MY PROFILE
Welcome, Guest.
Please sign in or you can click here to register an account for free.
Did not receive activation email?
Email:
Password:

Refer-a-Friend and earn loyalty points!
FORUM NEWS + ANNOUNCEMENTS
[6 Sep] Get the BEST of BrillKids at a VERY SPECIAL price (for a limited time only!) (More...)

[05 Apr] BrillKids HQ is relocating: there may be minor shipping delays (More...)

[17 Jan] Looking for WINK TO LEARN coupons? New coupons now available for redemption! (More...)

[22 Jul] More SPEEKEE coupons available at the BrillKids Redemption Center! (More...)

[22 Mar] Important Announcement Regarding License Keys and Usage of BrillKids Products (More...)

[26 Feb] MORE Wink to Learn coupons available at the BrillKids Redemption Center! (More...)

[08 Jun] NEW: Vietnamese Curriculum for Little Reader! (More...)

[15 May] Hello Pal Social Language Learning App Has Launched! (More...)

[3 Mar] Update: Hello Pal now Beta Testing! (What We've Been Up To) (More...)

[11 Feb] Sign up for our Little Reader Vietnamese Beta Testing Program! (Sign ups open until FEB. 15, 2015 ONLY!) (More...)

[26 Jan] More Wink to Learn coupons available at our Redemption Center! (More...)

[18 Nov] Get your Arabic Curriculum for Little Reader! (More...)

[21 Oct] EEECF News: Get 30% Off from Hoffman Academy! (More...)

[22 Sep] The EEECF is now registered in the UN and we now accept donations! (More...)

[13 Aug] The Early Education for Every Child Foundation (EEECF) is now a registered charity on AMAZON SMILE! (More...)

[12 Aug] ALL-NEW Transportation & Traffic Category Pack for Little Reader!(More...)

[21 Jul] Get 10% off our NEW Actions and Motions Category Pack for Little Reader! (More...)

[14 Jul] Get 10% off BrillKids Books! IT'S THE BRILLKIDS SUMMER BOOK SALE! (More...)

[25 Jun] BrillKids store and website now available for viewing in Arabic! (More...)

[09 Jun] Get your Russian Curriculum for Little Reader! 10% off introductory price! (More...)

[09 May] Free Little Reader, Price Changes, and Promotional Discounts! (More...)

[28 Apr] Get BabyPlus Discount Coupons at the BrillKids Coupon Redemption Center (More...)

[13 Mar] Get your FREE Chinese Curriculum Update for Little Reader! (More...)

[20 Feb] FINALLY, introducing our Spanish Curriculum for Little Reader! (More...)

[24 Feb] We're looking for Content Checkers and Testers for our Arabic Curriculum! (More...)

[10 Feb] Volunteer with the Early Education for Every Child Foundation (EEECF) (More...)

[24 Jan] Check out our NEW Thai Curriculum Pack for Little Reader! (More...)

[20 Jan] Get Discounts from BrillKids Product Partners! (More...)

[10 Jan] Introducing our New Category Pack: Exotic & Wild Animals! (More...)

[27 Nov] Sign up for our LR Spanish Beta Testing Program (LIMITED SLOTS ONLY!) (More...)

[19 Dec] Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! NOTE: BrillKids office closed on holidays (More...)

[16 Oct] Announcing the WINNERS of our BrillKids Summer Video Contest 2013! (More...)

[04 Oct] Get Little Reader Touch on your Android device! (More...)

[19 Jul] BrillKids products now available for purchase at our Russian Online Store! (More...)

[31 Jul] BrillKids Video Contest Summer 2013 - Deadline EXTENDED to August 31st! (More...)

[20 Jun] Join the BrillKids Video Contest Summer 2013! (More...)

[17 Jun] India Partners: BrillKids products now once again available in India! (More...)

[22 Apr] Little Reader Touch Version 2 Now Available (More...)

[21 Mar] French Curriculum available now for Little Reader! (More...)

[16 Apr] Spain Partners: BrillKids products now Online in Spain! (More...)

[07 Feb] Update to Little Math Version 2 now! (More...)

