"Literacy Begins At Birth"

[MaryLang]

Its a book by Marjorie Fields from like 1989. Anyone heard of it. I just started reading and we already do a lot of reading ect, to the kids. But I was surprised by the connection between this book and a lot of AP and GD ideas.

[MaWhit]

Nope, never read it.

[phroggies]

Me neither. Can you summarize?

[MaryLang]

Well, I haven't read too far into it, but very interesting. Teaching literacy through the common developmental stages kids go through, a lot of learn by example. For young kids, things like read to them a lot, don't correct they're vocabulary rather repeat it back elaborated, creative play, lots of blocks, water, sand, play dough, nature. And early writing skills, without teaching the conventional way, ABC's. Mostly learning by example. Like I said I have got too far in, mostly reading the toddler chapters as my kids are still pretty young. But so far a good read.
Goes from Infancy to maybe 1st/2nd grade.

[Tera_&_Gibson]

Sounds interesting! I had never heard of it. I'll have to see if the library has it.

[lisarussell]

I was very surprised when I read "teach your baby to read" by Glenn Doman that it didn't conflict with AP/ unschooling.

I think a better title for the book would have been "Give them words."

Basically, the book points at neurological development of synapses in the baby's brain saying whatever stimulates the baby's brain makes connections.

Our written language, however, is small. Babies can't focus on it. No connection, they just don't see it.

Let them see words.

The book instructs parents to make giant word cards, and flash them in front of the babies for a total of like 2 minutes a day, in 20-30 second intervals.

Personally, I just labeled mine around the house because I was too much of a slacker to remember to flash them.

No quizzing, no testing, you're just showing them words, the same way you'd point out a dog or a cloud or an airplane or a banana.

The kids of mine who have done the baby reading thing learned to read so much faster than the ones who didn't. It's like they already had the connection that our spoken words and written words went together.

Madelyn is 4 and she is reading and spelling now phonetically (And it's not a phonics based program)

Gabriella is 6 and also went through her phonics program quickly. I actually did the cards thing with her for a while, and her learning-to-read was no more impressive than Madelyn, who just had the words posted around the house.

Grace is 2. We'll see. She recognizes the arches of McDonalds, and the store logos and signs (a skill whick operates on the same brain synapse-connection-system as the word cards)

The title of that book, though is horrible- and I know it turns a lot of people off.

I can't wait to check out the other one you mentioned.

I think kids have so much more potential than we give them credit for. Once a person can read, the world is theirs for the exploring. Struggling to learn to read is traumatic for so many kids & parents. Planting early synapses / brain connections can't damage them and doesn't conflict with any of the other interactions we have with our babies. Give them words. It's so easy.

[Aeress]

I haven't read the book but I believe in the concept "literacy begins at birth." Remember the days of reading Goodnight Moon two billion times? Remember the days of asking "why" over and over? Children are born with the ability to acquire language and literacy, we just need to be available to them when they show interest. (and those two things tend to be linked)

[MaryLang]

lisarussel, I 'll have to check that one out too. I'll have to get farther into it, but this book does not encourage flash cards, nothing very structured, kind of let the child's own pace lead you. But I'd like to read all aspects of this developmental area.

Letting the kids dictate stories to you and then letting them see and read it back to them, as they get older having them help you read recipes as they help you cook. Just guiding them as to what reading and writing is for, I guess- off to finish this book up .

[Lillian J]

Just by way of introducing further food for thought, I'll mention that in the Waldorf world, the written world is not considered so appropriate as a focus for very young children so much as the spoken word and being told stories orally. Here's an interesting article: There's More to Reading than Meets the Eye (a little pun there). I'm not a Waldorf advocate - my son went to the kindergarten, and we moved on to other things - but I definitely see some wisdom and thought provoking ideas in the mix.

Lillian