Why Teach your Baby to Read? A Challenge to Literacy!

dy">In this difficult task, he discovered that even a
Glenn Doman's Method in Practicechild with millions of dead brain cellsmay perform
To risk a new educational approach, a "Challengeand learn certain tasks that were considered
to Literacy" was the least that Icould do toimpossible. He noted thata child with half the brain
contribute to the modifications of our antiquatedremoved appeared to perform equal to another
educational system.child withan intact brain.
To challenge the present day process ofThe challenge presented itself in the form of the
eliminating illiteracy is an obligation for allseriousquestion "Why would not a child innormal
educators. Perhaps it was because of thisconditions not have a better performance,
conviction that I did not hesitateto teach myperhaps a factor two better, thana child with
babies to read. What damage could be done?cerebral problems?"
None whatsoever!Asked was could be wrong with the education of
There is much controversy among specialistsnormal children, Glenn Domandiscovered that we
over the best methods to facilitatelearning inwere teaching children to speak, to listen, but
infancy. While these controversies continue, wegiving noopportunity for them to see the words,
parents and educators,who are in contact withthat that would lead obviously to the abilityto
our children since birth, must not prevent theread, if we were to do so.
appearance ofsolutions.He suggested to parents that they begin a
We must struggle and find the solutions. We need"smooth revolution," increasing letter sizeand
to see the possibility of a neweducationalshowing them to children daily, in the form of a
approach. Is it utopian to imagine 4 year oldgame. He verified that theywould learn well, and
children entering schoolalready literate? How muchsuccessfully.
time and effort would be saved in society and inIn his book 'How to Teach Your Baby to Read'
theeducational system as a whole?Glenn Doman prepares the parent toconfront the
In the world of stimuli that they are exposed, thecontroversies and prejudices. He presents in
ability to read is a tangibleconcept, among others,Chapter 7 his method,which if only seen
that they manipulate (with their eyes) and as asuperficially, can appear as a useless 'recipe', which
concept isassimilated, absorbed. The experienceswould lead tonothing.
that follow from this are accommodated,resultingIn my book "Babies Can (and did!) Read", I can
in a growing necessity to acquire always more ofsay that I have tested such a 'recipe'and that it is
the concept, the ability toread. The activity ofnot what it seems to be initially; this 'recipe' is,
reading, which began as a game, becomes itself aabove all, a trueinstrument which will conduce to
game all thetime. As the game is played morean effective revolution in human education, of
and more, more does the child wish tothenormal child. The application of Glenn Doman's
dominatethe game itself. The fact that reading ismethod to my three children, whichwill be briefly
a spontaneous game, made real by thechild's ownexplained in the following pages, was the scientific
mind, shows that mental activities are the onlyvalidation in Brazilof the applied and experienced
things that we reallylearn, and as such, lead themethod, added to its respective results. The
baby to dominate real objects and theirresultsobtained and annexed at the end of my
abstractionsduring her integration in the family andbook will serve to foment new research inthe
in society.educational field, and will give way to more
Glenn Doman, the director of The Institute ofinquiries into the workings of theeducational
Human Potential, in Philadelphia,initiated a clinicalsystem and in the ways we have been dealing
project, working in the beginning with children withwith our children sinceearly childhood. Let's all
brain defects,which led generally to unexpected'Challenge Literacy' and with it, increase our
results. He perceived that problems with thebabieslearning!!!
ears,eyes, feet, among others, could be minimizedEliane Leao, PhD
if the treatment began in the mind.Challenge to Literacy (c) 2006
He introduced an approach which emphasized theVisit our page for a free starter Ebook on the
brain with the objective to detectand resolvesubject of babies and learning.
problems of other organs.