[07 Feb] Check out the *NEW* BrillKids Downloads Library! (More...)

[27 Feb] Singapore Partners: BrillKids products now Online in Singapore! (More...)

[20 Feb] Vietnam Partners: BrillKids products now Online in Vietnam! (More...)

[22 Jan] Important: About Sharing License Keys (More...)

[07 Nov] Update to Little Reader v3! (More...)

[19 Oct] We're Looking for Translators for our Little Reader Software (More...)

[15 Oct] More Right Brain Kids coupons available at our Redemption Center! (More...)

[25 Sep] CONTEST: Get A Free Little Musician by helping EEECF reach your friends and colleagues! (More...)

[17 Sep] Give a child the gift of literacy this Christmas: 20,000 children need your help! (More...)

[29 Aug] Little Musician wins Dr. Toy Awards! (More...)

[29 Aug] VIDEOS: Perfect Pitch at 2.5y, and compilation of Little Musician toddlers! (More...)

[09 Aug] Get Soft Mozart Coupons from the Points Redemption Center! (More...)

[03 Aug] Welcome NEW FORUM MODERATORS: Mela Bala, Mandabplus3, Kerileanne99, and Kmum! (More...)

[03 Aug] Winners of the Little Reader Video Contest (Part 5)! (More...)

[25 Jul] Bianca's Story - What happens 10+ years after learning to read as a baby/toddler (More...)

[27 Jun] Updates on our Early Education for Every Child Foundation (EEECF) (More...)

[27 Jun] Join the Little Reader Video Contest (Part 5) (More...)

[04 Jun] Being a Successful Affiliate - Now easier than ever before! (More...)

[18 May] LITTLE MUSICIAN - NOW LAUNCHED! (More...)

[30 Apr] Winners of the Little Reader Video Contest! (More...)

[28 Apr] The Early Education for Every Child Foundation - Help Us Make a Difference (More...)

[20 Apr] Little Reader Curricula on your iPad or iPhone - now possible with iAccess! (More...)

[12 Apr] LITTLE MUSICIAN - now in OPEN BETA TESTING (with a complete curriculum) (More...)

[12 Mar] *NEW* Little Reader Content Packs now available! (More...)

[01 Feb] Join the March 2012 Homeschooling Contest: Create a Monthly Theme Unit! (More...)

[27 Jan] Join the BrillKids Foundation as a Volunteer! (More...)

[20 Jan] BrillKids Featured Parent: Tonya's Teaching Story (More...)

[17 Dec] Dr. Richard Gentry joins the BrillKids Blog Team! (Read Interview on Early Reading) (More...)

[08 Dec] Little Reader Touch promo EXTENDED + Lucky Draw winners (More...)

[01 Dec] Affiliate Success Story - How Elle Made $4,527 in Sales in just 30 days (More...)

[22 Nov] Little Reader Touch now available in the App Store! (More...)

[09 Nov] Winners of the September 2011 Video Contest (More...)

[01 Nov] Another free seminar and updates from Jones Geniuses (More...)

[16 Sep] SPEEKEE is now a BrillKids partner product! Get Speekee coupons at the Coupon Redemption Center! (More...)

[02 Sep] Little Reader Wins Another Two Awards! (Mom's Best Award & TNPC Seal of Approval) (More...)

[05 Aug] Little Reader Deluxe Wins the Tillywig Brain Child Award! (More...)

[28 Jul] LITTLE MUSICIAN beta-testing NOW OPEN! - Sign up here. (More...)

[14 Jul] Little Reader Wins Another Award! (PTPA Seal of Approval) (More...)

[13 Jul] Jones Geniuses FREE Seminars & news of Fall classes (More...)

[30 Jun] Little Reader Wins 2011 Creative Child Awards! (More...)

[11 May] The *NEW* Little Reader Deluxe - now available! (More...)

[06 May] Do you blog about early learning? - Join the BrillKids Blogger Team! (More...)

[21 Apr] Aesop's Fables vol. 2 - *NEW* Storybooks from BrillKids! (More...)

[15 Apr] BrillKids Foundation - Help Us Make a Difference (More...)

