Teaching your baby to read -@ P & C Show
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Forum Name: General Chat
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URL: https://www.ohbaby.co.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=22148
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Topic: Teaching your baby to read -@ P & C Show
Posted By: RunningT
Subject: Teaching your baby to read -@ P & C Show
Date Posted: 02 November 2008 at 8:44pm
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Did anyone go to the seminar from Dr Robert Titzer regarding teaching your baby to read.
I thought it was VERY interesting as a first time mother to be... especially when the child behind me starting reacting and reading along to the DVD being shown. The programme was expensive and I wondered if you could make some aspects of it yourself? Has anyone used this system? My impression of the show... holy heck you could spend a billion dollars if you had them  Oh and how many emails, phone calls, brochures am I going to be sent or receive after entering all those competitions ------------- 
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Replies:
Posted By: music_mummy
Date Posted: 02 November 2008 at 9:39pm
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I'm personally that keen for my child to be reading much before they go to school. I think as long as they can recognise the letters and some of the sounds that are associated with them they're on the right track.
If they know too much before they go to school it can actually disadvantage them since many schools just don't have the resources to assist advanced students. I am a teacher myself (in music so not the most informed when it comes to new entrants literacy) and often it's the advanced students that are naughty cause they get bored. I hope to let my kids be kids while they can and I'm sure you will teach them many important things without even trying through reading them books and singing songs at home. -------------   
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Posted By: BuzzyBee
Date Posted: 02 November 2008 at 9:48pm
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Well said Music Mummy - Infact I couldn't agree more. Lucas LOVES his nursery rhymes/songs and storybook time ...but I think kids learn best when they're left to explore and find things out for themselves.
Don't get me wrong, I'd love a little Einstein but I'm sure he will do just fine at school and I'm giving him the best possible start just by reading to him everyday - no need for expensive programs IYKWIM ------------- Single Mum to a darling wee boy of 3 years :) |
Posted By: lizzle
Date Posted: 02 November 2008 at 10:15pm
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i was all into letting my child develop at his own pace, until her was about 3.5 and then suddenly started getting paranoid.
But after a few chats, realised that reading skills, while important, aren't the most important skills - actually at this age social skills are pretty high up, so am not worrying too much and trying to just go with the flow - although am stopping Jake taking his smurf to kindy for "N" day. |
Posted By: Maya
Date Posted: 02 November 2008 at 10:25pm
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I saw the seminar too and I also had the opportunity to interview Dr Titzer afterwards. I must admit I went into it very sceptical, I honestly don't see the point, or the neccessity of teaching an infant to read.
I'm still not convinced that it needs to start that early (from birth) but I was most impressed with the seminar and the system. In fact, reading aside, I suspect it might also be quite useful for language development as it also encourages spoken language. OHbaby! now has a review copy so watch this space to see what the OHbaby! team think of it in practise. I'm planning to try it with my Sienna who has speech delays. As for teaching kids to read before they start school, I don't think I agree that it disadvantages them, this is something I discussed with Dr Titzer, but also something I experienced with Maya when she started school. Her Montessori had a reading programme for the 4-year olds, she started it at 3 as she demanded to have reading books like the bigger kids. She started school in February reading at level 8/20, she is now on level 19/20 and goes to the Year Two class for reading as her reading is so advanced. I don't think we should be forcing our kids to spend every waking hour learning to read before they start school, but for those kids who take an interest in it and are keen I think it's incredibly important to nurture that. Maya would have raced thru Dr Titzers programme at a rate of knots, but she would have enjoyed it for sure. I think too that the onus is on the parents to ensure that their children's schools don't allow them to be disadvantaged by having to wait around for the other kids to catch up. I pop into Maya's classroom regularly and talk to her teacher about where she's at, what I can do to help, what I think she needs extra help with and what areas she needs to be extended in. -------------  Maya Grace (28/02/03)
 (02/01/06)
The Gremlins:Sienna Marie & Mercedes Kailah (14/10/06)
Lil miss:Chiara Louise Chloe (09/07/08)
Her ladyship:Rosalia Sophie Anais (18/06/12)
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Posted By: Maya
Date Posted: 02 November 2008 at 10:25pm
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OT but wow Liz, when did Taine get so grown up (in you av pic)? ------------- Maya Grace (28/02/03)
(02/01/06)
The Gremlins:Sienna Marie & Mercedes Kailah (14/10/06)
Lil miss:Chiara Louise Chloe (09/07/08)
Her ladyship:Rosalia Sophie Anais (18/06/12)
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Posted By: caitlynsmygirl
Date Posted: 02 November 2008 at 10:34pm
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[QUOTE=BuzzyBee]
Don't get me wrong, I'd love a little EinsteinQUOTE] Really ? have you seen those obnoxious little children in their green rocket ? ------------- 
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Posted By: BuzzyBee
Date Posted: 02 November 2008 at 10:35pm
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LOL Kelly, ugh we have the DVD and he insists that we play the theme song continuously ...he doesn't give a stuff about the program itself ------------- Single Mum to a darling wee boy of 3 years :) |
Posted By: BuzzyBee
Date Posted: 02 November 2008 at 10:36pm
And isn't their rocket red?  Does pregnancy make you colourblind these days?  bahahaha ------------- Single Mum to a darling wee boy of 3 years :) |
Posted By: caitlynsmygirl
Date Posted: 02 November 2008 at 10:37pm
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oh is it ? they WOULD have a red rocket wouldn't they , just to prove me wrong, obnoxious little so and so's ...oooh look at us, we know artists and famous composers , blah blah blah !
sorry , thread jacking ! (as usual ) -------------
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Posted By: miss
Date Posted: 02 November 2008 at 11:07pm
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I LOVE Little Einsteins.
