Counting
Teach your smart
baby the mathematic concept of numbers, even long before he can speak.
Show your baby your one finger,
and say: “ONE.” Then show him your two fingers and say “TWO.” If your baby
begins to show his interest in language, he will look at your mouth and watch
how you articulate clearly and slowly those words. Repeat the process with two
similar objects, such as two balls, saying “ONE” and “TWO.” At first, you baby
may think that the sounds of the two words refer to the balls and the fingers.
But, as soon as he knows what “balls” and “fingers” are, he will then perceive
the abstract concept of numbers. Then proceed to counting other numbers, and
play some simple board games, during which he learns to read the numbers on the
dice as he moves his playing piece over the board.
The bottom line: expose your baby
to the mathematic concept, and let him relate or understand the concept when he
is mentally ready. Recognition of objects is the first step, and understanding
the mathematic concept of numbers will follow suit.
To illustrate, “Chaser” is the
name of the dog belonging to a retired psychologist John Pilley, who has
successfully trained his dog to recognize over one thousand toys or items by
their name and retrieve them at his command. It was shown on TV that Chaser has
the largest tested memory of any non-human animal. If a dog can do it, a smart
baby may have the super memory to remember everything. All he needs to do is to
harness his mental skills to put everything in the right order through mental
perception, and then relate them to some abstract concepts he has experienced
or has been exposed to—this mental visualization and subsequent profound
understanding is a testament to his intelligence.
My Reflection
When my
daughter was only eight months old, I began to teach her how to read. One of
the early stages to master reading skills is the recognition of words in
relation to objects. That was how I started the teaching: as I was carrying her
in my arms, I pointed to a TV set, and said: “TEE-VEE” She looked at how I
slowly articulated the word, while pointing to the TV. I repeated the process
every day. Before long, when I uttered the word “TEE-VEE,” she immediately
turned her head to the direction of the TV without my pointing at it. If I
could do it, you can do it too.
Math and science are interesting
and fun if you allow your baby to experience the natural world firsthand. Don’t
feel you must teach your baby specific facts and scientific principles;
instead, let him explore and experience everything firsthand. Do teach him the
specific skills of awareness and asking questions. Let your baby discover the
answers through his own experience.
Stephen Lau
Copyright© by Stephen Lau
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