Anyone have any success with "your baby can read?"

Jen - posted on 12/17/2010

My mum used 'Teach Your Baby to Read' (Glenn Doman), with me - you can buy the book for about $12, and then make the materials yourself. It's a similar method as shown in the 'Your baby can read' dvd's, and has been around for years.
I could read books by the time I was 3 yrs, and I think it encouraged the real love of reading that I still have. I started using the same method with my son when he was 6 mths (he's now 2 yrs). He seems to be picking up the words really well. I'm not sure if it's accelerated his reading, and to be honest I don't care. He loves doing the flash cards and loves reading books with me. It's making reading fun, rather than a chore or something you're forced to do. The moment he loses interest, I put the flash cards away for another time.
He might be memorising words rather than individual letters, but I can't see how this will be to his detriment when he starts school. Anything that excerises his memory and encourages a love of reading seems like a good idea to me.

Katherine - posted on 12/17/2010

Please get the conversation back on topic.

Katherine Administrator
WtCoM

Toccara - posted on 12/17/2010

The program has songs, music, and stories, and even games to play WITH your lil one...its not set up like a reading class and thats it. It gives you ALOT of room to play AND work with you baby. the reading lesson will still be good to have and keep to grow with your baby as they grow older. Alot of ppl i see are tellin you to spend time with your baby...but I noticed you said its hard without some tools...if you need some tools...I think its a good investment...I watch it with my son at night and my sitter watches with him in the afternoon. Its good to have something positive. I don't look at it as a "reading tool" par say, BUT good harmless educational video and literature for my young one.

Toccara - posted on 12/17/2010

Vocab. Yes. My baby is 15 months, and is only saying some words. BUT...He was NOT a big waver or a big one on saying "hi". He now waves hi and bye and knows to do so when he hears someone say it. He knows to clap and I'm pretty sure he's saying the word dog now! I'd say it helps even past the reading part at the ages of children u and I have. I'm not sure about the older kids, but I think its impacting my baby.Sings songs and tells you about the animals. I comes with flip books and the coolest flash cards i've ever seen. I've heard some places like toy r us is selling them for 69$. So for 4 disk, 4 flip books, and 4 sets of flash cards...all to help entertain your lil one and also educated them isn't a bad investment. It helps even to just have it playing in the backround while they are playing....their minds are sponges they'll pick up the words and lessons. Better them picking up the word clap and dog than....oh you know there is worse. lol. Hope I helped a little.

Tammy - posted on 12/17/2010

Sarah has some correct information. usually around the 3rd-5th grade you see a slow down among children. What they are realizing now is that at about this age group the whole word instruction/sight reading method shows a terrible breakdown. Those who learn by whole word/sight word can't grow their reading and spelling skills past a certian level because it's all memorization, and reading is the key to learning. Add that to the fact that it is at this time that they transition these kids to cursive and it pretty much stops the train. Now kids have to stop, back up, and relearn the writing skills when they should be working on higher learning. Teachers don't have time at this late stage to devote to handwriting skills. Keep in mind, your handwriting is to the written language that your speach is to verbal language. Hybrid mixes of print and cursive, bad spelling and overall sloppiness is akin to mumbling, stuttering and having a hard time understanding someone when they speak. It makes that form of communication difficult. Even in this keyboard society physical handwriting is very important. It's been shown to help with learning in all areas.



Reading readiness is going to happen at different ages for everyone. This is when you have a child that shows an interest and also meets a few other ability levels in certian areas and is able and willing to accept some structured learning for even short periods. (you'd be ammazed what can happen in 15 minutes). However, there are things that parents can and should do to develope reading rediness. Do you send your kids off to Kindergarten unpotty trained or with no knowledge of anything at all? Of course not, you get them ready for kindergarten by teaching them some things first. You prepare for reading by introducing them to the written language with books and such. You help them understand that the sounds we make are connected to the written language. You can teach them all the different sounds (40-45?) and "connect" them to the written symbols (letters or letter groups). This is the "answer key" to the written language code.



We sing songs, make sounds and talk to babies from the time they're born, not because we think they can do it right then but because introducing them to it and repatition help them learn over time. Reading requires an automatic recognition/response that simple memorization just can't compete with.

