early learning - reading, math, music ...

Hi everyone

I just joined the forum and I have a daughter born in April 2008. I'm looking to find friends who have same interest of teaching our kids from early age.

Research has shown that the most important years for a person is the first 6 years. Bear with me through this summary of info. This is not advertising. I just want to build a group of parents with same interest so we can chat and share research. please contact me if you are interested.

Summary of the method for early learning:

The first 6 years are most important in a human life. It's when the baby is developing the fastest, absorbing the biggest. It's when links between left and right brain are created. It's also the time when these links could die, and certainly die out of lack of usage and stimulation in most cases in this world.

We probably use only up to 5% of our brain and miss out the 95% capacity that our babies could potentially use.

Brain grows by use, so we can still 'grow' our brain. Of course the best time to do such thing is between 0 to 6.

When first born, a baby's brain is right-brain dominant. As he/she grows, he/she will become more and more switched on to left brain. Around 5-6, most children are left brain dominant.

Right brain is for instand memory, visual images, creativity, intuition ... Left brain is for logic, deduction, speech...

Right brain is like a hard drive in a computer, left brain is like RAM. Links between the two sides of the brain are required to draw out what is in the storage (right brain).

To a baby just being born, his/her parents' mother tongue or any other language is the same to him/her, basically a foreign language. There are no limitation of how many languages a baby can learn.

The younger the child, the easier to teach (to read, math, knowledge, languages etc...).

Until 3 or 3 and a half, babies can perceive quantities perfectly. They can tell the difference in 2 pictures of 88 dots and 89 dots. After that age, most children lose that ability.

Famous pioneers in this school of thoughts (right brain teaching or whole brain teaching) are: Montessori (Italian), Doman (USA), Shichida (Japan). They are all famous for their success with children. Doman started working with children with mental disability (over 50 years). He founded an institution teaching problematic children and teaching parents to teach their children to read and do math at an early age. He also wrote some excellent books which I purchased.

Doman focuses on reading, math, and encyclopedic knowledge. There are also materials on multilanguage. They don't do much marketing. And his books are great on details of techniques.

Shichida probably is the most recent pioneer. He opened a series of schools in Japan, then expanded to Singapore, Malaysia,USA . Parents and children go to these schools probably once a week for 1 hour or so, attending the class and practice at home everyday. These schools are very expensive from what I read.

Shichida method involves developing both sides of the brain in a range of activities, and not just focusing on reading or mathematics. Other areas of the mentioned 6 inner senses include perfect pitch music, intuition, multilanguage, instant computerised calculation,...

Shichida wrote numerous books but in Japanese with a few translated into English and Chinese. However from what I heard and read, no details of techniques and the How to do are clear in his books. For that reason I did not purchase his books.

Montessori appeared to be before Doman and Shichida. She is the pioneer of a series of pre-school learning (half childcare in the sense that children can be there half day or full day every weekday). These Montessori schools are the only of this teaching method in New Zealand. Depending on the location, it could be very expensive to attend. However there are a lot of good feedback about them. Montessori schools in NZ are also only for children 2 years and up.

The core of a reading and math program following this method is to flash cards at a rapid rate in agreement with brain wave (=alpha wave). The letters should be bold, big, clear, presented with a loud clear voice so babies can see and can hear. The size is very important.

Math is to be taught in quantities before symbols.

Whole words are to be taught before alphabet.

Play is essential. Learn = play, play = learn. Both teacher and children must be in good mood, relaxing for the session to be effective. Stop if not and do the lesson later. To a child, learning is playing.

Facts are to be presented, not fiction. Babies take everything you present as facts, so you don't want to distort his/her perception of things. e.g. don't present a cartoon character of a frog and tell the child it's a frog.

There are whole heaps more of details in the books.

Now we have 2 parents already following this method in South Auckland.

Now we are planning not just teach our children to read or do simple math, but also mutiple languages, music, art, and vast knowledge of other things (science, astrology, biology,...). and we are planning to do it now and for our babies to learn as much as possible before school age.

Happy parenting

Workingmum, I think you posted a very similar thread a few weeks back, do you realise you could have just run a search and "bumped" it up?

thanks for this info. I was reading about montessori online. I want to make sure that my dd learns as much as she can while playing, so once she's at school age learning is already easy, effortless & most importantly, FUN

Formal traditional teaching style doesn't work for many children which is very sad.

If you have any links to share about what I can do now for my dd I would really appreciate it

Oh maybe I get to the right place now, I was starting to think maybe it's time to give up on finding someone with similar interest on early learning.

Flutterby you can ring that Montessori school and ask them, from my last research they take children 2 year up. Montessori schools overseas takes children early than that, as early as 3-6 months if I remember correctly.

http://www.montessori.org.nz/Auckland
this is the link to montessori schools in Auckland, but I know there is one in Highland Park and it's not listed there???
I have just rung 2 pre-school, they both open 8.45am to 3.15pm, both about $45 a day for the fee, but one takes 2 year old, the other takes 3year old and up. They both allow ECE 20 hours.

