HOW TO TEACH YOUR BABY TO READ
By Glenn Doman
Reviewed by Marilú Suárez-Murias

As an overly concerned mother, I wanted to find out about games for my daughter that also could serve an educational purpose. In my quest I discovered a fascinating book, “How To Teach Your Baby To Read,” by Glenn Doman. It has opened a new and exciting world for our family. It changed the way we talk to her, the way we play with her, and the way we are seeing and discovering her world through her eyes. And best of all, we are having a lot of fun. I was amazed by the amazing capacity of children to learn beyond the expectations of the adult world and think you will be too.

I have chosen some excerpts from the book to give you a taste of what it contains:
The trouble is that we have made the print too small.

The underdeveloped visual pathway, from the eye through the visual areas of the brain itself, of the one-, two- or three-year-old just can't differentiate one word from another.
For the truth is that tiny children can learn to read. It is safe to say
that in particular very young children can read, provided that, in the
beginning, you make the print very big.

Throughout history there have been isolated but numerous cases of people who have actually taught tiny children to read, and do other advance things, by appreciating and encouraging them.
It is very important to bear in mind that these children had not been found to have high intelligence first and then been given unusual opportunities to learn, but instead were simply children whose parents decided to expose them to as much information as possible at a very early age.

The process of brain growth matches the body growth but is on an even more descending rate. This can be seen clearly when one appreciates the fact that at birth the children's brain makes up 11 percent of the total body weight, while in adults it's only 2.5 per cent.

When the child is five the growth of the brain is 80 per cent complete.

When he is eight the process of brain growth is virtually complete.

During the years between eight and eighty we have less brain growth than we had in the single year ( and slowest of the first eight years) between the ages of seven and eight.

The question as to when to begin to teach a child to read is a fascinating one. When is a child ready to learn anything?

Beyond two years of age, reading gets harder every year. If your child is five, it will be easier than it would if he were six. Four is easier still and three is even easier.

One year of age or younger is the best time to begin if you want to expend the least amount of time and energy in teaching your child to read.

You can really begin the process of teaching your baby right from birth. After all, we speak to the baby at birth–this grows the auditory pathway. We can also provide language through the eye–this grows the visual pathway.

There are two vital points involved in teaching your child:
1- Your attitude and approach
2- The size and orderliness of the reading matter.

Learning is the greatest adventure of life. Learning is desirable, vital unavoidable, and, above all, life's greatest and most stimulating game. The child believes this and will always believe this_ unless we persuade him that it isn't true.

The cardinal rule is that both parent and child must JOYOUSLY approach learning to read as the superb game that it is. The parent must never forget that learning is life's exciting game–it is NOT work. Learning is a reward; it is not a punishment. Learning is a pleasure; it is not a chore; Learning is a privilege; it is not denial.

If you want more information about the book, check the Institute for the Achievement of Human Potential Website at www.iahp.org.