Jakki - posted on 12/17/2010

I think I heard something on the radio here in Australia a couple of days ago that the govt was banning those programs that involve putting a child under 2 in front of a DVD for "educational purposes".

It's been shown that kids benefit much more from engaging with the world than passively sitting in front of a screen. It's great that you mothers are so committed to helping your kids learn, but don't get too worried about it! Your kids will learn to read when they get to school, just have fun with them now. Of course if you are both having fun with the books and the flashcards, go ahead, but as soon as it becomes a chore, give up! Let the kids poke at a pile of dirt with a stick with some other kids. They learn even more about the world doing that!

Sarah - posted on 12/17/2010

I think i read a study somewhere that intellectually advanced babies will actually begin to be on par with their more "normal" peers by the time they hit grade 5 (around 10) and in some cases those that could speak read and write earlier tend to fall behind in math and science and in some cases can actually fall behind in language studies (and i say language cos not everyone speaks english as a first language)

Queen - posted on 12/17/2010

I like reading and using picture books. I feel like consistence is the key. Your baby picks retains what he/she see on a regular basis. Good luck.

Jacquie - posted on 12/17/2010

One of the disadvantages of the program is that it conditions the child to whole word reading. The question would then be: Can the child acclimate to learning through phonics after that. Higher levels of reading cannot be accomplished through sight reading. Jacquie

Jacqueline - posted on 12/17/2010

I'll be the one to post the opposite! It is word recognition and I must say it helps a whole bunch I started when my son was already 2 and a half he's 4 now and we haven't done it in MONTHS but it's just like any other educational "toy" parents have to be involved in all aspects it means actually sit and share the learning experience with your child and then practice reading the books and cards. Your child will not learn from sitting in front of a tv and looking at a video they learn from the interaction. for me it has been worth the investment :)

Jacqueline - posted on 12/17/2010

What store is selling it for 69$? My daughter is 20 No and will repeat everyword I tell her she has a large vocabulary already but I also purchased the program I figure a head start wouldn't hurt but after reading this blog I wonder?

Tammy - posted on 12/17/2010

No need even for flash cards at this age. Hind sight being what it is, if I could go back in time, I would have done the SWR thing right from the start. I'd say, look into the SWR program, maybe get the phonogram CD (cheap by the way) and learn them yourself. (You would be amazed at how it will help YOU). Play the CD for yourself and your child. Babies are avid listeners. Then, anytime a letter (aka: Phonogram) presents itself (like on a toy or any writing, even a flash card) you point to it and say the sounds that it makes. Just like pointing to something blue and saying "blue". We are always so focused on teaching the names of the letters without realizing that most don't actually make that sound. Teach the sounds first because that actually has something to do with reading and it's less confusing. The names of letters are used for alphabetizing and other things that come AFTER reading anyway. My 2 cents anyway:):)

Actually, anyone interested in helping a struggling reader/speller, anyone needing help with adult illiteracy or anyone learning challanged (especially dyslexia) would find this program extrememly helpful. Anything that can teach severely downs syndrome people to read and spell at a 12th grade level deserves a second look. (good reading and spelling help compprehension, however, comprehension is also effected by other things as well.)

Again, I wouldn't push for structured learning at this stage. Play with the material, then when they show rediness for reading, you show them what to do with the information they've picked up.:)

Below is a link to a state senate speach by the woman who put together SWR. A great read and very eye opening.

http://www.backhomeindustries.citymax.co...

Tiana - posted on 12/17/2010

We used baby can read and it was sooo wonderful! Our daughter skipped right over the mimicking stage of talking because once she could say a word she knew the meaning. She is now 26 months and she actually can recognise a few 2 letter words like Hi

Donna - posted on 12/17/2010

I, too disagree with Lenience. Sorry, but children should be learning from the time they are born. They are not blobs of clay to be left lying around and ignored. Mothers are an infants first teacher and should be encouraged to teach their infant to learn how to read. However, I don't think paying $250 for flash cards and a dvd are the prime way to do it. Save yourselves the hassle, heartache and unnecessary expense and make your own flash cards yourself!

