Your Baby Can Read - Rowland Heights,CA

Hi Maybe someone has already said this... videos are not advisedfor children under 2. It hinders rather than helps their development. Look for info online about it.

I have not tried this product so i will keep my response brief, in my opinion there is no reason to put a 3 month old baby in front of a TV.

I am going to be in a minority but take into consideration that I was (am) an older mom. I am now 61 with an 18 year old and you can do the math. We never pushed out son. He did all the things he was supposed to do on time. He started pre-school and then went to elementary school, etc. NO summer school to get ahead, NO programs to learn anything. He was allowed to be a child first, student second. He enjoyed life. Played when it was time to play, studied when it was time to study. He is presently attending an incredible college that was difficult 4 most to get accepted and is doing well. He got in as an incredible "all-around kid". Great grades, great community service, a great person. NO early pushing to keep up with the Jones. We read to him every night; he loved to read as he got older...end of story.

So from me to you, I say...what's the rush??? Let him be a child. If you want more advice (lectures?) feel free to email me. Spend as much time as you can with these children, as children!

I agree with a number of folks below that say a baby less than 2 is too young to put in front of a TV. It will probably impede their development, particularly for speech. The EMR can't be good for their eyes (or brains), either.

Save your money, and your child, these things come later.

I also agree with whomever said, "Just read to your child". The most important thing is that the child experience direct contact with someone that loves him/her. There is nothing more important that that at this age. I is ridiculous how much pressure is put on parents and kids to do everything early so they can be "ahead"...

BTW, my kids and I are no slouches. I'm a rocket scientist (LOL). OK, well, an aerospace engineer. And my kids are fine students. We encouraged lots of books and PLAY TIME when they were young. And like I said, lots of interaction with Daddy and that all important person called Mommy.

I find this to be ridiculous! If your child is a natural reader, he or she will pick up reading at the right time just by observing words on signs, in the books you read aloud at bed time, etc. Children have much to learn. They learn to be social, to negotiate with other children and with adults about what is "fair," what rules they'll decide on for the games they make up. They should be playing "dress up" to enhance their creativity and imaginations, playing little card games that help them understand counting and grouping -- the list goes on. Several of my children knew how to read before they entered school, but we certainly didn't teach them. My mother was a first grade teacher and master reading teacher for over 35 years. She always said that most children would learn when they were ready. The children who had been artificially taught would be right at the same level a year later as those who had not been taught before school, providing their aptitudes were the same. (This does assume a decent teacher in the primary grades.)

There is also quite a bit of evidence that having children watch television, videos, etc from a young age can be bad for their brains. Enhance your children's vocabulary through speaking and reading aloud to them. Repeat nursery rhymes and sing songs with them. Rhyming appeals to children and helps them learn phonics. My mother used a lot of "How now, brown cow!" and "The fat cat sat on the mat" in funny joking ways with us and with her students. Point out signs if you wish, and tell them what they say. "Look! That sign says 'stop' so I have to stop the car now. That button says 'push' so I push it to get a drink. This bathroom says 'women' so that's where mommies and girls go, because we are women. The daddies and boys use the bathroom that says 'men.'" Believe me, if your three year old is ready to read, they will put two and two together and read on their own. If not, plenty of time to learn to read later. My mother was my first grade teacher, and had not taught me to read before school. The day before school I was helping her put pre-primers on every child's desk, and I asked her what some of the words were. By the next day I could read the entire book, and never stopped reading from that day on. She had prepared me through all kinds of word games and cues. Other children might have to struggle more if they aren't natural readers, but if they aren't why make them struggle through it at 3 years old?

S. Toji

I was also told No TV before two. babies can't tell real from unreal, and tv messes with their brain development... Show it to your son if you bought it, or don't bother for the baby. she can't even hold the book, so what is the point?
Good luck
R.

First of all I think 3 months is WAY TOO YOUNG to put in front of the TV, and I think the APA suggests no TV till 3 years. But I also heard something about the learning process this teaches. It is based on memorization not comprehension. And, that this will cause confusion in your child later when learning in school. In school kids learn to read by phonetically sounding out words. (Hooked on Phonics?) and Baby can read is just repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat. If that is the case than we can probably teach a monkey to read too, if we repeated it enough? another mom posted that her autistic children learned from it, to my understanding memorization learning is good for children with special needs like autism and dyslexia, just what I've heard? Not a professional just a mom also wanting to give my little one the best. Good Luck, its tough to figure out what is best for them, huh?

