DD (4) is very into what letters start words (she isn't in school yet) so I thought "great!" when Cbeebies started the Squigle the Alphabet programme!
How wrong was I?
Do Cbeebies seriously think that preschoolers can work out that Fox ends with 'X', rather than begins with it? DD likes to randomly state things like "Bus begins with 'B'" throughout the day, and we've had quite a few conversations like this:
DD: Fox begins with X
Me: No DD, fox begins with F and ends with X
DD: What's 'ends with'?
Me: (insert long winded explaination about letter sounds, words, looking at all the letters in the word, gets DD to say 'Fox' slowly and listen for the F and X sounds etc etc etc)
DD: (pause) Fox begins with X
repeat several hundred times
If DD fails her English Language GCSE in the distant future I will hold Squiglet personally responsible.
And while we're at it - they are not 'Squiggle sticks', they are crayons. Even DD knows that!
and breathe!