Tammy - posted on 12/17/2010

Lenience, I couldn't (respectfully :)) disagree more, however I do think we are each thinking something different when we think "classroom". Life is itself a classroom so to speak, if we are thinking in terms of learning. Children are learning all the time, all day long. They learn through play. The question is what do you want them to learn. Trying to recreate a public school classroom in the home would be the wrong approach. Most of the time we teach our children whatever happens to "happen" during the day without thought to any of it. However, as parents we have the ability to "direct" our childs learning in a more proactive way should we choose to do so. If we can teach our children things without even thinking about it what do you think would happen if we put a little thought into it? Talk about amazing!



Unfortuantely we rely too much on the TV programs to educate our children at home. (Hey, I was one of them) Live and learn, now I know better.



Communication is probably the most important thing a person ever learns. Even as a newborn we immediately try to communicate our needs and wants. We learn to speak and understand verbal language through play (think about it) and the same can be done with getting started on the wrriten code for language, because it begins with the sounds themselves. The written code is just a visual symbol for the verbal sounds. When you know al the codes for the sounds we make you can unlock spelling, writing and reading.



Better communication equals less frustration. The sooner a person is able to communicate effectively the better. But the majority of it does not require organized, sit in a seat all day, schooling.



As a society I think we underestimate what our children are capable of. I've seen textbooks from the 1700's and 1800's and it is sooo beyond what are children are being taught today it's enough to make you weep.

Lenience - posted on 12/17/2010

I believe a child should be a child, there are many years to come were the child will be going to school. So why push them children should enjoy every stage. I believe making a home a class room will affect a child attitude towards learning as they grow.

Tammy - posted on 12/17/2010

Hi Tiffany, I haven't been able to read all the comments you've received so far so I'm not sure what all has been covered. I will say this however.



Your baby can read is based on whole word instruction. That's what's being taught in most schools these days but it is a very poor way to learn how to read. We have a 30% illiteracy rate coming out of highschools today. If you want to make sure your child has a good start then I suggest looking into Spell To Write and Read. Commonly referred to as SWR. www.bhibooks.net . It uses REAL phonics. Please don't confuse it with the fake or partial phonics usually taught today. This is how our lanugage USED to be taught back when our country had a 99% literacy rate. It's how all other languages are taught. When our school system went to the progressive whole word instruction and manuscript writing our literacy rate plummeted. Spelling suffers considerably. SWR teaches the best way to learn to read and write the english language AND it actually makes sense! Whole word instruction makes our language look mixed up and complicated when it's really not that bad. In fact, especially when combined with Cursive First, it practically eliminates Dyslexic tendancies because the majority of "Dislexia" today is caused by the teaching methods of whole word and manuscript (print) first.



Example: ever hear this? "When two vowels go walking the first does the talking".? It only works 27% of the time and only on prescreened work sheets. In the real world your child is going to see this rule violated to no end and cause huge amounts of confusion.



Whole word instruction relys on memorizing each word as a seperate "symbol". The average human brain can only maintain/retain 1500-2000 abstract symbols at a time. There are over 500,000 words in the Webster's dictionary. See how that might be a problem?



Think of lanuage as coding and decoding. Writing is coding and reading is decoding. Whole word seperates spelling and adds it as an afterthought. Proper spelling is required for the effective and successful learning of our language. BAd spelling slows down reading.



With just 70 basic phonograms and 28 spelling rules our language makes perfect sense. You can even work with babies with just the phonogram sounds. They love to hear them and eventually start to mimic and say them themselves. Then when they are reading ready you match up the sounds they know with the "symbols" which are the letters. This program will take someone from non reader to college level reading and spelling in about 4-5 years, thus freeing up the mind for higher thinking (learning about everything else through reading).



I hope it helps you:) I wish I had found it sooner!



