When you tell people that babies can learn to read, they look at you strangely. It sounds like an oxymoron. How can a baby, that can’t talk yet, learn to read? Yet as crazy as it sounds, they can. It all comes down to the developing brain they are born with. Babies are born with their brain 40% developed. During the first 5 years of their life, their brain is developing explosively. The more we stimulate our babies, and provide rich environments for learning, the more they will absorb.
Babies can learn language in many forms. They can learn to speak. They can learn foreign languages, which aren’t foreign to them as long as they hear them before their 5th birthday. They can learn sign language and they can learn written language. Learning written language is what gives them the ability to read at an early age. It is not even challenging for babies to learn to read. They don’t read phonetically. They simply see a word and they memorize it. This is called the whole word method, or sight reading. Now here is the amazing part. After memorizing many words, babies intuit the rules of phonics on their own. They may not know the names of the letters, but they know what sound they make and are thereby able to read words that they have never seen before.
An easy way to begin a reading program with your baby is with video. There are several videos on the market that teach babies to read. Many parents are already using educational videos with their babies. Why not try out a video that is designed to teach your baby to read? You may be amazed at what your baby learns after watching these for a few weeks.
I began teaching my son to read with videos beginning at 2 1/2 months of age. He really enjoyed that. After a few weeks I added in flash cards and books. It was so natural for him to learn to read. It was a game we played from as far back as he can remember and he has always loved it. At 5 months old, he would sit and look at 40 words in one sitting. I kept my materials by the changing station. After a diaper change we would quickly look at some words. This would take a few minutes at the most. I would show him materials an average of three times per day. This took a few minutes of my time but the investment was well worth it. By 12 months he was reading words out loud. At 18 months he was reading short sentences. At 2 years old he was reading books and now at 4 he can read almost anything.
I encourage parents that want to get started to try our Monki See Monki Doo video “Baby’s First Words”. It teaches body parts and other familiar first words. It’s a great way to teach babies their body parts and they may just shock you and read the words too!
We have getting great reviews from parents whose babies are using the video. My nephew has learned all his body parts and at 13 months old he pokes everyone on the nose and says, “Nooooo”.