I can't take it as I work full time, and they can't tell me any particular reasons why the hours is not full time care.

Someone told me you have to visit and check them out though because some say they are Montessori but not really.

The one I checked a few months earlier is really expensive, something like $1700 for a week of half day (either morning or afternoon).

belindajane

If you are in Auckland and want to come to look at the books and DVD, software I've got, you are welcomed. (I'm not a seller nor a distributor, but a user). It could give you a better understanding of how to do it with your baby.

I've stumbled over this method on the net one day a few months back and I've considered myself lucky since then. My baby has been enjoying it and recently starting to show her comprehension, which is encouraging to me. The method actually advises you not to test your child, and stating that it could take years to show that your investment in your child is paying off.

My daughter shows her comprehension of words I have been showing her (like nose, teeth, eye, hair, duck, apple, point, kick, stand, etc...) even though she can not speak them out yet (except the word apple since it seems easier to say something starting with a to her). She laughs, dances, wiggles when she sees something funny or of great interest to her on screen (like music notes, dots, addition, animals, etc). She goes to get a chair to sit down when I put Tweedle Wink in the DVD player or Wink to learn. She dance and laugh with classical music. Well the list gets longer every week and I'm happy with it.

It's an investment alright, but your kids' education will always be an investment right? only now or later. and I'm all for the now if it is going to ease my baby's way in life later, or having fun learning it.

it's quite lengthy to go into the How to do, I sum up some of it in the first post. But with your baby (4 months right?) it's probably the best time to start. And you can start with infant stimulation, which is explained quite well either in Doman's book How smart is your baby or the brillbaby.com site.

One technique is to turn on and off light 10 times each session, few sessions a day in a dark room after letting your baby's eyes adjust to the darkness first. It is to stimulate the development of the eyes - Doman's book.

Another technique is to make a big foam or poster board with black and white square in big big size (I can't remember the size instruction from the book). You place this board near your baby or put your baby on it all waking hours, especially tummy time.

Lots of tummy time too.

Make big boards with red dots in it (again need to check the size from the book). That is to stimulate baby's eyes and introduce baby to quantity from 1 to 7.

And of course lots of classical music of good quality even when she sleeps.

One top rule: stop when either you or your baby not relaxed, grumpy or sick. You want her to like it, enjoy it, waiting for lessons.

[QUOTE=workingMom] I have been worried about when my baby is at school age too because the school system does not look fun to lots of people I know (I did not go to school here so can not tell though the school system from where I came from is much worse in presuring and stressing little people)./QUOTE]

I find this a very odd statement as all the kids i see at schools look like they are having fun. Have you been into a school classroom or walked past them at lunchtime? Ask to go and see your local school, peek into the classrooms and you'll no doubt see happy kids.

The pressure is very minimal and the system you are proposing sounds much more pressured than the environment at a school. Kids can pick up on parents anxieties and pressures about development so i would worry that all that focus on it from such a young age by the mum will make the kids feel pressured.

Kids develop through life - experience and mistakes and play. Can you see a difference in the kids under your system when they are 25, 35, 45 than kids who didn't do it? Are they happier and better adjusted?

Sorry it is just my opinion but i'm of the opposite opinion to you in terms of baby and toddlers' development and learning. I want my little ones to just be exposed to a normal life experiences and naturally develop from it. I think if you have to study and structure that then you're creating an unnatural situation and yes pressure for them. In Europe kids don't start school till 7 as they are still considered too young and yet they develop into adults of similar intellect to us.

Good luck to you though, it shows that you really love your child and want the best for them and that is too much sorely lacking today in NZ.

Crafty1 I see you are pregnant. Congratulations and enjoy!

I understand your view and I believe that a mother's intuition is best for the child. Everyone is different and you know what is best for your baby.

Sorry I mean not fun to "adults" not children. The parents I talked to told me stories of their children picking up bad habits, about drugs sold at primary school, about children got pressured to perform well at sport when they have not the physics nor interest, about their kids got bullied etc...

What I meant was that where I came from, the education system is worse because they put huge workload on children so the children hardly have time left for play. And they still have those above problems since it appears like modern day problems.

I do however don't want my daughter feeling presured to play sport to be "in" if she does not want to. My family is not known for sport orientation.

I also want my daughter to be knowledgeable. She is at the age of being able to absorb things like a sponge (Montessori words ;-) So if she can and she like it, why not provide her with the means to achieve it? One of the core rules of the method is not to force the child, but follow his/her pace. However children learn much much faster than us, so we should not go slow as it will bore them.

Parents told me that the homeschooled chidren they know behave very well, appear to be very bright and more knowledgeable than a standard school kid, and does not look to have a problem with social skills either. So I want to find out more.

I've been lonely at school for being different, and I've been bullied at school too. So I want to explore ways of avoiding that happen to my baby.