[08 Apr] Get READEEZ Discount Coupons at the Forum Shop! (More...)

[06 Apr] The new Parents of Children with Special Needs board is now open! (More...)

[06 Apr] Join the Jones Geniuses online workshop for BrillKids members this April 21st! [FULLY BOOKED] (More...)

[04 Apr] Get TUNE TODDLERS Discount Coupons at the Forum Shop! (More...)

[21 Mar] BrillKids Discount Coupons - Finally Here! (More...)

[21 Mar] BrillKids on Facebook... We've MOVED! (More...)

[15 Mar] Get KINDERBACH Discount Coupons at the Forum Shop! (More...)

[08 Mar] WINNERS OF THE VIDEO CONTEST: You, Your Baby and Little Reader Part 2! (More...)

[07 Mar] Please welcome our NEW FORUM MODERATORS: Skylark, Tanikit, TmS, and TeachingMyToddlers! (More...)

[22 Feb] Do you BLOG? Join the BrillKids Blogger Team! (More...)

[11 Feb] Affiliate Program – Use BrillKids Banners to promote your affiliate link in your blogs and websites! (More...)

[31 Jan] Important: Please Upgrade to Little Reader v2.0 (More...)

[26 Jan] BrillKids Blog - Criticisms of Teaching Your Baby To Read (More...)

[21 Jan] Share your Little Reader Success Story! (More...)

[08 Jan] Little Reader available on the iPad today! (More...)

[17 Dec] Aesop's Fables vol. 1 - New storybooks from BrillKids! (More...)

[13 Dec] Infant Stimulation Cards - New at the BrillKids Store! (More...)

[08 Dec] Christmas Sale: Give the gift of learning with BrillKids! (More...)

[29 Nov] Upgrade to Little Reader 2.0 [BETA] Now! (More...)

[19 Nov] Get Discounts for products from JONES GENIUSES! (More...)

[17 Nov] Join the HOMESCHOOLING CONTEST: Create a Monthly Theme Unit! (More...)

[08 Nov] Piano Wizard Academy Offer - Exclusive to BrillKids Members! (More...)

[23 Oct] Should music be a birthright? Is music education for everyone? (More...)

[20 Oct] Introducing the BrillKids Presentation Binder Set! (More...)

[12 Oct]Get to Know Other BrillKids Parents in Your Area (More...)

[14 Sep] Teaching your kids about music - Why is it important? (More...)

[10 Sep] The new ENCYCLOPEDIC KNOWLEDGE Collaborations board is now open! (More...)

[10 Sep] Meet other BrillKids Members In Your Area! (More...)

[27 Aug] Traditional Chinese Curriculum Add-On Pack for Little Reader - Now Available! (More...)

[20 Aug] Little Reader Chinese Curriculum Add-on pack - Now Available! (More...)

[5 Aug] Take Advantage of our Special Affiliate Program Promotion! (More...)

[3 Aug] Encyclopedic Knowledge Categories for FREE, made by all of us! Please join in! (More...)

[16 Jul] WINNERS OF THE VIDEO CONTEST: You, your baby and Little Reader! (More...)

[24 Jun] Be a BrillKids Affiliate and Get Rewarded! (More...)

[24 Jun] Need help from Native Speakers of SPANISH, RUSSIAN and ARABIC for Little Reader curriculum!

[01 Jun] Deadline for Submission of Entries for the LR Video Contest - Extended Until June 30! (More...)

[19 May] Facebook "LIKE" buttons are now in BrillBaby! (More...)

[25 Mar] Introducing the all new Little Reader Deluxe Kit from BrillKids! (More...)

[18 Mar] More Signing Time Coupons available at our Forum Shop! (More...)

[11 Mar] BrillKids Discount Coupons - Coming Soon! (More...)

[09 Mar] Little Math 1.6 and Semester 2 are now available! (More...)

