Mum shares controversial reason she won’t be teaching her son to read

Her reason has caused plenty of controversy.

A mum has sparked a huge debate after revealing she has decided she won't be teaching her five year old son to read. American comedian Crystal Lowery claims her son is "busy learning other things like Lego and how to queue up for a bag of sweets". In her honest Facebook post, Crystal says her son is "learning to exercise" and developing other character traits like knowing how to apologise and how to have respect for his belongings. Her post begins:

"I'm not teaching my 5-year-old how to read. "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 build. From blocks, to sticks, to Legos, he feels the weight of the different materials in his little sausage fingers, and examines the physical integrity of the various structures he has made. "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."

Crystal explains that her son is "learning important lessons every day" - and has spent the first five years of his life building physical strength as well as developing strong character. The post continued:

"He's learning how to be creative. How to draw his own picture books full of monsters, and how to construct an imaginary spaceship with Amazon boxes. "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."

She finished off the post by saying:

"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."

Crystal's approach has raised a lot of eyebrows from social media users. One person wrote:

"Except you can learn all those other things AND reading. They aren't mutually exclusive."

Meanwhile, another person said:

"There is NOTHING that inspires a growing mind like the ability to become lost in the wonder of reading an engrossing storybook. "Kings, monsters, hero's may be written on the page by someone else, but they are conjured into being by the mind of a child."

A different person asked:

"Surely he can do all that AND start to learn to read and write?"

But there were also plenty of people who praised Crystal for her honesty - as well as her method of teaching her son. One said:

"Agree 100%. Let him enjoy stories. He will pick up reading much quicker if she starts when he is ready."

Another added:

"I am so glad you posted this. I feel like today we are so caught up in the competition aspect of education we forget the importance of individuality. "Our children deserve a childhood filled with amazing opportunities for grown."

A different social media user said:

"Today people are destroying their children, trying to force them to be educated and placing stress that doesn't need to be placed on a five year old. You are a great parent. "If you're happy with your child emotional and social development, your child is living your dream. He will be a well adjusted 5 year old."