Joseph reads

I have been a little worried about how Joseph will do when he is expected to learn skills in kindergarten. He plays very well with other kids, but he has the rather remarkable ability to resist any and all peer pressure. Even if he sees all of the other kids in his class doing something, he won't copy them unless instructed to do so by an authority figure. He follows rules but he sees absolutely no reason to follow the crowd.
Peer pressure is not necessarily a bad thing--it can be helpful in civilizing kids. A lot of the rules that they follow are reinforced by peers noticing and evaluating each others' behavior. I have been worried that because Joseph doesn't care about achievement relative to other kids, he wouldn't have any motivation to learn structured things.
Although Joseph knows most letter sounds, I have been reluctant to push him to read--as you may have figured out, Joseph is a little contrary, and I didn't want to make an "issue" of it. However, he seems to have figured out how to read! Danny overheard Joseph reading Calvin and Hobbes to himself in bed. We tried to get catch him unawares on video, but Joseph heard the camera.