Tuesday, August 7, 2007

My Baby Can Read, Can Yours?

Previously on The Cheese Says....Mmmmm, we reviewed the Starter DVD and the Volume 1 DVD in the Your Baby Can Read program. If you read (or re-read) my original review, you might recall my initial skepticism. And then how that skepticism was shattered in the face of a baby that would clap when shown the word 'clap' on TV.

Well, We're still going strong! Recently the people at Your Baby Can Read and the Parent Bloggers Network provided us with the Volume 2 DVD and yet more word cards, both of the regular and sliding variety. And the verdict? Sam still loves them! The songs, the kids, the cards. He loves it all. We're still operating on the same routine of watching the disc during breakfast. On weekends, we try and review the Starter DVD and Volume 1. With the help of these videos, Sam can easily identify over a dozen body parts, make multiple animal sounds and sing along to several different songs. He loves to play with the cards, and flip them around to see the words on front and back. The only trouble we've had is with the 82 double sided word cards. These aren't quite as durable as Sam's age (17 months) requires. This mistake was learned at the expense of the word 'Happy.'

While I don't think Sam is truly reading yet, I have noticed some changes since the last review. Now when we read books to him, he seems to be following along with his eyes. In some books that only have a line or two on each page, he will actually point to the words with his finger, kind of like how they do on the videos. I've tested him a few times by reciting the text from future pages before I actually turn to that page, and he will find the appropriate page for me. Also, he will often point insistently to a word he recognizes until I say it. Honestly, I find this nothing short of amazing.

Also, as much as I hate to admit this, my kid loves the TV. Dear old dad gives into his adorable requests for Sesame Street all too often, me thinks. But the Your Baby Can Read program has helped keep the peace around here on more than one occasion. As long as these DVDs are playing, I don't get nearly as pissy when I come home to find that daddy has had the TV on for hours.

As a final testimonial as to how much we enjoy and utilize these DVDs, let me tell you that before PBN contacted me about reviewing the Volume 2 DVD, I had already ordered a copy at my own expense. That's right folks, I was more than willing to part with my own dough in order to continue Sam on this program. Luckily, I have a friend who I turned on to the Your Baby Can Read program, and she was more than happy to take the extras off my hands! I also intend to show these programs to Numero Dos once she makes her presence known. Which she better do soon if she knows what's good for her.

Truthfully, I couldn't be happier with this program, and I would have never heard about it if it weren't for the PBN peeps. I'll make sure he thanks you, along with Dr. Robert C. Titzer, Ph.D. when he's receiving his (first) Nobel Prize.

1 comment:

Arizaphale said...

As a teacher of reading and especially remedial reading I am fascinated by this. Do let us know how he progresses! My daughter also watches TV FAR too much. She was once caught in a hardware store at age 18 months watching a video on how to hang a door. Hope it comes in useful.