Mom refuses to teach her son to read because he's too busy learning other things


In the early years of our lives, we are vulnerable, and rely heavily on our parents to protect us from harm. It so follows that our parents also tend to shape our views and attitudes towards the rest of the world early in our lives; to us, they were all-seeing, all-knowing beings of amazing intellect and insight.

Of course, this can be both an excellent and damaging thing. That a parent would pass hate-filled opinions on to their children is a crying shame, though more balanced individuals can help to gently encourage the young to figure things out for themselves.

Parents also play a vital role in the early education of their children. Before the first tentative steps are taken into the world of school, parents are tasked with introducing their kids to reading and writing, while encouraging them to be inquisitive. In short, without a positive parental influence, a child's capacity for knowledge might be negatively impacted long before school becomes part of their reality.

One mother, though, caused uproar online recently after sharing a post in which she claims that she is not teaching her son to read. Crystal Lowery gets straight to the point, writing "I'm not teaching my 5-year-old how to read."

She continues with an explanation;

"Don't get me wrong, we read him books all the time. We've imagined ourselves in Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, and we're 170 pages into Harry Potter's Chamber of Secrets. We're teaching him to enjoy stories, to get lost in characters.

"But we're not teaching him how to read. Not just yet. He's too busy learning other things.

"He's learning how to be a good sport--how to wait his turn in Candy Land and not gloat when he makes it to the King's Ice Cream Castle before his sister does.


"He's learning how to exercise. He chases the dog, plays tag, climbs on playground equipment, dances (well), and practices karate (poorly). He's going to need his body for a long time, so he builds his muscles through activity instead of sitting at a desk all day.

"He's learning how to take care of his things. Through trial and error (oh, so much error!) he has seen what happens when he leaves a book out in the rain, or a lump of Play Doh on the table overnight. He's learning that you can't rough house with an 8lb Pekingese.


"He's learning about ecosystems. He looks at bugs, flowers, and thunderstorms. He sees how fauna and flora inhabit the world together interdependently.

"He's learning that the key to happiness is to focus on his blessings rather than complaining about what he doesn't have.

"He's learning how to apologize. To overcome his own hurt feelings and to empathize with other kids when there's been a confrontation.

"He's learning how to forgive. To understand that everyone makes mistakes, and that he can love other people despite their foibles.

"He's learning important lessons every day.

"But he's not learning how to read.

"And though he may not show up to his first day of Kindergarten with "advanced reading skills", he will come to the classroom with so much more.

"The ability to try new things without getting frustrated.

"The ability make friends, even though friendship can be a messy business.

"The ability to listen to others and follow instructions.

"The ability to problem-solve.

"The ability to concentrate on a task.

"There is so much our children learn that cannot be measured with a standardized test. And though someday his hours will be filled with phonics, and penmanship, and fractions, we aren't worried about all that today.

"Today he has more important things to learn."

Credit: Facebook

While a great many agreed with Lowery's approach, there were also a considerable number who didn't think she was going about things the right way, describing her approach as "precious and twee", while others pointed out that their children had learned how to do many of the things Lowery listed in her post, as well as tackling reading.

What do you think? Is Lowery on the right track, or sadly mistaken?