A young friends of mine are pregnant and looking forward to the birth with all the trepidation of first time parents. Knowing my involvement in helping children learn how to learn they asked for some advice. How about that, actually being asked directly rather than the sideways comments I usually get at social functions!
They wanted to know what they could do to help their child become a good learner. I think they were expecting a long list of things to do, just like the lists they had been getting from prenatal classes.
There is only one thing that parents of young children need to do to help children learn – talk to them!
Talk to them in the womb, read them stories, tell them you are looking forward to meeting them! Sounds silly? Believe me it works! The sooner you get into the habit of talking to your child the easier it will be and the more your child will learn.
And don’t limit your talking to instructions. I know that you need to tell your child what to do, you need to use phrases such as,”eat that food”, “close the door”, “put your toys away”. But you also need to talk about other things, about what you are doing and why, about plans for the future, about the things you see and hear.
You can talk to your child directly, or, if you are really clever and you understand that children will only actively listen to their parents for so long, you can use Self Talk.
Self Talk is the strategy that I suggest parents use to help their children develop language skills, the language skills that are so important for learning. Self talk is when you talk to yourself, but where you child can hear. You tell yourself that you have to make a shopping list, that you need to plan a trip, that you are feeling upset. And your child listens, and his language skills improve.
And follow your child’s lead. Rather than talk to him about something you are doing talk to him about what he is doing,ask questions, and don’t let your child get away with not answering.
You want your child to become a good learner, to read well, to communicate well, to understand the world around him?
Talk, talk, talk!
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Hi, Thought I would stop by here. I love the simplicity of your design. Since I am 74 and not in the parenting groups I may be way off track.
Do parents ever read to their childent?
Could a volenter program be started in many schools?
Could upper school students read to younger students who are having problems. I don’t mean teach them study skills, just read to a small group or just one student at a time as part of service to the United States?
Katherine Bolman