Question
John Rosemond and staff,
We recently got placed with a foster child in our home, 5 years old. We realized she isn’t as good at the ABCs as she should be, so I sat down to teach her. I wrote “A”, “B”, “C” and then said them out loud, she wrote them and said them. After reviewing it around 50 times, I told her it was her turn. She did it correctly twice (I told her we would do it 5 times and she would be done for the day). The third time, I pointed to A. She said just about every word of the alphabet other than A. So we told her if she said any letter other than A, B, or C she would sit in the thinking chair for five minutes each time. It progressed to me pointing to “A” and her saying “B” then “C” then “I don’t know”. (Then she would say G or O, and sit in the chair for 5 minutes). This lasted for a few hours at which point we sat her in the thinking chair until bedtime, telling her she could get out when she tells us what those letters are. (We also gave her a break for dinner).
She knows the letters because she knows which one not to say. We are at a loss with what to do. We are wondering if we’re making a mountain out of a molehill or if we should keep at it. She is pretty manipulative, and we don’t want her to think she can get away with being a brat. It started with us wanting to help her and teach her the alphabet, so she can go to kindergarten next year. It ended with us being frustrated and her probably never wanting to learn the alphabet. Please let us know how to proceed.
Thank you so much.