You are wasting your money having a 3 month watch a video...they'd much rather watch you.

-M

It looks like Sharon said a lot of what I would say. The best way for babies to learn about the world is for you to talk to them, point things out (tree, Mama, dog, etc.), and give them opportunities to see different things (e.g. going to the park, supermarket). When my son was a baby, I'd take him to the market. For example, I'd take some tomatoes and show them to my son and say, "These are tomatoes. They're red" I'd count them as I was putting them into a bag. When we went to the zoo, I'd point out the animals. Even though he was clueless about what I was saying at first, I was telling him about the world. Interacting and talking with your baby is a much better learning experience than special programs, flashcards, or DVDs. Your kids will learn to read whenever they are ready. Some kids are ready at 3, some at closer to 7. I was an early reader (age 3) and my husband was a later reader (age 6 or 7). We're both university graduates, so being an early or later reader doesn't matter in the long run.

Pushing a child to read or achieve other tasks before they are developmentally ready ends up backfiring. The child can be very frustrated from not being able to master the task. It could also affect his attitude toward school. He could feel burned out by the time he gets to school and be turned off of learning. The best thing is to let your kids be kids. Read to them and give them toys which stimulate their imaginations. Talk to them about the world in language they can understand.

As to having a 3-month-old watch a DVD, I also agree with Sharon. That's too young. It's better to have one-on-one, back-and-forth interaction with a 3-month old baby. My son didn't watch any TV until he was two. Even now at age 10, we limit his TV time and require that he reads before the TV goes on.

I think that you would be better off simply reading to your child. The idea of babies reading sounds a little silly - why is it necessary? Are we becoming so obsessed with academics that we cannot even let babies be babies?
The best way for your child to learn how to read is for you to spend time with her and read, read, read, and read some more. Make sure you have tons of kids books in the house and go to the library every so often to change things up. Have fun!

I am going to have to agree with your first 2 responses. What is the point of having such a young child and baby sit in fron to of a TV so they can learn to read--that is what kindergarten is for. And even if they can read before--it's not like they are going to be allowed to start kindergarten before they are old enough--so what is the point. Enjoy this time--it goes by so fast and they will be in school before you know it. Teaching children too much at a young age will probably result in them being very bored at school and that is definitely something you don't want. good luck!!

My question to you is why, why why??? This is upsurd. The American Pediatrics Association says no TV for children under 2 years old. It actually can cause ADD and ADHD. Your child will not benefit by learning to read early, it will only take away from other things she should be learning now. She's barely old enough to hold a toy, let her be a baby, and keep the TV off!

I just make flash cards for my 21 month old. We work with them when she eats. As soon as she starts getting bored, or distracted, I stop. She can identify 5 different word and the very begining of the alphabet. You don't need to buy anything. I do think that your infant is a little to young for it now. Maybe start at 7 months.
I have been using flash cards for only 2 months now. She also knows a heart, circle, and a triangle. By this I mean she actually says the word....she has a huge vocabulary.
Good luck to you!

My son is now 30 months and when he was born somebody gave me the DVD set from Baby Einstein. It had a range of ages from 6 mos. to 3 years, and I thought it sounded cool. Until I watched the DVD's myself with my Mom (educator for 15 years) and we were both sort of shocked. It was basically what you would see if you took your baby out of the house for a walk, or like other Mom's posted to the grocery store.

I never used them.

Instead, I made trips to the market just to walk around. We took walks around our neighborhood, and to the park. I would buy things from educational stores that were examples of fruits, veggies, animals and stuff like that...we used these at home on bad weather days...just to show him colors and shapes. They're soft and squishy so even great for just holding or teething! At home, we would walk around the house and I would point stuff out to him and while I was cooking, cleaning, doing laundry or vacuuming include him on the chores...and, he loved it. Today he's the best sock sorter in the world!

I don't think learning from DVD's for infants is really that great an idea. Kids learn from consistency and experience. I really never had the TV on until my son was much older, and even that it's only NOGGIN or KCET.

I think you might want to do more research on how the brain is effected by TV time and find alternate resources for teaching your child. There are tons of resources available for Mommies...

Good Luck!

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't let your child watch tv yet... it's not advised to let your children under 2 watch tv. I actually had a long discussion with my daughter's pediatrician about this on monday. He was telling me that they did this study and kids that watched Baby Einsteins actually started reading later and talking later because of their exposure to the tv. My daughter is 2.5 and he said like 1/2 a day or like 1 show a day was more than enough.

