3V0908.1

3V0908.01 A swimming pool: caution at first encounter(7/18/80) We visited this day my cousin’s house in Cherry Hill. Her son, Matthew, a week older than Peggy, nearly drowned in their swimming pool about a week before our visit. We were all very sensitive to the event. Peggy had never seen a swimming pool before and …

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3V0899.1

3V0899.01 Toilet training: a first success (7/9/80) Peggy had a wet diaper and asked me to take it off. “Take off diaper… don’t hug me…take this off…. I have to do something.” She took her little toilet, set it in the middle of the room, pissed in it, and emptied the pot into the regular …

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3V0896.1

3V0896.01 Letters as symbols for people’s names (7/6/80) In session P127 and P128, Peggy revealed the congeniality of her conceiving of and remembering letter names as associated with members of our family. Today she sat on the floor and help up a ‘P’. “That’s me, right?” she asked and later “That Robby?” (for a ‘B’). …

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3V0893.1

3V0893.01 Excuses: [No. I’m keeping my ears warm.] (7/3/80) Miriam returned from Boston with a hat I bought her, like the one I bought Robby the week before. The hats are too large for the children unless adjusted to their minimum size. While Peggy ran around with her head submerged in Miriam’s hat (which Robby …

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3V0888.1

3V0880.01 Reading” two words: [That say ‘no’. (in No more tangles)] (6/28/80 and earlier) Miriam reported to me two incidents occurring during my five days in Boston. First, she tricked Peggy. Pointing to the word “No” on the container of “No More Tangles,” Miriam asked if she could read it. Peggy said, “No.” Miriam congratulated …

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3V0882.3

3V0882.03 Reading as VERY specific knowledge: The Calculus Affair (6/22/80) Peggy climbed into a chair with the Tintin book unopened. Pointing to the title on the cover she asked “What’s that name, way up there?” “Calculus,” I answered. Pointing a little lower, she asked, “What’s that name?” My answer was “affair” and finally “The” when …

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3V0880.3

3V0880.03 “Crack” and “bang”: correction by Miriam; that say “Peggy Lawler” Peggy clambered in Gretchen’s lap with “The Calculus Affair.” She read some words to Gretchen, That say ‘crack’; that say ‘crack’; that say ‘BANG’!” How did she ever learn that (“Bang”) ? Miriam explained that while Gretchen and I were off at Guilford Lake’s …

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3V0880.2

3V0880.02 Reading a word/image: lighting & thunder from Tintin Last night, after dinner, Peggy asked to sit in my lap, “Daddy, I sit you.” First we read a Tintin cartoon book that was close at hand (The Calculus Affair). We went over the first few pages identifying the characters (Snowy, Tintin, Captain Hack-uck). I identified …

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3V0880.1

3V0880.01 Using “shame on you” (cf. notes of 6/16) (6/20/80) Last night at supper, Peggy clambered into Robby’s chair while he was in the kitchen. He returned, touched her on the head from behind the chair and asked what she was doing in his chair. Peggy pushed away his hand saying, “Shame on you.” Miriam …

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3V0876.2

3V0876.02 Roots of reading: recapitulation of Benj. Bunny Peggy just said, “Bunny slid [/sit?] down in the road and went to Mister Gregor’s house.” Peggy was, of course, looking at Benjamin Bunny, pp. 10-11. The text is as follows: “as soon as they had passed (The McGregors), little Benjamin Bunny slid down into the road, …

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3V0876.1

3V0876.01 More role articulation: (toilet training) (6/26/80) Peggy has been much engaged with toilet training (mainly from social pressure plus a little direct instruction). For example, when I called home from Boston last week, she was so proud of herself she explained having taken off her coat and dress and that she had pissed in …

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3V0865.1

3V0865.01 Counting with Mimi: alternate counting game (6/5/80) Miriam announced a game she and Peggy have been playing – a game of alternate counting. Miriam and Peg count alternately: M1, P2, M3, P4, M5, P6, M7, P7, M8, P9, M10, P11, M12, P12 6/8 note: Peg fast count from 4-11 by herself in the other …

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3V0862.2

3V0862.02 Beginning reading: reading from Puppies book (6/2/80) reconstructed from a journal entry of 6/2/80 ) When Peggy offered to read to me (“Daddy, I read you”), I joined her on the floor. Her specific reconstruction of three pages via pictures were these: TERRIERS: “Once a morning, puppy want a dig a hole (this reflects …

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3V0862.1

3V0862.01 Roots of reading (6/2/80) Peggy has started reading to us. It began last night when I came to bed and found Peggy reading a Tintin book to herself. She offered to read to me, open[ed] to the first page and began: “once a morning, a ship (was) in the water…” then closed the book …

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3V0856.1

3V0856.01 Anticipating trouble; the unusual is forbidden (5/27/80) Miriam and Peggy were outside. Miriam wanted to go down to the beach without her sister, so she told Peggy that “Mommy wants to speak to you. Peggy headed inside remarking, “Am I in trouble?” Peggy was pestering me mildly as I sat at the table, so …

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3V0852.2

3V0852.02 More imitation: (Bob with cast on leg, using Rob’s boot) (5/23/80) Peggy was playing with one of Miriam’s old cowboy boots. She put it on one foot and stumped around remarking, “I have cow boot. I have a cast on my leg.” [bob had broken his foot on Good Friday, and has had a …

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3V0846.2

3V0846.02 Directed speech: Peggy in multiple roles and reading (5/17/80) Peggy found the other day a toy candy dispenser with a rabbit head on top. Today she sat on the floor, playing with it and reading the Britannica ‘Thinking’ book. She asked the rabbit: Peggy: Wanta read it to me rabbit ? Rabbit: That’s a …

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3V0836.1

3V0836.01 Imitation of role: (bob in chair, chasing away kids) (5/7/80) Peggy was sitting in Bob’s big recliner, reading. When Miriam came along, Peggy said to her, “Go away, Mimi… I trying to work.” At about the same period or slightly later, she chased Robby out of that same chair, telling him to leave because …

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3V0829.1

3V0829.01 Counting; conventional now to six (4/30/80) Robby and I discussed Peggy’s counting and he informs me she counts now beyond four, to six, quite conventionally. He has waked and heard her counting in her crib “one, two, three, four, five, six, nine, ten” This is further evidence of the influence of hide and seek.

3V0827.1

3V0827.01 Reading: naming and describing (4/28/80) When Peggy reads pictures, she primarily identifies, i.e. names the characters. Thus in Richard Scary’s books, she might exclaim, “There’s lowly worm.” Encountering some rarer figure, she asks “Who’s that?” Beyond naming, Peggy has begun to go on to interpretation of the pictures, describing what the character is doing.

3V0825.1

3V0825.01 Words and pictures: [Peggy read pictures. Daddy read words.] (4/26/80) Peggy has taken a fancy to an old issue of National Geographic (she looks through it for the “ladies”). she brings it over to my chair, climbs in my lap, and asks (expects, commands) to be read to. Sometimes I ask her to read, …

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3V0824.2

3V0824.02 Hide and seek (4/25/80) Miriam and Peggy play “hide and seek” — and Peggy’s imitation is prominent. The place she picks to hide is always where Miriam hid immediately before. Counting has resurfaced as an issue in this context. Peggy hides her head and counts (1, 2, 3, 4…) then runs to find Miriam. …

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3V0824.1

3V0824.01 The joke’s on us: [that’s What !] (4/25/80) Upstairs, Peggy called repeatedly: “Mommy…Mommy…Mommy.” A bit annoyed, I called back, “What? What? What?” Peggy instantly replied, “That’s What!”