Teaching Your Baby Too Early Too Soon?

Teaching Your Baby Too Early Too Soon?

                                 “My Jessica can read Snow White cover to cover already .“

                                  “I already sent my kids for language and math class “

                           Sounds familiar?

 Christopher Green, Ph.D., says, “There is a real danger that being forced to read and pushed too hard at too early an age can turn some children off the whole idea and a definite resistance will appear which might hinder an otherwise normal approach to the subject.”

All the brain research leads us to the conclusion that this is detrimental to our children.  Too much too soon does more harm than good.  Over stimulation and activities that are introduced to children too early can hinder learning.

Pyramid of Learning

Pyramid of Learning

The ‘Pyramid of Learning’ diagram (adapted from Pheloung, 2006) illustrates these basic building blocks, with each new layer building upon earlier foundations. At the top tier is academic learning. Success in this domain is dependent upon the attainment of many preceding neurological milestones, represented in the tiers below.

Example 1: Without integration of the two sides of the body in place (tier 6), a student will struggle to cross the midline of the body, an essential skill associated with being able to read and write smoothly from left to right. Both sides of the brain will not yet be working well together, affecting listening, thinking, understanding, reasoning and social skills. Additionally a dominant hand (either left or right) may not yet be established; a direct link with poor literacy learning.

Example 2: If visual and auditory pathways are not working well (tiers 9 and10), the child will not be able to take adequate meaning from what they see and hear. Verbal instructions, written text and sensory experiences around them will become distorted and confusing.

Example 3: If primitive reflexes are still active (tier 2), posture, attention, memory and overall brain functioning may be affected, providing a large but invisible learning hurdle.

As illustrated in these examples, without all tiers of the pyramid of learning in place, academic learning can be problematic. The child’s emotional well being, behaviour and energy levels can also be compromised. 

The Water Bucket

Jessica has been taught to read, write and do math at her early stage of age without mastering the skills of the others element on the Pyramid of Learning beforehand. Guess what will happen? Below is demonstration of this situation. What will happen when the water pour into the bucket?

The water will just leak out deal to the unfilled hole of the bucket. This also explains that without mastering the foundation of formal learning, this child will be doing something that his/her development is not ready to do. Is like building a house on a shaky foundation. The house won’t be stable, and will be collapse.

Reference:
http://learningmoves.com.au/learningdifficulties.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/7107798.stm
http://www.nashvilleparent.com/2012/09/when-teaching-your-tothow-much-is-too-much/
http://www.butterflywings.com.au/?page_id=376