Bugged by Bugs!

With his long lost toys back, Abhay finds no reason to leave his room except when he has unwelcome guests and when they arrive - all hell breaks loose at home! Its not only his room, they seem to be everywhere! Wherever Abhay goes, they find him, without exception - at home, on our street, at our neighbor's house, at the playground or a park, in the shop and even in the airconditioned environs of a mall! Abhay cant seem to understand why his American bred skin is their favorite  and neither can we!  They not only distract my five year old, but scare the hell out of him, they torment him and then suck his blood! You guessed it right - Im talking about the ubquitous Indian mosquito.  You may close all the windows after dark, literally shut the door on your visitors, clothe your little one from had to toe, hunt them down  using various devices, but just one is enough to ruin your good night's sleep! :-)

Anyway, its not only mosquitoes, Abhay is petrified of commonly found bugs like flies, ants and all kinds of insects! Recently I took him to an outdoor story session in the evening and Abhay was the only boy who seem to be bothered by the insects flying around when the other kids didnt even seem to notice them. So in an attempt to get him fascinated by the bug's world, today I read "I like Bugs" by Margret Wise Brown and illustrated by G.Brian Karas, a Mile 1 book in the Road to Reading series. A little boy declares that he likes bugs, all kinds of bugs black bugs, green bugs, mean bugs, bad bugs, bug in a rug, bug in the grass, fat bugs, round bugs and shiny bugs. Bugs- however they are, wherever they are - he is hardly bugged by them! Not much of a story, but one of the few early readers that is actually meant for an early reader. With short vowel sounds and picture clues,this book is a good way to get your emergent reader to perfect his or her alphabet sounds. I asked Abhay if he now finds bugs interesting to which he turned dead serious and proclaimed  "Im okay with ants but no mosquitoes"!