I also want to see grown ups who have gone through the method I am following, but I have not met any so can not tell. You could hear stories all over the world though, but you do not see it with your own eyes, and it will always be something of concern. At the end you will have to pick up one method to follow. There are people who going the same road with your, or not. I guess there is no right or wrong way. I think it only matters that we make a concious choice.

Actually the IAHP has done this for more than 50 years, so I suppose if we live in US or visit the institute we could actually talk to people who were early generation kids of the method. then we can judge for ourselves whether it suits us.

For pressure to our kids because we want them learn early, my daughter actually love it and ask for more. It does not take much of their time for flashcard lessons since each lesson is like 1 minute. Presure is more on us parents to prepare materials, and to research, that is time consuming. Words, and math dots, and arts, and poems, and music are all new and fun to little kids. Visit to the zoo or park or farm to see what they see on pictures is fascinating.

For other stimulation, they are usually games themselves. We are advised by Plunket to put our baby on tummy time whenever possible. Doman enforced that view in his book. Here and there I can see a lot of similarities. Doman just broght it to the next level though. i'm trying to relay what's in his book though I don't think I'm very good at it. He believed our kids' development is a result of stimulation they are exposed to, not a result of pre-scheduled timetable nor genetic things. he put quite a few examples and stories in his books, which would be too much to tell here. One example though is the ability of kids with brain damage at the institute who could outperform their peers at standard schools.

One of the parents at the forum at brillkids.com just shared that her toddler can write now at 2 years of age. She played games with progressive levels with her baby to develop her finger coordination.

parents there have been sharing amazing results, and they are just normal parents like us. And they have nothing to gain to tell us their stories.

All that talk, if my baby does not enjoy the lessons I prepare or purchase for her, I would drop it and not force her. It does more damage forcing her.

Happy parenting.

workingMom, thanks for all those links! Will have fun checking them out.

my #1 priority for Layla is for her to have the best possible exposure to learning through fun activities.

Being taught to is boring in my opinion, but learning is fun!!

I have a background in accelerated learning, so understand RB vs LB. and yes, most kids are having fun in the classrooms at primary school, but honestly I doubt the majority are having fun while learning once they hit intermediate and college.

I'm a product of the nz education system. I'm a smart cookie, but not from my schooling. I've just always believed I can learn anything I put my mind to, as long as I'm having fun. I remember college as being downright boring. sad but true.

I just want to give Layla the best start I can, and not by pushing her into academia or hoping to create a "gifted" child. Just by utilising the wonderful and miraculous brain she has to it's fullest

I love learning about how the brain works, and seeing Layla "tick" is soooo exciting! Everyday I see her making new connections, processing new experiences, memories. And I also see when her mind is switched off so to speak. In adult terms, bored. That is what I want to make sure I don't do to her. imagine it. boring your child, who has a brain exactly like a sponge. Such a crime!

ok, i'll stop babbling now and get some sleep haha

belindajane

you may have a go with doman's book How smart is your baby then, lots of games to do with your baby under 1 year old.

and yes it's so nice to watch your baby. everyday there is something new.

new things appear always interesting to my daughter. when I see her seem bored, I just change the lesson. Call them lessons but they are actually interesting even to me. You can watch sample of lessons on youtube most of the time.

Flake

I'm not trying to raise a gifted kid, I am trying to raise a balanced kid who maybe able to have a wider and easier choice of career/pursuit and interest in life. I'm trying to provide her with knowledge just because she can take it and enjoy taking it. Actually I want her to be strong, healthy, and good at physical sides/sport e.g. swimming, gymnastic, sport whatever. However i'm sadly lacking in this department so will have to find some help.

I'm not sure how 'gifted' get defined here, but I hope "gifted' could also be 'balanced'. I have no desire to see my kid struggling socially, no matter she is gifted or not.

talking about gifted, I'm not gifted material, but I did study my high school years at a 'gifted' school. So I breathed among gifted students. Most of them seemed fine to me, no problem socially. I know quite a few of them now enjoying their lives just like us. Only the mathematics 'gifted' looked a bit older and odd at that time to me, I thought they were univesity students visiting... haha. The few very gifted I knew (won international prizes etc..., if you are to classify them) they have a very good sense of humour and I enjoyed talking to them.

caitlynsmygirl

The school is at Botany, if I remember correctly it's the one opposite the mall, but don't quote me on that, I heard it from another parent, not from anyone from the school itself.

about good behaviour, I agree that it mainly comes from parenting. still worry though of bad influence, i suppose because now I'm a parent, worrying about everything.

I better go to sleep now before it's daylight already.

Hi workingMom another alternative school system you might want to check out is Rudolf Steiner. They have a complete system from kindy right through to high school. I'm not sure if they take under 2 year olds. I've been trying to decide between Montessori and Steiner.

http://www.michaelpark.school.nz/

Oops just noticed this is from years ago.

Stupid spam...

Edited by HaumoanaNZ - 25 July 2013 at 1:33pm