Would it better to teach my child to read at age 5, or should I start earlier?

Question

I have a 4-month-old child. I want my baby to be happy, but I also want to teach her as much as possible.

Answer 1

the eariler the better.let your kid get a jump on life.

Answer 2

My dad learned to read and write when he was 3 and he is a very smart guy. But he's not happy because he feels everyone around him is dumber than him in one way or another, but I think that's because he went to public school.

I learned to read, write and algebra at 9yrs old and graduated from a public grammer school at the age of 12, then I skipped middle school and graduated at 14 from a private highschool, but that was because I was very feed up with the public school system and wanted to go to the university ASAP.

If your kid is going to a private school, the earlier you teach him or her the better. Make sure they have extra curicular activities so he/she won't become a geek and get bullied in school. If your kid is going to a public school, he will either be a bully or be bullied, you don't really get any other option. Of course there are problems with having a intelligent child, they are very demanding and sometimes see things differently then the rest and as a result are punished for it. The more you teach your child the better it will be in the long run.

Good Luck!

Answer 3

One is not mutually exclusive of the other. I started reading to my son as soon as he was born. He started reading on his own at age 5 1/2. But I always treated it like a treat. When he was about 2, I would have him pick out 3 books to read before bedtime. It was his favorite part of the day. The book distributor that lives next door offered him a stuffed animal when he was 4 and he said, " No, thank you. But can I have a book please". Outings to the library are important and letting them hear you read in different voices for different characters. Many times he would hear me laughing in the bathroom and he would come to see why and find me in there reading a book. Its very possible to encourage reading at a young age. My son is now 9 years old and in the 4th grade and he is reading at just under a 6th grade level. He is in the gifted program at school and has been the past 3 years. Also received highest honors the past 3 years. Homework comes easy to him and I attribute this all to reading. If you can learn to read, you can read a book that can teach you anything else.
As proud as I am about all of that, I must say he has the biggest heart of anyone I've ever known. And that speaks to his emotional intelligence.

Answer 4

Start right away. I read to my son every night (he is 2 1/2) and he recognizes most of the Alphabet already.

When your daughter is a little older (about a year) introduce shapes and shape recognition because that helpes with number and letter recognition. Baby Einstein shows and other educational programming is good too.

But don't get discouraged if you don't see some of the results posted here in your child. Every child is different and some of the quick learners will plateau. Children should be encouraged, not pressured into learning, and it should be fun for the both of you.

Answer 5

Mine is 2 and she loves me to read to her and we read so much she can read it by looking at the picture. I am a head start teacher and the earlier the better when kids are young they grasp things better. They just start thinking ok i think i remember this and the whole time you did try to teach them that..But don't drill them just read to her and talk to her as if she were grown i do and my child knows a little bit more than some kdis in my class.

Answer 6

Not sure if you can really "teach" your child to read at 4 months old, but I do believe that we underestimate how much our children learn from us everyday.

As far as my own experience, my mother never read to me as I was growing up, but my father did. He would take me to the library everyday afterschool and since then I've LOVED reading.

I think that it's much more important to raise a child to LOVE reading, rather than be the best at it, because if you love to read, becoming good at it will come with time.

Answer 7

Yes. Please teach your child as much as possible. Knowledge is the only gift that cannot backfire and cannot be taken away. Definitely teach her to read earlier. Dont wait for school or the age for school, as it might slow her down. Instill in her an appreciation for reading so she may begin to teach herself things and not be controlled by TV. Thats just a TV hater's/book lover's opinion, dont mind it if you dont want to. But really, if you want her to appreciate reading, do what my parents did to me: make her read. One of the best things they ever did for me. I now despair because I cannot find as much time to read. HEY! I have time now! YAY!!!

starmoishe- your son brightens my day, hes awesome

Answer 8

I don't think you need to wait until she is 5 years old to start reading. I started teaching my 4 year old hooked on phonics and he really enjoyed it.. already finished level 2 in a few months and can read lots words...

Answer 9

You start teaching your child to read by reading to her as much as possible. Children do not learn to read by merely being taught the alphabet and then how to form words. It is a process that starts from birth.

They learn to read first by learning the words that end the sentences that you read to them in their favorite books. Then they recognize pages in book and memorize the word that go with those pages. All the spelling and forming words comes after.

My son is 3 1/2 years old. He knows the entire alphabet by heart. He knows all the letters, upper and lower case, by sight. He can spell out words that are written, printed, etc. He is learning how to spell small words such as dog, mom, dad, etc. He is currently learning about rhyming words.

This all stems from reading to him from birth.

Answer 10

Age 5 is late. I could read at age 3. Why delay opening a whole wonderful world of learning?

Answer 11

We made reading fun for our child, and had special trips to the book store that's really cool here. He could pick out whatever he wanted (within reason) and it is still something he looks forward too. He caught on to reading very quickly because he was surrounded by books all the time.