Wouldn't want one myself though, I worked extensively for gifted kids and for the majority it is NOT an easy thing to be. Given that Lily's vocab extends to mumma, dadda, up, oh dear, dancing and yay, i don't think she will be needing an early reaading system -------------  
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Posted By: Paws
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 8:03am
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To be honest I'm not that keen on the idea, I'm sure the systems do work and all that but I'd rather let Miss M go at her pace. If she shows interest in learning to read quicker then great but I'm not going to push it.
We do have flash cards that she likes to play with though and she often gets those out. ------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
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Posted By: katie1
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 8:58am
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I enjoyed reading your post and comments Emma. I will look forward to seeing your review. As a primary school teacher (who has taught new entrants and junior children mostly) I also don't agree that children are disadvantaged if they can read when they come in to school. A good teacher runs a reading programme with groups at a range of levels - some children will be working right at the beginning and others can work up to whatever their level. We would usually have about half a dozen children come to school a year who could read at a level much higher than their age. It was no problem whatsoever. They would work in a group together and do activities suitable to where they were at. They weren't bored but in fact stimulated and bright interested wee children who loved to learn and picked things up quickly.
I don;t think children need to be able to read before school but I know that if my child was interested in learning letters and letter sounds before beginning school I would be all for encouraging it. I personally think it is harder for the ones who come in with no letter/sound knowledge. It isn't something you can force though as all children learn at their own rate and the last thing you want to do is force them or put them off. I saw a really great interview with Robert Tizer and was also really interested. I brought the first DVD and book . Oliver has loved looking at the pictues in the book and chatting about them but wasn;t interested in the DVD. I also thought it was pretty boring compared to some of the other educational videos out there. He has learnt more from other books, magnets, general toys etc I think. We haven't really done much with the DVD after that as he just wasn't interested. |
Posted By: Roksana
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 10:37am
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I saw his interview on the breakfast show last week and thought WOW how cool is that?? but I dont know if I would force that kind of thing on Z. He said 3 is the best time to start.
I personally think that they learn when they are ready. Zaara loves her book and is interested in letter now and knows alot of them....I raher she knew the letters first before knowing the word!! I dont know...I am in two mind about it!! As for LE...I love the show...Zaara learns sooo much from it..and yes the Rocket is RED!! lol  ------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
http://lilypie.com"> 
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Posted By: fire_engine
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 10:57am
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The July mums have heard my rant so I'll get off my high horse ...
One issue that I have with it is that parents who would buy the DVD are likely to be fairly middle class families who are likely to be doing all the pro-literacy stuff that you have all mentioned - reading together, looking at letters and shapes, talking together, singing together .... Another issue is that I would hate to see it used with putting the child in front of the DVD and then mum/dad doing other things while it's on (probably cos they desperately need time and space to get household tasks done ) - it's so important to have human face-to-face interaction in the context of developing language. Research has also demonstrated that oral language skills are the fundamental building block for developing written language skills (including reading) so it's incredibly important that these have the same attention/input as reading, if not more while at the preschool age.------------- Mum to two wee boys |
Posted By: katie1
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 12:30pm
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I agree with what you said about learning the letters etc first Roksanna. The other thing I found 'interesting' about it is that it shows the word before any picture cues. At school children learn the other way around. I know that his philosophy says childen's brains are capable of learning that way if we start at such a young age but I guess after teaching the other way for many years I wasn't sure about it.
Also agree with the not putting infront of DVD thing - he stresses that it should be done in intereaction with parents though. An interesting topic. 
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Posted By: katie1
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 12:31pm
| Is Little Einsteins on TV or is it a DVD? Have never seen it. |
Posted By: caitlynsmygirl
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 12:37pm
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Its on TV , sky disney to be exact , I cant stand it, but it seems to have some fans on here -------------
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Posted By: RunningT
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 12:55pm
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Yay debate... just what my posting was looking for.
First of all I don't want anyone to think that I am trying to create the first child nobel peace prize winner. This is my first child after all and I am happy for this expectation to go onto my second child. No I am kidding. I do not have a teaching background however I loved school and my husband hated school and this does have a huge impact on how each of us experienced school. I am interested in the variety of ways that people think you can help your children to develop and learn and thought this was a really interesting seminar. Yes obviously part of it was "buy my programme" however there was also a lot of information about how you could assist your child's language and reading development that cost time only and not a penny. Maya I will be interested to read your review and hear any others opinions. PS: No phone calls from exhibitors yet however I have a couple of emails I note... strike while the iron is hot ..good sales technique :-) -------------
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Posted By: jennap
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 12:56pm
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Yea little einsteins is great , well you get used to it I suppose (just like the wiggles, hehehe). My little man loves watching it almost as much as he loves blues clues, he sits there and talks back to them like he's in it or something its sssooooo cute!
