Learning By Imitating

Dear Byron,

We say ball and you say ba. We say Mama and you say Ma. We say Daddy and you say Da. We clap our hands and you try to follow, with a big smile on your face. We frown and you frown back. We smile and you break out smiling. We lift up our glasses to drink. You follow by lifting up your sippy-cup to take a drink of juice.

Its wonderful to see how you are imitating and learning how these grownups around you communicate. Its amazing to see you developing the complexities of language. It won't be long now before you start using short phrases.

Susan du Plessis reminds us about how babies learn their parents' language:

The baby learns language in one way only, and that is by hearing language as the parents talk and talk to it. The more a parent can talk to a child, often repeating the same words, the same phrases, the same structures over and over, the sooner the child will learn language. 

An important thing to note here is that by the time a baby is about nine months old he should be able to understand simple words and commands. He may perhaps also be able to say a few simple words already. Invariably, however, one finds that the baby understands much more than he is able to say. In fact, this remains so of any person throughout his life. One is always able to understand more of any language, even one’s mother tongue, than one is able to use in active speech. This is even more so of any second or third languages that a person is able to speak

She teaches more about how to prepare your child for reading, writing and 'rithmetic

. . . language is at the very bottom of the learning ladder. Its role in the acquisition of the three R's can be compared to the role of running in the game of soccer or ice-skating in the game of ice hockey. One cannot play soccer if one cannot run, and one cannot play ice hockey if one cannot skate. One cannot read a book in a language - and least of all write - unless one knows the particular language. 

If a child's knowledge of English is poor, then his reading will also be poor. Evidence that links reading problems and language problems has been extensively presented in the literature. Research has, for example, shown that about 60% of dyslexics were late talkers. In order to prevent later reading problems, parents must therefore ensure that a child is exposed to sufficient opportunities to learn language.

Susan du Plessis is the co-author of "The Right to Read: Beating Dyslexia and other Learning Disabilities" and the author or co-author of four other books on learning and learning disabilities. She has been involved in helping children reach their full potential for 15 years. She holds BD and BA Hons (psychology).

Visit her website at http://www.audiblox2000.com

Other articles by Susan du Plessis:

Preparing Your Child for the Three R's,  

Nurtured by Love or Matured by Nature? 

If Dyslexia Runs in Your Family, Will Your Child Inherit it Too? 

Dyslexia: Is the Shoe Perhaps on the Wrong Foot? 

We're all going to do the best we can, Byron, to help you keep on learning.