*

Pages: [1] 2   Go Down
Author Topic: Is there room for discussion here?  (Read 18373 times)
Digg del.icio.us
McDume
***
Posts: 123
Karma: 40
Baby: 1




View Profile
« on: March 07, 2010, 10:40:11 PM »

I am interested in this belief that we should force-feed rudimentary education to our kids rather than allowing their cognitive abilities to mature naturally. And especially that it benefits our kids! I don't know what's right or wrong for any one child, I just suspect that teaching babies to mimic words and numbers like an ape and calling that 'learning' is self-deceiving. Good for the parents' egos, but ultimately damaging to the whole child. I have three kids -- 17, 13 and 8. Each has been raised under the tutelage of Janet Lansbury's RIE teachings, which is very much the opposite of the 'Your Baby Can Read' and 'Baby Einstein' school of thought. All three are quite brilliant, confident and authentic, and they don't get any of that from me! So, I assume it's the RIE training.

All that said, am I in the wrong place? Or is there room for discussion here? I'm not looking for a fight.

Logged
McDume
***
Posts: 123
Karma: 40
Baby: 1




View Profile
« Reply #1 on: March 07, 2010, 10:41:44 PM »

By the way, I am going to e-mail janet lansbury that I have potentially opened a can of worms here in case she starts getting unpleasant comments on her blog.

Good luck to us all.

Logged
MySunshine
**
Posts: 62
Karma: 20
Baby: 1




View Profile
« Reply #2 on: March 08, 2010, 01:06:42 AM »

You don't have to worry about Janet Lansbury getting unpleasant comments or emails...there is no reason for her to get anything unpleasant. Her RIE sounds very interesting as matter of fact, it sounds a lot like montessori for babies, which a lot of us here are true believers and have also applied the methods.
As far as "baby can read" and teaching baby math. I really suggest you to read more about the method that is being used and the purpose. I personally don't "force" my baby to learn anything he doesn't want to learn, I wouldn't even know how to do that. I m sure you know that very well being a mother of 3 children, they walk away if they don't like something or they just simply look away. I see these materials as things to stimulate my babys brain. I don't know what else to say, since I can see that you really got a wrong impression of the whole thing. Anyhow, welcome to the forum, please stick around and get to know this forum better.

Logged
McDume
***
Posts: 123
Karma: 40
Baby: 1




View Profile
« Reply #3 on: March 08, 2010, 02:46:47 AM »

Thanks for your response. It's very much appreciated. For the record -- I am the father of 3. Not the mother. Though, no less interested in parenting discussions.

Logged
hypatia
*****
Posts: 761
Karma: 315
Baby: 1



View Profile
« Reply #4 on: March 08, 2010, 02:57:32 AM »

I googled her blog and it seems very interesting.
I agree on many points, and I disagree on some.

I don't think there is room for discussion though as parents will always do what feels right for themselves and their children. I don't think you can change someone's mind, especially virtually. Wink
But the Internet is a great place to learn and discover what other people do.

Logged
Lappy
Mod Mom
*****
Posts: 1801
Karma: 986
Baby: 1



If the world is night, shine my life like a light.


View Profile
« Reply #5 on: March 08, 2010, 03:03:17 AM »

Hi McDume, and welcome to the BrillKids Forum!

Yes, of course, there's always room for discussion, and these types of questions and inquiries are very much welcome here. smile We wouldn't want to discourage any parent (mother or father) from asking questions about whether or not teaching is right for their children, and we are only eager to help you find the answers you are looking for.

Janet Lansbury's RIE classes look very helpful indeed - and I personally think that we believe in the same importance "playing" has in childhood education. smile As MySunshine says, we stress that children should never ever be forced to learn unless they show that they are enjoying it; otherwise, stop lessons temporarily, and look for other ways to make education more fun and interesting to your child.

I hope that you continue to post your opinions here, and we look forward to what you have to say - we have much to learn from your experience as a parent of 3, and perhaps we may have some useful information to offer you as well! happy


Logged

McDume
***
Posts: 123
Karma: 40
Baby: 1




View Profile
« Reply #6 on: March 08, 2010, 03:45:59 AM »

I think my inclination is more RIE - to let babies and toddlers lead the way, to trust their instincts and not interfere by placing our own (parental) aspirations and egos before the child's readiness... in all areas. Physical, emotional and cognititive. The video on Janet's blog post "Infant Play - Great Minds at Work" (or something like that) is quite eye-opening and compelling. The baby learns w/out interference or store-bought edutainment. And the results are clear in the 2-year old's amazing focus and ability. Again, without parental prodding or interference. I don't see where dancing/talking/singing letters and numbers make sense. What happens when the child raised on these videos or DVD's is faced with a book, and the letters aren't entertaining? I have all sorts of theories about the huge increase in Attention Deficit Disorder and videos, but I'm not a doctor, so...

