Say what you mean

It has been so fun to watch Wes slowly transition out of his concrete thinking and begin to grasp some of the more figurative aspects to this crazy English language. Sometimes I forget that his mind still resides in the concrete as often as not. Here's an example.

One of his homework assignments was a worksheet. This worksheet had two sections. He was instructed to complete the chart in the top section first. The second section was questions about the information on the chart. I got him started and helped him complete the chart and then left the room for a second. When I returned, I was less than pleased to find him staring off into the cobwebs in the light fixture. In my ever-so-patient and kind voice that I reserve for homework time, I sweetly asked, "What are you doing? Why are you staring off into space?! Get busy!"

"Mom," he said, "I am. The directions on my paper say Look above and answer these questions."

A similar misunderstanding took place at the beginning of the school year. Every Friday they take a spelling test. On Thursday night, we are to give a practice test. The first spelling test of the year was approaching. On Monday we made flashcards, on Tuesday and Wednesday we practiced the words. He flew through them with no problem at all. At last Thursday arrived.
"Tonight's assignment is to write your spelling words without looking," I explained.
"That is going to be SO HARD, Mom!" he said with a slight look of panic.
"You did great all week! This will be easy. You can do it!" I pep talked. I took the list of words over to the counter so I could make dinner while I tested. I gave him the first word and proceeded with my work.
"OK, are you ready for the next word?"
"No! This is too hard!" I turned around to see him trying to write his spelling words while staring up at the window. Writing his words without looking.