Tammy

Kathleen - posted on 12/17/2010

All that program is, is the child sees the word, and hears how it is said. It's memorization. The guy who invented it used flash cards with his daughter. So for $250 (around there I believe) it's a scam. Being a parent is a lot of work, and it sound like your child is normal by not sitting for too long. maybe get a video camera and record yourself using flash cards if she likes to watch tv. That way she can watch you teach her over and over. But that's just as much work as doing it yourelf. We all learned just fine before there ever was "my child can read" Good luck!! :)

Donna - posted on 12/17/2010

Why wouldn't it actually 'teach' your baby to read? I see no evidence to the contrary - especially on the commercials. However, I would caution you on paying into these 'flash cards'...you can save yourself a lot of money by simply reading to your child every day for at least 20 minutes. I teach reading to elementary children and taught my own child to read before she was 3. They are never too young to learn how to read! What I would suggest is getting simple to read books (for you) with lots of pictures. When you are reading to your daughter, place your finger under each word as you read it aloud. This will teach her to follow along with you while you read to her. Place cards on objects around your home (i.e., refrigerator, stove, microwave, cupboard, bathroom, door, bedroom, etc.). These will also help your daughter learn to read. You might also want to look into teaching her sign language. Simple words at first, like 'more', 'thank you', 'please'. I taught my daughter how to sign and it helped her to talk before she could speak. While your daughter is 18 months old, she would still benefit from learning a few signs. Go to your local library, or look online for further information. If you have more questions, please do not hesitate to contact me directly by email.

Melissa - posted on 12/17/2010

i think it helps. its i wouldnt say my son can read but he learned alot of sounds at an early age which help him with his speach

Kay - posted on 12/17/2010

I have a patient at work uses it and it definitely works! It was amazing to see her two little ones reading at 1 and 2 years old. words like orangutan even. Get it!

Deborah - posted on 12/17/2010

I bought it hoping it would help my 2 1/2 yr old. she doesn;t like the d v d's and so she doesn;t watch it. I thknk the programs need to be started much younger before they see all the action on t.v shows./ compared to all the action and colors in Dora and other NIck Jr shows this does not hold their interest long enough

Debbie - posted on 12/17/2010

I think that there are more important things to "teach" your baby than reading. Babies need lots of "mother time", to move around a lot (especially an INTENSIVE time of crawling before walking). Play good music, sing with your baby. Read him/her stories, show the pictures. This all provides a solid basis for reading later.

Amanda - posted on 12/17/2010

I bought it for my daughter and it was a waste of money. I got it when she was 4 and just started pre-k. So it might have been cause she was too old for that program. I spent like $300 on the entire set. She did learn to read a few words like elephant and chimpanzee which she just memorized. But NOT worth the money. I saw the other day at Walmart that they sell the DVDs separately. So you can buy the 1st DVD for like $20. If you are seriously considering I would try that 1st. Also our library has the movie you can rent for free for 2 weeks at a time. You could try there. Just cause it didn't work for my girl doesn't mean it won't work for everyone.

Tiffany - posted on 12/17/2010

my sister used it for both my nieces the oldest who is 6 has been given the award for the best reader in her school ( which goes to 5th grade). She is borrowing my books to read.. I have now bought it for my daughter who is 14 months old...

Jennifer - posted on 12/17/2010

I have the ur baby can read and it doesnt work for my son he is way too active and hyper at 15 months to sit still 3 times a day, so after he eats I use cheap pcak of flash cards for a few minutes while he's still in his high chair and hes recognizing the pictures and says the word.Also the ur baby can read videos don't keep him interested like the einstein videos do they are too boring, you would be better off getting a simple pack of flash cards and an einstein video

Kathryn - posted on 12/17/2010

I have been showing the DVD's sporadically since she was about 8 months old. She is now 20 months old. She is stringing 3 words together and her vocabulary is HUGE. Her recognition of objects, numbers, and letters is amazing. I work full time and only showed this a few times a week. I think it really helped in her ability to communicate what she wanted earlier than most other kids did. I did also spend alot of time with her reading and talking etc. But I still think the video helps. You don't NEED the video to have these results but it certainly helps when you are not around all day. She doesn't "read" per se but she does recognize words. Of course it is memorization but that's what reading is initially anyway. I personally liked the program and still show it a few times a week to reinforce vocab and words.