Anyway, thanks for the welcome to this vibrant community.

Logged
KL
The Architect
*****
Posts: 3981
Karma: 596
Baby: 1



I'm a Dad!


View Profile
« Reply #7 on: March 08, 2010, 09:10:59 AM »

Hi McDume,

Welcome to our forum! Thanks for joining and posting your honest opinion - we certainly welcome it!!

One thing we believe firmly is that we should keep an open mind to all things, and that includes ourselves! smile

Having been in this field for a while now, we're quite familiar with many of the objections raised against early learning. Actually, most issues boil down to a misunderstanding of what we're saying, and for the most part, you will find that we actually agree to many things!

What we probably agree with:

1. Babies should not be forced to learn

2. Play is very important to babies

3. Don't just plonk your baby in front of the TV, but take the time to INTERACT with your baby

4. Many parents can and do put excessive pressure on their children, and 'lose the plot'. They forget that the most important thing is that the baby should have fun learning, and to treat it as a bonding opportunity, and that results should not be the focus but be a 'side-effect' if it happens.


What many people don't realize (in our opinion only, of course):

1. Babies can learn skills such as reading even before turning 1 (there's debate related to phonics though, I know - see below)

2. The earlier you teach, the easier it is (Not just because of how the brain develops, but also because as babies, with so little they can do, whatever you show them they would tend to lap it up, compared to later ages where they start to have more and more interests and distractions, by which time it would be so much more difficult to teach.)

3. Therefore the earlier you teach, the more fun and joyful it would be. Many parents (like myself) find that our babies absolutely LOVED the lessons. In my case, Felicity loved it so much I was the one who had to stop the lessons after she went through many categories of words in succession.

4. A lot of the misunderstandings people have often stem from the assumption that it's an 'either/or' scenario, when it is in reality 'both/and'.

For example, "Babies should be playing!"  Well, who says we don't let them play? In fact, not only do they play a lot (like with toys), but esp as babies, as far as the babies are concerned, they are 'playing' when they are learning! In any case, people think that all we do all day is to make them learn, when in reality these lessons take just a few minutes.

"They should learn phonics, not whole words!".  Well, who says we don't teach phonics?
In reference to your saying that babies mimic like an 'ape' and that's not really learning, babies start by learning whole words (they cannot read phonetically at first), but they soon start to decipher the phonetics code themselves intuitively and naturally just like how they decode rules of grammar from just listening to enough of it.  You don't have to specifically teach a native speaker to add an 's' to plural words, for example. After a while, they just 'get it'. Similarly with phonics.  The only difference is that babies can start getting a grasp of reading much ealier than if we rely solely on traditional phonics, and even then, we start to get them to understand phonics on an intuitive level even before we teach them the alphabet (which we eventually will do, of course).

Actually, these issues, as well as many others, are discussed on www.brillbaby.com, as well as in our free ebook "Everything You Need To Know About Teaching Your Baby To Read".

One last issue, regarding 'child-led' or 'parent-led'.  Well, again, why not both?? Why does one have to have a monopoly?  When I teach my daughter, very often it would revolve around the things which interest her. But if that was what I solely relied on, then she would be missing out a great deal of stuff which she may otherwise have been interested in had it been introduced to her. I believe that even the pro-child-led people would agree that parents still have to take the lead to some extent.  If we keep to the principle that learning must remain joyful and fun, then I'm sure you'll find that whether or not you call it child-led or parent-led, it would make little difference (if any at all).

anyway, welcome again, and look forward to hearing more of your thoughts!


