When I was pregnant with my first baby, I discovered the work of Glenn Doman in the book Teach Your Baby to Read. I found it very intriguing and decided to experiment with it. It was by no means a perfect experiment, since I did nowhere near everything Doman recommends, but it was enjoyable enough that I repeated it with my second.
The basic premise is that babies can learn anything you present to them simply, repeatedly, quickly, and joyously. This includes reading, math, physical skills from crawling and running to gymnastics and swimming, manners, conflict resolution skills, and anything else you can think of. The biggest trick is the consistency. Doman recommends teaching one very simple example (one number, one letter or word, one somersault, etc) up to ten times a day for about a month. Yes, each item only takes seconds (simple and quick, remember), but remembering ten times a day? Yikes!
So I have never done a total Doman program, but I've tried with each baby to do something. It fits my criteria: I enjoy teaching it and they enjoy learning it. But I do better at some times than others, and since my third baby was born I've done almost nothing. It's taken me almost 6 months to even think doing Doman might be possible.
But there have been several threads on the BrillKids forum lately about the benefits of Doman, so I'm trying again. My new weapon: Habit RPG. This website/app lets you track daily habits by clicking a plus every time you do it or a minus when you miss an opportunity, as well as daily tasks and one time to do items. You get rewards for the good and lost points for bad things, and it's just the motivation I need right now.
So my Habit RPG avatar now bases its survival on how I do with ten baby educational programs a day, three for my toddlers, and several physical activities. For three days I've been doing very well. We'll see how it goes in the long haul.
(If you're interested in learning more about Doman, try reading the book Fit Baby, Smart Baby, Your Baby.)
The basic premise is that babies can learn anything you present to them simply, repeatedly, quickly, and joyously. This includes reading, math, physical skills from crawling and running to gymnastics and swimming, manners, conflict resolution skills, and anything else you can think of. The biggest trick is the consistency. Doman recommends teaching one very simple example (one number, one letter or word, one somersault, etc) up to ten times a day for about a month. Yes, each item only takes seconds (simple and quick, remember), but remembering ten times a day? Yikes!
So I have never done a total Doman program, but I've tried with each baby to do something. It fits my criteria: I enjoy teaching it and they enjoy learning it. But I do better at some times than others, and since my third baby was born I've done almost nothing. It's taken me almost 6 months to even think doing Doman might be possible.
But there have been several threads on the BrillKids forum lately about the benefits of Doman, so I'm trying again. My new weapon: Habit RPG. This website/app lets you track daily habits by clicking a plus every time you do it or a minus when you miss an opportunity, as well as daily tasks and one time to do items. You get rewards for the good and lost points for bad things, and it's just the motivation I need right now.
So my Habit RPG avatar now bases its survival on how I do with ten baby educational programs a day, three for my toddlers, and several physical activities. For three days I've been doing very well. We'll see how it goes in the long haul.
(If you're interested in learning more about Doman, try reading the book Fit Baby, Smart Baby, Your Baby.)
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