When baby are born are some born smarter than others? Perhaps it is a genetic gene that makes them smart. As these babies are growing into toddlers is it possible to teach them how to read? Can they understand what is going on? According to Sara Gable who wrote an article in ClassBrain.com:
The brain's task for the first 3 years is to establish and reinforce connections with other neurons. These connections are formed when impulses are sent and received between neurons. Axons send messages and dendrites receive them. These connections form synapses. Between birth and age 3, the brain creates more synapses than it needs. The synapses that are used a lot become a permanent part of the brain. The synapses that are not used frequently are eliminated. Because we want children to succeed, we need to provide many positive social and learning opportunities so that the synapses associated with these experiences become permanent (Gable). (See Figure 2)
All babies are born with the same opportunity. It is up to the parents or care givers to influence and help their toddler’s brain develop to its fullest potential. A babies surrounding environment has an impact on how they develop their learning skills. If a toddler is never talked to or show how to do something then how will they learn? With guidance and nurture it is possible to teach a toddler how to read. However many parents are skeptical that it is possible to teach a toddler how to read.
Some parents do not want to pressure their toddler to read. Some feel they might not like to read, because they are pressed. Some parents feel their toddler will learn how to read when they are ready. Judith Hudson, developmental psychologist supports those parents. She stated on babycenter.com: ...
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The first couple years newborns develop physically and mentally at an amazing rate, unlike any other time of development during their life. Many aspects of a baby’s development form the base for life-long learning. According to Berger, the concept of plasticity of human traits, which states “personality, intellect, habits, and emotions change throughout life for a combination of reasons…” affect development (Berger, 2005, p.15).
Even if a parent reads to his or her child often, the child’s cognitive development is likely to be affected by his or her teacher. If the teacher does not succeed in inspiring the child, then it is likely that the rate of cognitive development will be lower than a child with a successfully inspiring teacher, regardless of parent to child reading rate.
Over time, there has been an expansion in our knowledge of the ways in which humans develop and learn. It is now known that babies are beginning to learn even before they are born. I often find myself wishing I had known these things when my children were developing. We all want our children to be the best that they can be; with some knowledge of how children learn and the sequential steps they must go through in many areas of development, we can provide many experiences at home to help them reach their potential. When educators discuss children 's development, they usually talk about physical, mental, social, and emotional development.
Child development is crucial throughout the early years, during this time the development of the brain occurs. The development of the brain contributes to the functioning of the body. The anatomy of the brain is made up of neurons and divided into four different lobes. The temporal, frontal, parietal, and occipital lobes control a variety of cognitive functions. The brain controls simple functions such as fine and gross motor skills, vision, and memory. According to Meadows (1993, p.263), at all sorts of levels in the brain there are programs for functions such as breathing, sleeping, and producing coherent language. Brain development in children is vital during the early years. During the early years, children brains are active enabling children to learn a variety of information. Many studies have been conducted and they have concluded a healthy lifestyle, physical activity, and exposing young children to a variety of education material assist with child development. The first few years of a child’s life is crucial as far as his intellectual as well as socio-emotional abilities are concerned (Bose, 2000).
"Reading." The Gale Encyclopedia of Childhood and Adolescence. Ed. Jerome Kagan and Susan B. Gall. Online Edition. Detroit: Gale, 2007.
I often look at newborns in amusement and wonder what were are thinking about. Never did I stop for a moment to think about the complex wiring of the brain. It is known that the complete development of the brain is necessary for the normal physical and mental processes of a person but I wrongly assumed that such development is completed before birth.
Literacy is most commonly understood as reading and writing. But before children can read and write, they need to learn about sound, words, language, books and stories (Raising Children, 2015). Children begin to develop and gain knowledge quite differently and with support and developmentally appropriate learning skills children will also come to understand the connection between letters and sounds. Literacy development or early literacy is the most essential in the first three years of life as it the earliest experience children have with language, sound and the positive interactions between child and adult. Vygotsky (1978) believed in how children developed, and the important role of adults in leading child’s early development. The interactions
Early literacy has been one of the obstacles my family has gone through and growing up as the oldest of five children there were many things to fix around the house before practicing on reading and writing skills. Both of my parents had the same struggle with literacy because they had to learn English before one them can teach us reading or writing.
"Facts about Children's Literacy." National Education Association. National Education Association, n.d. Web. 23 May 2014.
...ding Panel. Teaching children to read: An evidence-based assessment of the scientific research literature on reading and its implications for reading instruction(NIH Publication No. 00-4769). Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.
Reading is a complex process that’s difficult to explain linearly. A student’s reading capabilities begin development long before entering the school setting and largely start with exposure (Solley, 2014). The first remnants of what children are able to do in terms of reading are built from their parents and other people and object around them as they’re read to, spoken to, and taken from place to place to see new things (Solley, 2014). As kids are exposed to more and more their noises quickly turn into intentional comprehensible messages and their scribbling begins to take the form of legible text as they attempt to mimic the language(s) they’re exposed to daily.
“Because brain development is so heavily dependent on early experience, most babies will receive the right kind of nurturing from their earliest days, through our loving urges and parenting instincts. “there are so many things that I’ve read that could make a baby smarter like reading to them while pregnant or even talking to them so the brain can develop the right way while in the womb but loving your child and catering to them is the right way and will eventually lead them to the right path to learn. Yes, speaking to your child and listening to them can and will critically develop the brains –building years. Parents do forget that a child’s developments are not when school begins but before that. If a child comes from a home that listens and speaks when the other one is done and knows manners the child will develop that and learn that is the right way to go about things as oppose to a house hold who may talk over each, shout or even hit their brains will pick all that up like a sponge. So talking to your child and actually listening to them is one of the best brain developments. “Language is fundamental to most of the rest of cognitive development, this simple action—talking and listening to your child—is one of the best ways to make the most of his or her critical brain-building years.” (Zero to
Reading has been a part of my life from the second I was born. All throughout my childhood, my parents read to me, and I loved it. I grew up going to the library and being read to constantly. Especially in the years before Kindergarten, reading was my favorite thing to do. I grew up loving fairy tales and thriving on the knowledge that I could have any book I wanted, to be read to me that night. Having no siblings, my only examples were my parents, and they read constantly. Without a family that supported my love of reading throughout my childhood, I wouldn’t appreciate it nearly as much as I have and do now.
“The single most important activity for building knowledge for their eventual success in reading is reading aloud to children,” a report from 1985 by the commission
This article discussed the views and opinions of both parents and teachers in regards to beginning reading. Literacy development is a major issue within early primary classrooms. Parent’s views on this were that literacy development is the responsibility of the school. The foundation of literacy definitely comes from the school but it is at home where it is practiced and reinforce and may even overarch the schools responsibility. Children whose parents are unable to assist them at home with their literacy development definitely fall out in respect to ongoing help and support. Children in my primary school classes whose parents were unable to help them struggled with their reading, word recognition and literacy skills the entire way through primary school. This shows that literacy development is not primarily the schools responsibility but the child’s parents at home also.