The Montessori Home: Early Learning - Raise Your Baby's IQ with Flashcards

Young children have very quick minds and they learn effortlessly. An effective way to teach small children is to show them several sets of flashcards throughout the day. Child brain development specialist Glenn Doman founder of The Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential (IAHP) calls his flashcards "Bit off Intelligence Cards" or "Bits" for short.

(Editors note: The term "bits" is copyrighted, and so the cards offered on this site are referred to as flashcards, not bits.)

Doman's bits are large picture cards (otherwise called flashcards) with factual information on the back. Flashcards, or 'bits', are ideal for infant stimulation and children of any age love them. Being happy and relaxed and showing enthusiasm when you give presentations will add to your child's interest and enjoyment. As you and your child work daily with flashcards, your child's knowledge base will dramatically increase.

Make Your Own Flashcards
In order to make flashcards, collect a variety of pictures and accompanying facts. Paste each picture onto a piece of poster board. Doman recommends 11" x 11", but 8-1/2 by 11 will also work. Place a label identifying the subject on the back of the card. A list of information, or facts, can be added beneath the label. Flashcards can be covered with clear contact paper or laminated. 8-/2" by 11" flashcards can be put in loose-leaf jackets. Older children can help you make them for the younger ones.

2) Pictures should be large, clear and precise, and display a single item without a background.

6) To insure continuing interest, always stop before the child's interest starts to wane.

It's Easy and Enjoyable
The following tips can help you turn each session into a success:

1) Before showing flashcards to the child practice handling them standing before a mirror.

2) Each presentation should be a positive experience. Love and enjoyment are major ingredients.

4) Do not attempt to have a session with a child that is tired or sick. And do not attempt to have a session with a child that is preoccupied with something else.

5) Prepare the environment by eliminating distractions such as media, music, and phone.

7) Enthusiastically announce that you have cards to show and tell the category you are offering. Ask the child if she would like to see them.

Let your child know how wonderful she's doing and how much fun you're having. As you express joy, your child will be delighted to participate, even if she's only an infant. (Infants who are shown bits develop their sight and hearing faster.) As flashcards stimulate brain development, they trigger the genius potential that is hiding in each child!

It Doesn't Take Long
Doman's research, among others, shows that children learn very quickly, especially babies. Doman's recommendation is to try showing a set of bits three times a day for ten days. Some parents find that their child learns faster and prefer showing the same set of bits less often to keep the child from losing interest. Adding facts and new cards while retiring old ones helps maintain interest.

An obvious sign that a child is losing interest in a set of flashcards is if she looks the other way during a presentation. If your child begins to lose interest and looks away it is probably because your child needs new information. If this happens, Doman advises moving on to new material. He says many children he worked with reached the point where they only needed to see a bit one time to learn a fact. These children have developed super-memory, which is akin to photographic memory!

Photographic Memory
Dr. Makoto Shichida of Japan says that showing a child large amounts of information, very quickly, develops photographic memory and that it is not necessary to present information more than once. Finding out what works best for you and your child may take some experimentation.

Teaching the Alphabet
The 26 letters of the alphabet are the first phonograms children learn in the HOME READING PROGRAM I offer, free of charge. We begin with teaching the alphabet. You can divide it into three parts and present one section at a time, each section taking ten seconds to present. Presentations can be repeated throughout the day.

Doman doesn't recommend running the sessions together, and he says to leave, at least, half an hour between sessions. However, if you find that running sessions together does work for you, it is still advisable to leave some space between presentations, where you play with the child for a few moments and share a bit of affection.

After presenting the names of the letters of the alphabet you can present the letter-sounds, which are called phonemes. You would use the Alphabet-Phonograms with Words cards for this purpose. Then move on to the rest of the phonograms and their word cards. See ARTICLE on learning to read.

Because children learn so quickly it is important to continuously supply them with new cards. Presenting new word cards daily will help you to keep up with the child's need for new material.

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