Kid Research

I’m a bit perplexed at the moment.  In the weekly newsletter posted online on my son’s kindergarten class website, the teacher announced a project for All Saints Day on November 1 (it’s a Catholic school).  He has to pick a saint from a predetermined list, sign up for it, and then learn as much as he can about it.  My son has a good memory, but as far as I know it’s good for remembering where we parked the car at the mall and other random bits of information that don’t really have a point.  His mid-quarter report stated otherwise, as he got pretty good marks in everything.  But I still question a 5-year-old’s ability to learn (and remember) everything he or she can about something, then verbalize it or act it out with only about a week and a half of preparation.  I’m good at researching and writing papers or reports – but I can read, write, and mostly understand probably many of the words in the English dictionary to some extent.  My son can only read and understand the words: I, the, can, like, we – and those aren’t enough words to even make a coherent, whole sentence.

How do you best convey a message?  Do you think in pictures or words?  I guess I’m going to have to start thinking in pictures!  This is going to be tough.