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Mother says her son remembered the 'bits' he learned in infancy
This is Pamela Johnson's story
I came across your
web site while doing a bit of web surfing,
and it took me back. I thought your
readers might be interested in the
experiences of one of the oldest living
bits makers.
We attended the very first Better Baby Institute and the first Professional Parenting training given at IAHP. (Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential.) We began my son on the program when he was four months old, and did all of the activities, including languages, reading, physical excellence and Suzuki violin, but his absolute favorite was "bits." I made hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of them (all saved, by the way).
I was often asked if
I really believed that he would remember
all the things on the bits cards, and
frankly, I really had no way of knowing at
first, but I kept telling myself that I
had learned a lot of nursery rhymes "by
osmosis" when I was a toddler and there
was no reason that more useful information
could not be picked up the same
way.
When my son was
about ten years old, he came home with a
"problem." It seemed that he found himself
knowing a lot of things he could not
remember ever having learned, but which
would pop into his mind unexpectedly when
a subject came up. A little discussion
revealed that these were things we had
done as bits when he was a tiny baby. He
had no conscious recollection of doing
them, but the information "stuck." His
recommendation, by the way, is that you
teach your baby all the tedious stuff that
he will have to learn by rote eventually,
like Latin and Greek declensions: "hic,
haec, hoc, huius, huius, huius" would
probably be as amusing to a baby as "itsy,
bitsy spider," and it would save a lot of
drilling later!
Anthony is
graduating from MIT this year (with a
double major in computer science and
French literature - all that emphasis on a
broad education also stuck!) and I have
been out of the bits-making business for
quite a while, but I still find myself
looking at material and thinking "That
would make a great bit." With computer
graphics programs and all the other early
learning materials I find on-line and in
home schooling resources, I have ideas for
hundreds and hundreds more bits which I am
saving up for eventual
grandchildren.
Oh, and on the
subject of early reading: Anthony began
reading about the same time he began
talking, so I was able to take in stride
the notice received from his school that
according to their screening test, he was
at risk for dyslexia! Actually, since he
was premature, suffered oxygen deprivation
and had an Apgar of 2, he was at risk for
everything, and was tested constantly
during his first year. At one year, he
scored 167 on the Development Quotient
test (also his adult IQ) and everyone
relaxed. I don't know to this day whether
all of the early activities we did
overcame problems, or whether he never
would have had any, but I can live with
that uncertainty!
Editor's note: 'Bit of Intelligent Information Cards', or 'Bits' is the name Glenn Doman, the founder of The Institutes For The Achievement of Human Potential, gave to his special flash cards.
Download free flashcards from I.P.A. in PDF format
LIFE and CHOICE: International Parenting Association's perspective on life in the womb.
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Testimonial: Mother used flashcards. Child remembers what he learned in infancy.
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Exposé: Studies prove children are endangered by cell phone radiation and shouldn't use them.
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CONTACT US to join I.P.A.'s pending early childhood education forum for parents including professionals in education and child health and development.
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Disclaimer: International Parenting Association, Child's Genius Magazine and I.P.A. NewsNet provides a forum for the dissemination of trends in education and is for informational purposes only. We do not endorse or guarantee the efficacy of any information, educational method, product or material. Nor does International Parenting Association give medical, legal or personal advice.
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