Danielle - posted on 12/17/2010

Hi, I have been a teacher (Infants-School Age) for over 20 years. "Your Baby Can Read" is not something I would reccomend. At the Infant stage of Development there are far more important things you could/should be doing with your child. This is a time when children should be exploring themselves, the world around them, and how the two interact. Flash cards are not appropriate for young children. That said, if you want to give your child a larger vocabulary READ, SING, and LABEL :) Board Books are perfect for your child's age. If she isn't interested in listening to the "story" (some kids aren't ready for that), just have cuddle time and explore the pictures. Point to items and say what they are, Ask your child "Where is the dog? Where is the cat?" then give a clap or a hug (to show excitement that your child is participating) when she can point to an object. Go to your local library or look up "finger plays" on the internet. You will have so many you won't know where to start. Sing these songs and do the hand movements with your child, this will increase vocabulary by leaps and bounds. Label what you and your child do, touch, see etc. Whenever she picks something up, give her the word for it. "Nice BALL" or "DOG", etc. Talk through your day... Let's pick up this BALL and ROLL it... or Let's get the JUICE out of the REFRIDGERATOR and put it in your CUP so you can have a DRINK. It might feel silly at first, but you'll see how much she takes in, just by listening to you.
At 18 mos. your little girl is going to be interested in NOUNS... she wants a name for everything. This stage is called the Labeling Stage (go figure.. right?lol) When you speak she will be picking out (hearing) the nouns the most. She isn't interested in sentence structure, adjectives, pronouns, adverbs, etc. Just "What's That!?!?!". As she moves into the "2's" she will be more interested in "Spatial Concepts" such as UP, DOWN, OVER, UNDER, IN, OUT, etc. you should "show-teach" these words but putting things in something, taking them out again (Toddlers love to play dump and fill) use an empty box that she can go inside and come out of, etc.
Just remember, that children learn through play.. doing or experienceing something over and over is key to the learning process, so be patient and keep up the good work!!!!!
Danielle

Tamara - posted on 12/17/2010

Get the picture cards from the dollar store or make your own. I wouldn't buy such an expensive program. We are told to read to babies/infants. Im sure working with your child everday will help stimulate a childs brain.

Toni - posted on 12/17/2010

i have it for my son i got it when he was 14 mths old he just watched it to start of with now he is 2 yrs 4 mths old and he can say and read over 260 words

Jennifer - posted on 12/16/2010

Here is a site that may help with some learning games on the computer to start learning alphabet and shapes and matching with the keyboard.

http://www.fisher-price.com/fp.aspx?st=2...

Jennifer - posted on 12/16/2010

My son, Aedon, is only 24 months old and I started him on the "Your baby can read" and it really is just memorization. It got to the point where he had "memorized" when to look at the picture and when to look away when the word would be on the screen. He used the program for about a year with really no progress. When I stopped using the program and let him watch ~gasp~ Nick Jr the pre-school on tv channel he made a big improvement and has been learning new things each day. His doctor just told me TODAY that he is a year advanced already. So dont worry about pushing learning on them, they want to learn and will learn in there own way. Also my son loves books. You really only have to spend a few minutes a day with them and a book and they will eventually start to look at them on their own. Hope this helps! ^_^

Amanda - posted on 12/16/2010

It's not memorization... It's repetition! It's really a harmless program that could help read yet when I put it on my 11 year old watches for 5 minutes and then off to play! He will not watch it but when sesame St comes on they have his undivided attention for an hour! I wish he would give it a chance but noooooooo

Alexis - posted on 12/16/2010

After reading that you want her to be able to tell you what she wants, I am taking sign language classes and got my son a "my first signs" dvd. He knows the signs for eat, more and drink. they tend to understand a lot more than they can say but seem to pick up signs really quick.

Alexis - posted on 12/16/2010

Yes!! My son got it from a family member for his 1st birthday. He is now 16 months and has picked up some words from the videos and a lot of the actions, for example they say hands up and show kids putting their hands up, now he does it. He doesn't read but it has helped him to pick up some words and connect actions to words. It is an expensive set though, so if your just looking for an increase in vocab and not the actual reading part then maybe you could find some cheaper dvd's. He does like the videos though, they have a lot of interaction and songs.

Patricia - posted on 12/16/2010

I don't have your baby can read. I don't believe kids so young should be reading yet, it will cause them problems in the future.

My son is 20 months and knows his letters and numbers from playing with flashcards, foam figures and reading those "MY FIRST.....BOARD BOOK". when we can't play with him (I am a stay at home mom and my husband works from home) I put on "super why" or "world word" from PBS, they teach a lot of vocabulary and songs. Just go online.

