other age appropriate materials, parents have the opportunity to help teach their kids at home.
Hi Jackie, It’s nice that you are letting us share the journey as Azy is learning numbers and lower case letters, and yes it’s obvious that he is loving it. Looks like he is doing great too. Learning a lot and having loads of fun as he does so. You know what. As I was watching that little video of him counting with his little cards and stuff it reminded me of a YouTube video that I saw of another little boy having fun with his stuff as well.
Is there a YouTube channel for Azy? I bet a lot of people would subscribe and be encouraged to work with their kids and grand kids just like you are doing with Azy. That’s an idea you could probably think about.
I was also pleased to see that you’re Jamaican like me (I peeked at your about me page), that’s great. When my daughter was around Azy’s age I was doing something similar too. No I didn’t home school her, but we bought educational toys for her to use to enhance what she was already learning.
I really think educational toys are important for kids, and that parents should invest in them and spare a bit of time out of their schedules to help them to play and learn. It sets a great foundation for the future.
Thanks Donald
Yes, Azy is doing great and having fun learning. That is our goal.
Yes, I have a YouTube channel for Azy, and I am thinking of using it to promote the blog. However, I am still learning how to do that. It would be nice if I can help parents, grandparents and others who have the desire to help teach kids at home.
Nice to hear that you are Jamaican. Thanks for reading my About Me page. Glad to hear that you took time out to help your daughter. I am not homeschooling Azy, he goes to daycare, I help to teach him when he comes home.
Yes, I believe that using educational toys is a great way for parents to help kids. It is a win win situation since they will be building relationship as well as laying a solid foundation for the kids’ education.
Hey, I enjoy your each post . In the last two posts, you listed some toys, materials and activities that we were planning to use to help Azy with numbers and lower-case letters. It is 100% correct, Things Don’t Always Go As Planned. Now I know that Azy is still playing with the Mega Bloks, but the Dinosaurs are his favorite to count at this time.
Thank you for writing such useful article.
Thanks Parveen, and you are welcome.