Things to Remember When Teaching Babies to Read

If you are teaching your baby to read, or thinking about getting started, here are some things to remember along the way.

Start now. – Babies have the ability to learn to read beginning at around 3 months old. If you have the opportunity to begin early do so. Don’t wait until your baby is older. When you begin at a time when your baby is not doing much physically, they will give you their attention. When beginning with older babies, some parents struggle with holding their attention. When certain babies gain mobility, they have no time to sit still, even for a few seconds. Begin early and your child will never remember a time when they couldn’t read.

Aim for short fast sessions. – Teaching a baby to read requires several quick short sessions during the day. This means, you have some words that you want to teach your baby and you quickly show the words and put them away. This should take between 30 seconds and a minute. When you are ready to present some words, your goal should be to get it done. Flash the words and put them away. Do this 2 or 3 times per day. If you do this when baby wakes up, after a bath and after a diaper change, you are done for the day. This is not something you do all day.

Don’t bore your baby. – Your baby has the ability to learn as many languages as they are exposed to from birth to five years old. This means your baby is extremely intelligent. Don’t bore your baby by going too slowly. Show the cards around 15 times per word and move on. You can review, but be sure to include plenty of new material.

Cater to your baby’s interests. – Although there are packaged reading programs available, be sure to include words that your baby finds interesting. Don’t be afraid to add words to your program. As far as what you can teach, the sky is the limit. Don’t limit yourself in thinking that any program is perfect. You can add and take away from them as needed.

Use video. – There are some great videos available that teach babies to read. This is a great way to get your program started, Babies like to watch television. You can see how the words are presented and how your baby responds to the program. It is really easy to branch out to flash cards once you have begun with videos.