At 18 months he is fine with just a few words, my mother in law told me that my husband when he was a baby didn't talk until he was 2 1/2 (even after therapy) because he wanted to use sentenes

Marge - posted on 12/16/2010

Chanda, here's a link that might be helpful http://www.ican-do.net/autism_by_cyndi_r... That whole website has great stuff. Thank you for the affirmation that reading is memorization. Bless you. Also if you Google Glenn Doman he may have some resources for you too.

April - posted on 12/16/2010

Wow, this has been quite a heated debate! I couldn't get through the whole six pages - it was getting too stressful! Tiffany, no one has any right to judge you for making this purchase. I, like many others are skeptical about the program (I believe that teaching phonics is the best way to teach a child to read), but if your daughter enjoys the flashcards, that's wonderful. She may not be learning to read, but she is building her vocabulary and becoming familiar with letters. I have a 19-month-old, and he loves picture books that have the words printed underneath them. We go through them often, and he can identify almost all the pictures in his books. I also talk to him all day long and narrate nearly everything we do, which exposes him to many words and phrases. He picks up about five new words each day, and he is up to about 150 words that he uses meaningfully. He also has started putting words together. He asks to "get down," and he says "lights on" and "lights off" when he flips the light switch. Every child is different, though, and at 18 months, 10-15 words is perfectly normal. I highly recommend the Alphabooks by Baby Einstein. There are 26 small books (one for each letter) with three objects that start with that letter. On the cover of each book is the letter both capitalized and lowercase, so I start by saying the name of the letter, and tracing it with my son's finger. Then we go through each picture...A is for apple, A is for airplane, A is for alligator...and then we repeat the name of the letter. My son loves these books and brings them to me to read to him. Tiffany, keep up the good work and follow your parental instincts.

Teresa, kudos to you for saying what everyone was thinking about the text-speak. I've heard from teachers I know that kids write papers like this. They actually turn in papers to be graded without proper capitalization. Can you imagine writing "i" instead of "I" to refer to yourself in a paper?

Chanda - posted on 12/16/2010

Tiffany,
My mother-in-law bought it for my son who has a severe delay in speech. A month after she bought it, he was diagnosed with Autisim. This program will never "teach" him to read, however.... he did learn words. It also opened a whole new door... that of mimicing. I don't want to say it's a scam, or worthless, etc because in my eyes this thing is beautiful. My son didn't interact with anybody or anything. There was new give and take. Then I started using this. I don't use it like they say you have to. We do it about once a day, but he LOVES the books.

And just a little side note- reading is memorization. You memorize that the letters d-o-g spells dog.
Good luck.

Jodi - posted on 12/16/2010

Children need to hear a minimum of 30,000 words a day! So get in the habit of narrating EVERYTHING you do (and as someone else suggested, cut out the baby talk if you use it.) When I'm cooking, I talk about putting water inthe pan to make it hot, putting hard noodles into the pan of hot water, the noodles are getting soft now and the water is making bubbles...that's called boiling etc etc etc. I describe tying my shoes, picking upt he different shapes and colors of her blocks as we put them away, the houses and cars and things we see while we're in the car on our way to grandma's house, the colors, textures and smells of the fresh fruit and veggies at the store, the shapes the numbers and letters on the boxes and cans of food we pass by. Sometimes, I feel a little crazy talking so much to myself, but now, my daughter is a little chatter box and isntead of me narrating about the noodles, or the shopping trip, I have conversations with my 21 month old. It is also suggested that we be reading to our chidlren for 20 minutes every day (not all at once, but throughout the day.). Don't just read the book adn be done, read the page, point to pictures/objects and name them describe what is happening on the page, if the character happy or sad, is the object red or green or purple, how many of such and such items are there on this page? So on and so forth. Talk talk talk!!! lol

I definately don't think you need Your Baby Can Read to achieve a verbal vocabulary, I think one on one interaction will be much more effective, although perhaps YBCR could be a good supplement if yous it with her and interact with her throughout the program.