Hi, I absolutely swear by this product. My sons have autism and they are reading words. My 5 year old is reading books. My 3 year old daughter is reading words and small books. My 17 month old daughter follows the direction given. She was actually my youngest child to start. She's watched or been around them since she was born. I think they are amazing and I would recommend them to everyone. You should really enjoy watching your son and daughter advance. Just stick as close to the schedule as possible for faster results.

I bought the Starter DVD and sliding word cards for my daughter's first birthday. She enjoys watching the DVD and has learned several actions, but is not quite reading the words yet. I'm pretty realistic about the whole thing; we watch the DVD because she likes it, not because I'm hoping that it will teach her to read. I know the program is for babies from 3 months on up, so I believe it wouldn't hurt, but at such a young age, I can't imagine it doing anything but being similar to white noise. If you want to try out the program you can call 1-888-READ-888 and order just the Starter DVD ($15) or the Starter DVD and word cards ($17), instead of having to invest in the entire $200 kit.

I don't think it will hurt your 3 month old but I don't think they will be able to process it at that age to make any difference. TV should definitely be limited at any age (I need to limit how much I watch a little more than I do. :) )

Everyone has a different learning style. When I was a kid reading was taught whole word style. I learned reading quickly that way. From things I have read lately those that learn whole word style memorize the shape of the word- so it is a visual learning style and may work better than phonics for some right brained learners. I have a good friend who didn't learn how to read until 3rd grade when her mom finally sat down and taught her through phonics. We met in honors classes in high school. So basically both programs can be effective for teaching reading it just depends on the learning style of the reader.

I think it is good. You are supposed to make sure the baby is upright (not rolling around on the floor, so that the view of the words is not distorted), so that is important. The videos are short, so I wouldn't worry about too much TV time. With a 3 month old, though, don't worry if the baby doesn't pay much attention to it. Your older child will enjoy it too. I used it with my autistic son (now 17) years ago, when he was 5 or 6,and I liked it. Like Titzer says, even if the baby does not learn to read, it will improve receptive and expressive language skills, and that is worthwhile and perfectly appropriate for a baby. I have used it with other children, both developmentally delayed and typical, and they all enjoyed it. I just bought the new DVDs for my delayed two year old for Christmas, and she is already recognizing some words (covers her eyes when the word "eye" appears on screen) and is responding to the verbal commands (Arms up, etc.). My older child also had an undiagnosed vision problem that was not corrected until he was 14 or 15, so he did not learn to read until he got the specialized glasses, but he reads well now, and will soon be at a 6th grade (adult) level. The point is, every kid I have used it with has benefitted from it, whether they learned to read or not. B.

If this is something you want to try, then by all means try it. You may be able to find it on craigslist or ebay for a better price. We bought it for our son when he was 3 months old and we started watching it with him when he was 4 months old. He is now 6 months old and he LOVES his videos. He recognizes the music and the voices on the video and is VERY ATTENTIVE to it. We watch the videos with him, it's all about interaction, and we read to him daily, take him out and interact with him in everything that we do. So, I think it just comes down to personal choice!

If your baby is interested in it, they are great. My little one was not at all interested in that particular dvd...and still isn't at 14 months. Althouh she loves Baby Einstein and Signing Time. The flashcards are good though..and we use those for learning animals and shapes.

I bought the Baby Can Read DVD when my son was about 2 1/2. Some days he wanted to watch it and other days he had no interest. It's not a very interesting video for the most part. I had my son watching Baby Einstein videos when he was less than 3 months old so as long as the video is "baby appropriate" you should be fine showing a video to a 3 month old. That being said, we started my son in preschool just when he turned 3 (he's a September baby) and he was reading before he was 4. We have been reading to him every night since he was about 3 months old and that definitely helps with vocabulary and recognizing certain words. I think he learned to read more from my husband and I reading to him, showing him words and letters and going to school at an early age. I'm not sure the DVD really helped.

If you can rent or preview the Baby Can Read video, I would do that first before investing the money in it. I'm sure it helps some babies read but I don't know how much more beneficial it is than parental guidance and school.

Good luck!

We bought this product around three months ago. I really like it and the babies (twins 2-1/2 year old) enjoy it very much. They have learned a lot from them. We will see what happens in a year.