« Last Edit: March 08, 2010, 09:15:32 AM by KL » Logged

patreiche
*****
Posts: 767
Karma: 265
Baby: 2




View Profile
« Reply #8 on: March 08, 2010, 09:50:46 AM »

First of welcome to the forum! We welcome new members and I do not think your ideas differ that much from ours.

Now on to the debate! smile

If you read our posts I think you will find we think play is very important.
Our lessons we attempt are only a very small part of the day.
We do not believe in over stimulation but I am not sure we take it to the extreme of the method you suggest.
I do believe that most parents here gear their lessons to their child's interest, otherwise they tend not to pay attention.


I think my first impression about the method you suggest must be wrong. You do not want to stimulate the child at all? You do not want to teach anything? You want the child to learn everything on their own? Is this your method? Many children have been raised this way and these are the very children the system tries to find and help because they are way behind in their development. Certainly they will be independent, because they have not been nurtured at all.


I think all children are different. Children have a wide variety of interest. I do not think any one method of teaching will work for all. For the best benefit a wide variety of methods should be used. Early education is important and love and nurturing is equally important. I certainly think that a certain amount of free time for the child to explore is important.

Even though this group promotes early education, we do not promote torturing the child with endless lessons. I am sure as with any system a parent can overdo it. I think for the most part the parents and grandparents here are a group of very caring individuals that only want to provide the best opportunities for their children. I would say the best method is a mixture of both methods. I think that most parents here probably incorporate sometime for what you suggest. My first impression of the method you suggest is that the child could use a little more nurturing and a little guidance on learning. I do not think all children are capable of learning totally on their own.

« Last Edit: March 08, 2010, 01:05:57 PM by patreiche » Logged

McDume
***
Posts: 123
Karma: 40
Baby: 1




View Profile
« Reply #9 on: March 08, 2010, 05:10:25 PM »

Okay, I was going to leave this alone, but since you've been nice enough to take the time to respond... 

My goal as a father has always been to nurture active learning -- but NOT teach. It just seems that when we try to accelerate any aspect of our babies' natural development, we risk undermining the next.

Babies and toddlers are intrinsically motivated to learn. This has been my experience as a dad, and my observation with scores of other infants and toddlers in Janet Lansbury's parenting classes. The long-term studies I've read (certainly not exhaustive, but I have seen a few over the years) suggest that aggressive early teaching can create a relationship of distrust between parent and child, low self-esteem as they mature, and any academic advantage disappears by 3rd grade (U.S.). I can probably pull those studies up if anyone's interested.

Can you point me to any long term scientific study that supports the kind of immersive early education you advocate? 

Logged
PY
*****
Posts: 905
Karma: 278
Baby: 1




View Profile
« Reply #10 on: March 08, 2010, 06:39:58 PM »

Hi McDume,
I agree in some points with you, not all of them. Like you said it is important to GUIDE THE CHILD in his childhood like Maria Montessori said I practice some Montessori with my two years old...I think is important children to discover nature in a experimental way. I totally agree with that.
I am going to answer from my personal experience with my daughter, since she was a baby her favorite toys are books..even if I never told her that. She discovered they are fun for her that is why she calls them toys, same think with her flashcards. She loves to find words she can read in the books points at them and she claps her hands...etc..
Like I said she has fun practicing and signing her phonics, she asks me to practice with her.
As many books as we can read we probably never  have an answer. wHY? Children are different, they learn in different ways, I DO NOT FORCE MY CHILD TO SIT IN A CHAIR AND LEARN HER ALPHABET and if she doesn't know it I get mad and frustrated!!
Like Janet Lansbury's says in her blog. I respect her opinion but It is important to be able to open your mind in new ways that let you try new activities with your children besides watching a ball roll in a carpet which I do evryday with my daughter.

We have fun learning to read and recognize words maybe you should try and you will understand a little bit more.I can give you ideas to start from.
It is easy to talk about something we don't know ....we haven't experiment...it is easy to let our children play with plastic toys all day long...but also it is funner to spent time with them in the floor and play with toys and other tools that help her undertanding better the world.


