My 2 year old hates ABC's?

Question

My 2 year old son is very quick when it comes to physical activities. He can ride a bike ( with training wheels of course), he was rolling over at 2 months...but he HATES when I sing the ABC's and he refuses to say his name, which I know he knows because he answers to it. How to I get him to be more receptive to verbal education

Answer 1

Make a game of it instead of making it like a quiz.

Use the song like a timer. See if he can get dressed before you finish singing the alphabet song. "Oh wow! You were so fast. Mommy only got to L today!" (Or same with counting.)

Talk about what letters people start with - what "his" letter is, what mom and dad start with, etc.

Have his stuffed animals ask him what his name is.

In the store, have him look for a certain color or shape or letter/number on things while you shop.

Get some little wooden letters, letter tiles or letter magnets for him to play with. (Leap Frog makes great talking magnets.) Get an alphabet puzzle for him to do.

Let him watch the Leap Frog Letter Factory DVD and play online at http://www.starfall.com with your help.

DON'T PUSH. He's only two years old. He has a lot of time to learn this. But if you can make it fun, he'll be more interested.

For counting, as you climb steps, count each one. Or count all this toy cars. Sort them by color or size. Let him help you sort laundry and match socks. Believe it or not, that teaches math skills!

Answer 2

She is 2. Slow down, take a breath. Don't compare her to other children. 2 year olds are all at different stages of development. some are better at gross motor function skills, like running, jumping climbing, others are better at fine motor skills and like playing with fiddly things and drawing. Still others are very talkative. She is where she is. provide her with a loving stable home and lots of opportunities to explore the world in different ways. talk to he a lot about things that are around her, especially when driving in the car. try a spotting game thats not too hard eg. "can you see a red car?" and wait for a happy "there!" reply. Most of all realise that every moment of her small life she is working and learning. Don't stick her infront of the TV too much and don't pressure her to learn or you'll make it a hated chore and not something bright and fun. if you really really need her to learn her ABC's (and most kids don't until they are 3, before then is just another song) then try the They Might Be giants ABC's cd/dvd. they also do a great one called 123's. BUT keep in mind that you have to keep the pressure off. Feel free to message me if you want to chat. :)

Answer 3

Music is a good way to get him exposed to things. He can dance and play while he listens, and it won't seem like work to him. You'd be amazed at what they grasp without constant repetition. Even if he's just introduced to stuff now, it'll make it easier for him to grasp later on when it's "crunch" time.
My three year-old is a huge fan of the "Little People and the ABC's" (found it at Wal-Mart for $10). I pop in the CD in the car, or in his room while he's playing trains, and he'll start humming, and singing along.
Another idea is try sign language. Although it's small movements, maybe he'll be more interested because there's something physical to it.
Good luck!!

Answer 4

At two years old, I really wouldn't push it. He has plenty of time to learn. Doing physical stuff is what comes naturally to him. Since physical activity is equally important as it promotes exercise which is good for his physical health. You can try other ways later on down the road. If you force it now he will probably be more resistant to it later. You could try doing things to incorporate the physical activity with the learning process naturally. Like whenever you climb stairs, count the number of stairs as you are climbing them. You can set up obsticle courses and have him go from one letter to the next. You can do treasure hunts including numbers/letters... . Use a baking sheet and shaving cream and have him write letters with his fingers in the shaving cream (You show him how by doing it with him). There are a number of ways you can encourage learning but just don't push it at 2 yo. Good Luck!

Answer 5

Babies/toddlers who tend to be quick when it comes to large muscle stuff are often not as quick when it comes to the verbal stuff. Here's a link to an article that is related to this:

http://www.askdrsears.com/html/10/T107100.asp

For now - since he's only two - he's just not ready. I think you should stop singing the alphabet (there's something about that that irks a lot of little kids when their mother does it) and just try to mention individual letters when you can. ("I'm writing a note for the store. Let's see - I need milk. I'll write an "m" for milk.") Make sure he has toys that have letters in them or on them (the magnetic letters and numbers are always good - you could sit in front of the refrigerator with him and put names and words on the refrigerator).

Have books to read to him that have only a line or two on the page, and use your finger to point out some of the words while you read.

If you just kind of incorporate mentioning letters and words over the next year he'll get used to hearing them and be more ready for things like word games ("What rhymes with 'cat'? Let's see - bat, hat, fat, mat, pat.")

Make sure he watches Sesame Street or has tapes that are aimed at teaching letters. If he only has a half hour a day or watching anthing like tv or videos, make that half hour a good one.

When you go through doors in stores point out, "Enter". Point out "Stop" signs or the name on your Whirlpool dishwasher. Get him to be aware of letters and words in the world.

Let him play with cards that have pictures and words on them, and make sure he has books to look at on his own.

He's still pretty young. If you just kind of incorporate words and letters and word games etc. into your daily life when he's awake he'll be picking up what he needs to know. Three-year-olds tend to be more interested in singing the ABC's than two-year-olds do, so chances are in another little while he'll be a little more interested. If he's the "motor driven" type of toddler letters may not be "his thing" as much as they would be for a less motor-driven child, so maybe it will take a little longer for him to be interested.

One other note: At two years old toddlers are newly aware that they are their own person and have minds of their own. One way to show that is to refuse to do something like say his name when you ask him to. He may just be showing you that he'll let you know when he wants to do letters and say names. (This phase of his will pass when he becomes "all interested" in what interesting thing you have to offer when he's closer to three.)

Answer 6

Incorporate physical activities into it. Get out some shaving cream (or whipped cream, if he still puts things in his mouth) and play with it on a tray. Write letters that mean something to him in it, and encourage him to play in the shaving cream and write "letters" on his own. Don't get stuck in the idea that he has to write only "real" letters. If he makes a squiggly that he says is a "T", accept it, and say, "Wow, what a great T you made!" When you are out at the grocery store or Walmart or wherever, point out letters that you see (again, letters from his name or someone he knows- so it means something to him) on signs or soup cans, his favorite cereal, etc. Have him spell something simple as he jumps off something- instead of counting before jumping, spell his name one letter at a time. Give lots of opportunities for writing- leave crayons and paper out all the time for him to chose to do when in the house. Usually boys aren't as quick to grasp the concept of letters as girls, they are more concerned with motor skills and such. Just try as best you can to incorporate letters with physical activities in order to help them integrate in your child's brain. Some children really need that physical activity to help their brain incorporate new information.

Answer 7

It's called the terrible two's for a reason- babies this age often are difficult temperment wise, and sometimes regress with skills they once did with ease. You know he knows stuff, and he knows it too- but he's just trying to assert some independence. Sometims you just have to keep up with the repetitive stuff, shrug off the tirades, and he'll move forward at his own pace.

Answer 8

Hmm...I'm not sure you do. It's not really necessary in life for him to use his verbal tools as his primary learning tools.

Maybe he'll be one of those kids who learns by writing.

Also, it's entirely possible that he's learning the things by hearing them, and just doesn't want to say them, for the simple reason that you want him to do it. It's not unusual for 2-year olds to rebel a bit against their parents, in the process of discovering that they are individuals.

Answer 9

Since he likes physical activities, make a physical activity out of learning.

Answer 10

Yes this is a common problem, try to make it fun for yor child. When you sing the ABC's your child may be quite bored by it. But if you make it fun and interactive it will make him learn! Hope this helps!!