Teaching Baby To Read Blog
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Teach Your Baby to Read With Memoflix Apps
You can teach your baby to read 800 words with the Memoflix Phone Apps. They aren't actually Apps, they are MP4 files that are designed to play on mobile devices. The Memoflix files currently have 80 categories equaling 800 words with pictures and sound files so you can teach your baby to read anywhere.
The price to get started using the Memoflix Phone Apps is ridiculously low. For only $9.00 you get all 800 words and pictures. Even better, if you purchase the Memoflix DVD containing the same files you get the App Files absolutely free. Teaching your baby to read has never been easier.
What Apps do you like?
You can find out more at www.memoflix.com.
Monki See on TV's 19 Kids and Counting
Someone sent me an email today and told me that Monki See was on last night's episode of TLC's 19 Kids and Counting with the Duggar family. It looks like the Duggar's, who home school their 18 kids enjoy using Monki See to teach their little ones how to read. The show was featuring home school and they showed several of the little ones watching Monki See. It was too bad they didn't mention the name of the video, but thanks to our Monki See fans we found out all about it.
If you are a Monki See fan what is your favorite part of the videos? My favorite part is the song "Does your nose look big..."
You can click here to check out the Monki See Baby DVDS.
When Teaching Babies to Read is Phonics Taught?
A woman on my Yahoo Groups posted this question, which is a very common question that deserves an answer.
Question
I'm just wondering, when you teach a baby to read, are they being taught to memorize words or are they actually being taught phonics? In my opinion, unless you learn phonics, you don't truly know how to read.
Answer 1
Children who under 2yo nearly always need to be taught using the sight word method. However, if they are exposed to enough words in that manner they can intuit the rules of phonics and be able to read any word they are presented with. My 7yo daughter is a case in point. I taught her from 3mo to about 2yrs via sight word flash cards. From 2yrs to 4yrs we played a lot with words. She now reads anything with ease except for college level books.
The beauty of the sight word method taught in this manner is that children figure out the rules of phonics all by themselves which is the best way to learn something!
Children who are older than 2yo can be taught with straight phonics or the sight word path to phonics. I have tried teaching 4 year olds with phonics. For us, it was difficult. If I could rewind life knowing what I know now I surely would have started all my children on the sight word path to phonics reading program when they were babies. - Laurie Mom of 10 kids
The beauty of the sight word method taught in this manner is that children figure out the rules of phonics all by themselves which is the best way to learn something!
Children who are older than 2yo can be taught with straight phonics or the sight word path to phonics. I have tried teaching 4 year olds with phonics. For us, it was difficult. If I could rewind life knowing what I know now I surely would have started all my children on the sight word path to phonics reading program when they were babies. - Laurie Mom of 10 kids
Answer 2
I as well taught both phonics to older children and sight words to younger children at a preschool in Japan (it was exclusively in English) and found that for the most part, the younger children who learned sight words were better readers, spellers, and excelled in reading aloud quickly and with comprehension. The older ones who got their phonics had to take the words apart rather than simply know what they were. We didn't have much success with them, but their parents insisted on the phonics regardless of what we said.
Both groups were reading, of course, but the younger kids looked like they were having fun and enjoying the stories - the older kids looked stressed about the words themselves.
All reading and learning is at the core memorization - but that doesn't mean it has to be rote. Children build up a foundation of information and then learn ways to grow that base on their own.
As a teacher, I highly recommend sight word teaching, and plan on teaching my own daughter this way as well (due in 4 weeks!!) from birth. - A.T.
Both groups were reading, of course, but the younger kids looked like they were having fun and enjoying the stories - the older kids looked stressed about the words themselves.
All reading and learning is at the core memorization - but that doesn't mean it has to be rote. Children build up a foundation of information and then learn ways to grow that base on their own.
As a teacher, I highly recommend sight word teaching, and plan on teaching my own daughter this way as well (due in 4 weeks!!) from birth. - A.T.
Click here for more information on How to Teach Your Baby to Read
How Many Words Should I Teach My Baby To Read At One Time?
When I read Glenn Doman's book How To Teach Your Baby To Read 8 years ago, I got a little caught up in the details of how I was supposed to go about teaching my baby to read. I began by making hundreds of word flash cards so I could begin teaching my baby to read. The book recommends that you start with 5 words per session. They suggest that you start with one set and show it three times per day. You continue to add sets of words until you have 5 sets, or more if you are really ambitious. You will be taking cards out each day and adding cards in each day.