YOU SAID: I have three kids -- 17, 13 and 8. Each has been raised under the tutelage of Janet Lansbury's RIE teachings, which is very much the opposite of the 'Your Baby Can Read' and 'Baby Einstein' school of thought. All three are quite brilliant, confident and authentic, and they don't get any of that from me! So, I assume it's the RIE training.

This is what I mean Every child is different , every father and mother at the end beleive their child is the smartest child in the world.

Again this is only my point of view. I respect yours and I agree in some points, I have read tons of books, I have read every books talks about Montessori Program I could found in my town library and amazon as well. And I promise I will review more the REI training to educate myself better about that topic.

Thank you so much for giving us your point of view and your time.
Karma to you
py

« Last Edit: March 08, 2010, 09:33:39 PM by PY » Logged
McDume
***
Posts: 123
Karma: 40
Baby: 1




View Profile
« Reply #11 on: March 08, 2010, 07:33:38 PM »

Hi PY! Thanks so much for your POV... I just did a little reading on Maria Montessori, and it seems her very clear admonition to parents was: "Follow the child". And, yes, that is precisely what RIE suggests and what I learned in RIE parenting classes.

Also, for the record, I don't believe "my children are the smartest in the world". But I am satisfied that they reach their full cognitive potential, and as they have gotten older, they have retained a natural hunger for learning, are inquisitive, and confident enough to ask questions and make mistakes. I believe that is because they have never had to perform for my wife or me. 

Again, I would be very interested in any research that exists demonstrating positive longterm results from 'teaching' babies. I have never found anything but will admit maybe I haven't looked hard enough. 

Help?

Logged
DadDude
*****
Posts: 977
Karma: 380




View Profile
« Reply #12 on: March 08, 2010, 08:24:11 PM »

There is certainly room for discussion here.  But saying "I'm not looking for a fight" is very ironic in a post in which you accuse the people you're talking about of "force-feeding" knowledge to their children, of going against "nature" (whatever that means), of self-deception, of damaging their children for their own egos--well, brother, it looks to me like you have started the fight.  But maybe you did not know that these are fightin' words.  They are all assumptions you're making, which some of us think about a lot, but apparently, you didn't know that.  Anyway, if you actually believe all these things, you’ll find that you’ll have to make your case.  You think that showing flash cards to a child who requests them, or who responds happily to them, is force-feeding?  Why do you think so?

Quote
Again, I would be very interested in any research that exists demonstrating positive longterm results from 'teaching' babies. I have never found anything but will admit maybe I haven't looked hard enough.

I couldn't agree more.  Everything is so disappointingly anecdotal; educationists and psychologists, whom you would think would be interested in studying the phenomenon, haven’t taken it up.  Why not?  Perhaps it's because, if they find that these programs do work, they will have to rethink a lot of what they think they know in these fields.

Anyway, though, Robert Titzer of Your Baby Can Read fame has told me he knows of four studies under way, and the non-profit that I work for is in planning stages for another.


« Last Edit: March 08, 2010, 08:40:40 PM by DadDude » Logged

Larry Sanger - http://www.readingbear.org/
How and Why I Taught My Toddler to Read:
http://www.larrysanger.org/reading.html
Papa to two little boys, 6 and 1
Nikita
*****
Posts: 1128
Karma: 371
Baby: 6



Mother of 6 Gifted kids


View Profile
« Reply #13 on: March 08, 2010, 09:25:14 PM »

All I know is my parents unwittingly followed the method you love, leaving me to occupy myself with minimal resources, and I feel very disappointed they did not make more of an effort with me. I feel they did not love me and value me enough to go beyond that "no effort on their part" approach. Free play has it's place Some of the time, every day, but I would happily have chosen flash cards and musical instruments and sign language video watching if they had been offered to me. BUt of course, they weren't. And I was to babyish, uneducated and physically incapable of sourcing these resources for myself. Why do I do these things for my kids? It's because I wish that's what my parents had cared enough to do for me. I envy my kids their wide variety of resources!!
And I aim to be a better parent than my parents. My older kids did not receive the resources my younger kids receive, though still far more than I received, and they envy their younger siblings!!

