I’m not sure the formatting will work everywhere, so at the bottom I’m trying (for the first time!) to embed the document as I wrote it. Read the version that works for you – but no need to read both because they are the same.

Swimming in words

Alewives

Decorated warbonnet

Mosshead warbonnet

Penpoint gunnel

My son is dyslexic. Longfin sculpin Sailfin sculpin

Letters and words swim around my child

Crescent gunnel

Pacific spiny lumpsucker

Strawberry anemone

Northern ronquil Northern clingfish and he can’t always make the letters

Scalyhead sculpin

Match the sounds.

Like today at the aquarium when Cabezon Kelp Greenling Banggai Cardinalfish

Swim before me, and everywhere are the Estuarnine stonefish Frogfish Polkadot batfish and

I search for the Stocky anthias Square spot fairy basslet Sea goldie French grunt but

My head swims and I cannot make the names match the Saucereye Porgy

Sergeant Major

Blue tang

Lookdown

Ocean Surgeon

Blue striped grunt

Koran angelfish

When Smallmouth Grunt and “Look, a Red Lionfish!” and my boy reads those words.

The sounds are starting to match the letters.

I begin to be able to name the beauty swimming around us.

So we are patient for the Red Irish Lord Jewel damsel Fire goby

And together we see the 

High-hat

Moon jelly

C-O sole.

It’s an early draft, for sure, but here I am, publishing it anyway.

Slice of Life, Day 17, March 2018

Thanks to Two Writing Teachers for this wonderful month of inspiration.