What I discovered after a brief period of this flash card frenzy was that 5 flash cards at one time is not a magic number. It is simply a guide. In reality, this would never work for me. I think most parents are like me in that respect. I want what is best for my baby, but we need to be realistic about how to accomplish it.
I never stuck to the 5 words at a time rule. Well, let me rephrase that, I only followed it if my children were losing interest with a set and I needed to shorten it. My 5 month old would easily look at 20 words in a set three times a day. I followed that up with a word book that taught 20 words as well. Each session usually consisted of teaching 40 words at a time. While that might seem like a lot, it worked for us. My babies loved the time we spent viewing materials several times a day. All in all we may have looked at materials for a total of 10 minutes per day. Some days we did less and somedays we did more, but we always had fun.
When you begin to teach your baby to read you can start with 5 cards, just to gauge your baby's level of interest. If they are still attentive after seeing 5 words you may want to up it to 10 words or 15 words. Just make sure you are always having fun. Instead of retiring words and adding new words I just changed out my stacks of materials each week. This worked extremely well for us. The fondest memories I have of my babies' childhood are the moments we spent playing and learning.
I have put together a video tutorial of all that I learned during this fantastic journey of teaching my babies to read. You can view it at A Guide to Teaching Babies to Read. When I first began I had so many questions. This comprehensive guide will show you exactly how you can teach your baby to read and it answers all those questions you have when you first start out. I wish it were available when I began. 
Using Flash Cards to Teach Your Baby to Read
When you begin to teach your baby to read you will probably use flash cards. I strongly recommend that you do not let your baby handle the flash cards. First of all, the flash cards are made of paper and if they are torn they can become a choking hazard to your baby. Also, once you let your baby handle the flash cards, you are no longer in control of the mini reading sessions. Third of all, you will not be able to move quickly through the cards and keep your sessions short and sweet.
In order to maintain control of your flash cards you can place your baby in a bouncer seat and stand in front of them with the cards. You can also place your baby in a high chair for your reading sessions. You may want to show your baby flash cards while they are lying on their back. You can hold the cards above them, out of their reach, so that grabbing of flash cards is not an issue.
Make sure you always present your materials in an environment that is peaceful and without distractions.
Click to learn more about how to teach your baby to read with flash cards.
Monki See has 4 sets of baby flash cards available that you can use to teach your baby to read.
Babies Learn to Read Fast
When you first begin your baby reading program you will need to show your baby a word between 15 and 20 times before they master it. However as you work with your baby, you are strengthening the connections in their brain. This means that through exposure to words and written language your baby is learning the patterns of the language at the same time. When you first begin teaching your baby to read the written language is completely foreign to them. After a few months on a reading program your baby will be able to pick up new words at a much faster rate. This is because you are exposing them to phonics even though they are learning to read using the whole word method. Your baby is picking up the sounds of the letters and will master new words at a very fast rate.
In the beginning you definitely want to show the words many times, but as soon as you notice that your baby is capable of learning new words after only seeing them 2-3 times, you will have to pick up the pace of your program. You can also introduce short phrases and sentences to keep it interesting for your baby.
When my baby was 2 years old he would pick up new words after the first viewing. I would go to show him the words again and he already knew them. It helped that he could speak and tell me what he knew, otherwise I may have bored him to death. It wasn't long after this that he was reading words phonetically that he had never come across before. It happens at different times for different children but it is certainly magical when it does.
Do you have your own story to share? I would love to hear it.
If you want know more about how you can start your baby on a baby reading program check out www.monkisee.com. Monki See teaches babies to read through their fun and entertaining baby DVDs and baby flash cards.
How Many Times Should Babies See Each Word?
When you begin teaching your baby to read with flash cards you will want to show them each word between 15 and 20 times. This is the equivalent of showing them a set of words 3 times per day for 5 days or 2 times a day for a week. I have found that the easiest way to remember to how many times I have shown my baby a flash card is to make tally marks on the back of the flash cards. I find this helpful because sometimes midway through a set of flash cards the baby loses interest and we need to stop. Making tally marks is an easy way to keep track of how many times we have viewed each word card.
Another way to keep track of when you should switch materials is to choose a day of the week as your starting day. Show your baby the materials all week and then switch them out for new ones on the same day each week. Do you have any tips for keeping track of material swapping? I would love to hear them.