But, I never used YBCR, I used the other methods I mentioned and my daughter (21 months) has a vocabulary WELL past 300 words and makes sentences on her own. So, for at least my daughter and I, the things I read online worked for us! Best of luck!

Tiffany - posted on 12/16/2010

I don't care if my child reads until shes TEN I just want her to be able to articulate to me what she wants needs and when shes hungry, HENCE the fact the reason I was asking was I was trying to work on vocabulary expansion, for the 1000 time

Eva Marie - posted on 12/16/2010

talking to your child like there a pesron NO Baby Talk...my children could read at 2...and talk like most 5 year olds now my grand are the same no baby talk

Allison - posted on 12/16/2010

Do you really think it is necessary for an 18 month old baby to be reading? Are you hoping that she will be reading Shakespeare by the age of 5? 18 month old kids should not be reading they should be out exploring the world. Save yourself the money and the heartache and rather buy her finger paints, play dough and read her as many books as possible. 18 month old babies brains are not developed sufficiently to be able to read. Stop pressurizing yourself - she will read when she is ready just like she walked when she was ready. Parents today are so obsessed with reading that we are forgetting that we all only started reading either in Kindergarten or Grade 1 and all managed to be highly functioning people. Don't fall for this marketing traps and stop worrying about reading for now and enjoy being your child's mom not her teacher. Don't fall into the I have to have my child reading by day one of JK or she will never graduate. It is allot of rubbish. Enjoy motherhood they grow so quickly. Check out my new blog:
http://momintrenches.blogspot.com/2010/1...
Mom in the Trenches

Laura - posted on 12/16/2010

I've never tried it but in general, the American Academy of Pediatrics says that kids under ther age of 2 avoid all screen time tv and video games) and that after the age of 2 screen time should be limited. Screen time has been linked to ADHD in children and young adults. Check out this article on ADHD: http://www.examiner.com/parenting-advice... . Also, a speech therapist once told me the best way to build your child's vocabulary is for you to constantly talk to your child (using a broad vocabulary). So, narrate what your doing and why as you go about your day with your daughter. Sometimes Baby Signs classes can be helpful too because it can give her a way of expressing herself without speaking yet still build her vocabulary and understanding of language.

Kathryn - posted on 12/16/2010

Any and all reading expands your child's vocabulary at any age. I read to my children when I was pregnant. All four of them are avid readers and two of them were reading at age 21/2 to 3. Just because your child is not verbalizing a lot of words yet does not mean that she doesn't have the vocabulary in her mind and just isn't ready to say them. By all means, if you like the idea of the "teach your baby to read" pursue it!!!

Autumn - posted on 12/16/2010

My son and my nephew all love Your baby can read. My nephew is almost 3 and has been watching it since he was about a year and a half and can read well when he actually sits still long enough. My son is 16 months and has been watching it for the past 4 months. He doesnt read (but he doesnt talk either) He does how ever follows along with the words and songs. Its his favorite show, so I have no doubt that when he is ready it will help him read as well.

Iysha - posted on 12/16/2010

Programs like "Your Baby Can Read" prey on parents' insecurities about their child being left behind accademically. your child will learn to speak, read, and write by attending school and with your help. In the early years, just hearing people talk to them will teach them to speak and learn words. introduction of books is important to get them interested in reading....if they are interested in books and see you reading and getting excited about story time, so will they! your job as a mommy is to start the process and get your baby interested in books and to talk to him!!! The first part of learning to read is learning the language.

Natalie - posted on 12/16/2010

I'm happy to hear good things about the product. My husband and I bought it for our son for Christmas. I can't wait to introduce it to him. I read a lot of books to him everyday and he really likes to sit and listen to stories.

Rachel - posted on 12/16/2010

My mother bought it for my daughter at 6 months we started, shes now almost 18 months and says about 75 words. the program doesnt teach memorization and actually does teach them to read. of course if you dont read to them and teach them yourself its not going to do any good. I am amazed at how much my daughter knows and says.

Windi - posted on 12/16/2010

Now is the best time to start!! I had my daughter start at 3 mths and now she recognizes over 50 words at age 17 mths. It will definitely inhance her vocabulary and help her develop speaking skills! I recommended it to anyone I know with kids under 5!! Good luck and have fun with it if u get it!!