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Posted By: jennap
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 12:59pm
| And with the whole learning thing, same with me, I loved school and my partner hated it, he thinks homework is a complete waste of time and that if our boy brings it home he is going to put it in the bin. |
Posted By: jennap
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 1:04pm
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who will win do you think mummy or daddy? lol
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Posted By: Maya
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 5:45pm
I agree on both points - it is definitely the middle class families who are more likely to use this system due to the cost if nothing else, and as you say they also have the resources to promote literacy. I did find it interesting that with all of the research that Dr Titzer quotes he makes it clear that it encompasses children from comparable socio economic situations. I wonder if his data would be so favourable if it was non-socio economic specific? And yes, the DVD does encourage parents to dump their kids in front of the TV, what I found refreshing is that Dr Titzer doesn't try and deny that, in fact he promotes the DVD as a tool for keeping baby/toddler entertained while mum/dad does other things. His premise is that they are going to put the child in front of the TV anyway, they might as well have something educational to watch in order to extend the experience for them. But he also makes it very clear that the DVDs are designed to be used in conjunction with the books, that the books are the most important part of the program and that it is crucial for parents to spend some time each day with their children going over the books. ------------- Maya Grace (28/02/03)
(02/01/06)
The Gremlins:Sienna Marie & Mercedes Kailah (14/10/06)
Lil miss:Chiara Louise Chloe (09/07/08)
Her ladyship:Rosalia Sophie Anais (18/06/12)
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Flissty wrote:Posted By: Maya
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 5:46pm
Hopefully mummy! ------------- Maya Grace (28/02/03)
(02/01/06)
The Gremlins:Sienna Marie & Mercedes Kailah (14/10/06)
Lil miss:Chiara Louise Chloe (09/07/08)
Her ladyship:Rosalia Sophie Anais (18/06/12)
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Posted By: fire_engine
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 6:32pm
Ka-ching. Why couldn't I invent a product - I mean educational tool - like this?! ------------- Mum to two wee boys |
Posted By: miss
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 7:28pm
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One thing that I think is very important to think about is that unless a child is actually truely gifted (not just bright), no matter what they come in with (unless it is a deficit, such as no preschool) to school, they tend to level out by the end of primary school to a normal curve. So unless your child is deestined to be at the top of the curve from a combination of genetics and parental input, this sort of thing might get them ahead at first, then the benefit will slowly decrease as they normalise with their peers.
Just something to think about - and probably why parents up kids up to about 5 or so are all about 'my child is doing this', where as parents of 10 year olds are usually not into that comparison so much, simply becasue milestones even out. like sitting/walking etc, some might have taken longer, and after a few years some are faster and some slower but pretty much all of them can do it after a few years to a pretty good degree. i would rather spend my time having fun with Lily I think, foster a love of reading through other means, and a love of learning through other means. -------------
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Posted By: emz
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 7:31pm
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From a teachers perspective also, I don't see the need for it. Most of us didn't have things like this (in fact I was brought up in a low socio-economic environment but my parents still read to/with me a lot and education was valued) and turned out fine. In fact, at school I was always well above the norm and all I had of training before school was kindy.
The best way to teach a child is to follow their lead, encourage but not pressure, learn through living not through DVD's etc at such a young age. While I think its great that some kids read at such a young age, I do wonder what the benefits are? Noone will care that they could read at 2 if they have no social skills etc. And while I agree it doesn't disadvantage children to be ahead, it can if they are a few years ahead - slightly different from a few levels. And yes, a good teacher will work to all levels in the classroom. As you can probably tell, I'm not a fan of prescribed programmes for the young ones, especially when the cost so much. I think money is better spent on family outings or a range of books for the child to 'read' to and with the family, rather than a programme. Off my high horse now
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Posted By: whitewave
Date Posted: 03 November 2008 at 7:48pm
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[QUOTE=miss] One thing that I think is very important to think about is that unless a child is actually truely gifted (not just bright), no matter what they come in with (unless it is a deficit, such as no preschool) to school, they tend to level out by the end of primary school to a normal curve.
I agree, I learnt to read before I went to school, and had a high reading age until I got to the end of primary school, then levelled out a bit. However, I reckon learning to read early helped to give me a love of reading, and helped me in school in general. I don't believe you need expensive programmes to do this though. And learning social skills is just as important! |
Posted By: miss
Date Posted: 04 November 2008 at 5:12pm
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totally right whitewave :)
I thought of a better and shorter analogy today - the kids who are first to start walking when younger, are not necessarily faster at running when older. -------------
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Posted By: Roksana
Date Posted: 04 November 2008 at 5:54pm
Soooo true! ------------- http://lilypie.com">
http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: emz
Date Posted: 04 November 2008 at 9:13pm
| Yep I agree too! That's like people getting worked up about when the babies are crawling, getting teeth etc. We all end up moving, getting teeth and learning to wipe our own asses - doesn't matter when we do it lol |