Logged
hypatia
*****
Posts: 761
Karma: 315
Baby: 1



View Profile
« Reply #14 on: March 08, 2010, 10:49:00 PM »

"My goal as a father has always been to nurture active learning -- but NOT teach."

Did you ever sing to your child? did you even told them 'this is a yellow flower', or 'give me your left hand'?
All this is called teaching. Whenever you interact with a child, the moment she is born, you are teaching, and your baby soaks all the information. So our difference is simply whether we want to teach them a little or more...

My daughter watches a few Little Reader slides once a day (for about 4 minutes), when she asks for it and we cuddle, and sees animals, listens to the sound they make and gets to see written words! Should I NOT show her a written word because governments worldwide decided a child should learn how to read at 5 or 6? But then is it OK with your theory to teach her the name of an animal or its sound? Shouldn't I wait until a teacher does the work for me?

People who usually say things such as 'let kid be kid' have this idea that teaching & learning is boring (because painful: you play for 5 years of your life and all of a sudden you are meant to stay still in a classroom and pay attention to things you couldn't care less about!) and relates to bad memories from school they'd rather spare their children from ('He'll have enough of this once he goes to school..')

The idea for me is that once my daughter has a great grasp of maths for example (which i don't, and i suffer now as an adult) then 'learning' won't be a painful experience linked to failure, and her life will be facilitated.

I speak two languages and chose to teach her both (and even a third) so that I never get to hear in the future 'Why didn't you teach me French? I so wish i could speak another language..' I hear grown-up saying this all the time...




Logged
Pages: [1] 2   Go Up
 
Jump to:  

Recent Threads

by newassignmentau, September 29, 2023, 09:52:09 AM
by jasminfernandes, August 18, 2023, 05:42:02 AM
by Annasprachzentrum, August 02, 2023, 08:27:26 PM
by Brileydavis, February 07, 2023, 07:31:40 AM
by justin robinson, January 18, 2023, 12:01:12 PM
by justin robinson, January 18, 2023, 11:26:28 AM
by justin robinson, January 18, 2023, 11:17:08 AM
by justin robinson, January 18, 2023, 11:02:35 AM
by justin robinson, January 18, 2023, 09:45:06 AM
by Thepharmacity, January 04, 2023, 06:12:34 AM
by Sara Sebastian, December 20, 2022, 02:04:21 PM
by Kays1s, December 05, 2022, 02:02:24 AM
by ashokrawat1256, November 11, 2022, 04:54:21 AM
by farnanwilliam, October 22, 2022, 04:12:41 AM
by berryjohnson, February 05, 2020, 12:41:49 PM
Page: 1/4  

Recently Added Files

tamil - months by BhavaniJothi, Dec. 05, 2019
More Shapes - More shapes not originally included in L... by Kballent, Oct. 23, 2019
test1 - test by SSbei, Sep. 08, 2019
Purple Foods - I made some lessons with colored food f... by Kballent, Aug. 07, 2019
Green Foods - I made some lessons with colored food f... by Kballent, Aug. 07, 2019
Yellow Foods - I made some lessons with colored food f... by Kballent, Aug. 07, 2019
Orange - I made some lessons with colored food f... by Kballent, Aug. 07, 2019
Red Food - I made some lessons with colored food f... by Kballent, Aug. 07, 2019
White Foods - As part of Color Themes I made some less... by Kballent, Aug. 07, 2019
Fruits & veggies mascots - This is Polish \"must have\" mascots :) ... by Agnole, Feb. 24, 2018
Page: 1/3  

Members
Stats
  • Total Posts: 110526
  • Total Topics: 19136
  • Online Today: 522
  • Online Ever: 826
  • (January 22, 2020, 12:09:49 AM)
Users Online
  • Users: 0
  • Guests: 435
  • Total: 435

TinyPortal v1.0.5 beta 1© Bloc

Powered by MySQL Powered by PHP Powered by SMF 1.1.19 | SMF © 2013, Simple Machines

Valid XHTML 1.0! Valid CSS! Dilber MC Theme by HarzeM
Home | File Downloads | Search | Members | BrillBaby | BrillKids | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy
Copyright © 2024 BrillKids Inc. All rights reserved.