I would bring out new materials every Sunday and we would look at them all week. We usually looked at learning materials 5-6 days a week. Each week I would put away the materials we had covered and bring out a new set. Sets would include baby flash cards, word and sentence books that I made, dot cards to teach math, and encyclopedic knowledge cards. We didn't always do everything but we always had a steady dose of new words. That is the part of the program that we were the most consistent with.
All programs can and should be adjusted to suit you and not the other way around. Teaching your baby to read should be fun.
Click her for more information about How to Teach Your Baby to Read with Flash Cards.
Monki See has a line of flash cards and DVDs to teach your baby to read. You can view them at www.monkisee.com.
How to Use Memoflix to Teach Your Baby to Read
If you haven't yet tried out www.memoflix.com to teach your baby to read for free, it is time you headed over and checked it out. Currently there are 52 different categories of words, which gives you the ability to teach your baby to read over 500 words. Each category has a word and then the picture and some of the files even have sound effects. It is a great free resource to get started teaching your baby to read.
The best way to use Memoflix is whatever works best for you and your baby. If you want to expose your baby to language and increase their vocabulary, view as many or as few of the categories as you wish. However, if your main goal is to teach your baby to read, you should select up to 3 categories at a time and view them regularly. You will want to show these digital flash cards 2-3 times per day for about a week. Your aim is to show your baby the same words between 15 and 20 times. Once your baby has viewed the words an average of 15 times, it is time to move on. You will want to review the slides you have already seen twice per week. The flash cards do not change at a very rapid pace. This allows you to repeat the word, or ask your baby to point to the word, making the viewing more interactive.
It is important to review words that your baby has mastered, in order to maintain mastery over these words. You can review with baby flash cards or point out familiar words in books. If you prefer to be exact about exactly how many times you have shown each category, you can keep track on an index card or a notepad. Just put a tally mark each time you show a set. When you reach 15, it is time to introduce new sets.
Do you have any other questions? I would be happy to answer them here.
For more information about how you can teach your baby to read visit www.intellbaby.com
Teaching Babies to Read Words Beginning With the Same Letters
When you first start teaching your baby to read, try not to show them words that begin with the same letters. For example, don't show them cat, camera and cookie in one set. When you begin to teach your baby to read you are teaching them to recognize the way the word looks. They process the words as if they were an image. They are able to recognize the shapes of the words. When we show them words that all begin with the same letter, we may confuse them a bit.
However, once you have shown your baby 50 words or so, you can certainly show words that begin with the same letters. As a matter of fact, it is an excellent idea to show them words that teach the patterns of the language. This helps your baby to process language and pick up on the phonetic patterns of the language. After your baby has seen several words that start with the letter C, they will intuit, or figure out on their own that the letter C makes a K sound, much of the time.
It is important not to get caught up in the rules however. Your baby will learn language by being exposed to language. If you have words that start with the same letter, don't shy away from presenting them because you may be breaking some rule. Babies are geniuses when it comes to language and they can figure out far more than we give them credit for.
Do you have any questions about teaching your baby to read? If so please share them here.
You can also check out A Guide to Teaching Babies to Read. This video guide takes you step by step through the 8 different ways in which babies learn to read. It has tons of ideas, answers all your questions and shows you how easy it is to do.
Your Baby Can Learn to Read For Free
Have your heard that your baby can learn to read for free? Seriously, you can teach your baby to read without spending a single penny. If you are interested in starting your baby on a reading program you need to check out www.memoflix.com right now. Memoflix is a website that has created online flash cards, presented as mini-movies, about 1 minute in length. They show a word and then a picture and some of the slides even include sound effects. Each category teaches 10 words and there are over 50 categories at this moment. That means you have access to 500 words and pictures for FREE. All you have to do is sign up and you will be given a password so you can get started right away. It requires no work, no material preparation, nothing. Just place your baby on your lap, choose a category and enjoy the show.
Memoflix is continually adding new categories and will notify you as they upload new files. I don't think there is another resource like this available anywhere on the internet that is free. If you know of other great resources for teaching your baby, please share them here.
Nine new categories have just been uploaded and they are:
In the Music Room
In the Pantry
Reptiles
Snacks
Things We Read
Things We Wear 1
Things We Wear 2
Tools 1
Tools 2
Go on over to Memoflix and enjoy the whole experience of teaching your baby to read for free. You won't be sorry. You can even use Memoflix to teach your baby vocabulary.
Please share your thoughts here. I would love to know what you think.
