[toc]Just a few days ago, I was astonished by the federal lawsuits that are being thrown at Dr. Robert Titzer, the developer of Your Baby Can Read Early Language Development System. In this article, I will be sharing my thoughts and my son’s experience with this amazing product.
Getting Hold of Your Baby Can Read
I first heard about Your Baby Can Read System back in 2009 and it wasn’t even available in the Philippines yet. My father who is residing in the US bought it upon seeing the infomercial and purchased the $200 Deluxe Kit which is composed of 5 DVD’s and sent it here. After a few months, it was made available through HSN Philippines offering a smaller and cheaper kit for about $100. I was so happy we have the deluxe. My son was only a month old when it arrived so I settled in reading the Parent’s Page and let my son watch it in a few months.
My Son’s Your Baby Can Read Experience
When my son reached his 3rd month, he started looking at the TV (our TV is usually on and he hears sounds from it all the time) and that is the time that I started to play Your Baby Can Read Starter DVD. I made him sit on the carrier, making sure that he sits upright so that the words will not look weird and askew to him. I followed the recommended viewing schedule, repeating a DVD once or twice depends on his mood after his bath. After a few months, he transferred on a stroller and watches the DVD while he eats his breakfast. At this stage, he enjoys listening to the songs.
My son managed to finish the whole set of DVD’s before he turned 1. At this point he learned how to count his fingers and toes, and appreciated different colors and shapes also found in the system. I haven’t used the flashcards and books because he only wanted to tear and bite them. So I stuck with the DVD and reading along with him. He got fed up eventually and cried when it was on so I let him watch other educational programs such as TV series and animation that are very suitable for his age.
Even at 1, my son could not yet speak so I couldn’t verify if he can really read or not. But I did notice that he takes interest on words. He looks at credits every time a movie or TV show ends. He also stares at notices that are in black white or posters with huge words on them whenever we are at the mall. He may or may not be reading nor understand the words yet, but I realized that no matter what font or size the characters are, he seems to recognize the symbols.
After a few months, I manage to make him watch the Your Baby Can Read DVDs again and introduced some of the flashcards and books. By the age of 2, my son is still not speaking, so I wasn’t sure if he can read already. But his interests in the songs and poems were heightened. He sings and dances along with the kids in the DVDs from Eensy Weensy Spider to Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. Suddenly, he managed to imitate the kids on certain words and phrases from clap to touch your head.
My son is now three years old, attending Junior Preschool, still cannot speak clearly, and yet he still gets his dose of Your Baby Can Read DVDs along with all his favorite movies, TV shows, art activities, puzzles, and building blocks. Also, now that he is more careful with paper, he points to his favorite words on the flap-books and try to utter the words written.
The Impact of Your Baby Can Read to My Son
The way I see it, Your Baby Can Read Early Language Development System laid out a good foundation for my child’s early learning experience. He may not be able to speak and read aloud yet as clearly as other children can, but I have seen him appreciate words, phrases, numbers, pets, colors, and music. He also has an appreciation for books and knows how to use them, unlike other kids who prefer using gadgets and do not even know the difference between a paper and a touchpad.
The system also taught my son the spelling and name of an object or action instead of hearing the pronunciation or only the beginning letter of the words. Because of the sequence of the words and what the word or phrase means, he learned easily what they meant. This shows that the system not only teaches children to read but to comprehend what they are reading. This is very important.
It also taught my son how to count his fingers and toes even when he was only less than a year old. But of course, we also made efforts for him to remember what he watched. We take his palm or foot, and slowly count his fingers or toes. Later on, he does it on his own.
One of the things that caught my son’s attention the first time is the singing and dancing or interpreting the songs. He easily remembers all the songs in the system, tries to sing along, imitates the kids actions, and he even make up his own dance steps from time to time. Until now, his inclination for music is unwavering. Whether it is on commercials, TV programs, movies, he appreciates them and enthusiastically sings and dances along.
My Thoughts on Your Baby Can Read
Every child is different and they may have different reactions to the Your Baby Can Read system. Some take interest on the first try, while others may seem uninterested at first. Some could easily read before they turn one, while some couldn’t yet like my son. But it does not mean that it does not work like other people claim it to be. There are too many factors that can contribute to different outcomes compared to what is expected. It is like purchasing an Aerobics DVD, then without paralleling it with proper diet and religious workouts, you can easily conclude that the program do not work at all. It is just unfair to say that Your Baby Can Read does not do as it claims it says.
The system does not create geniuses, but it is an instrument to stimulate children’s interests in reading, music, and even the arts. With the help of growing the vocabulary, children are able to become more versatile and become well rounded person because they learn through reading. My son also loves to do some building with blocks and completing puzzles. This shows that his interest and logical thinking are vast at an early age and this is not just because of the milk formula he takes.
What about the “window of opportunity”? Okay, I may not be an expert but experience told me that it is correct. The kid’s brain is like a sponge, it would easily absorb anything you feed on it especially on the early years. Here in the Philippines, we have so many educators that learning is crucial from toddler period up to 5 years old, so there are so many institutions and Preschools who are offering progressive learning for 1-5 years old kids. They get to learn while playing. So I do not see why some people think that it is absurd for Your Baby Can Read System could not teach babies to read. The system is actually very interactive that it is great for those who want to stick with homeschooling or use it as an additional tool for learning after attending preschool.
Critics said that kids actually “memorize” the words on Your Baby Can Read and not really reading. Really? How do you learn how to read and understand the meaning of each word? You memorize it, right? Kids love repetitions, they memorize things they watch or see, and when you play it again, they feel the familiarity and would recognize it. This is the same concept of Your Baby Can Read System. It feeds the child with numerous words than can easily grasped by the child and will soon memorize it, that’s why there are recommended viewing schedules of each DVD and use of the flashcards. They will later be able to read because they already know the words and then realize that other words sound like the ones they already know – Phonics made simple!
More Recommendations
Your Baby Can Read is a good system and a great tool in teaching babies/toddlers Phonics or better yet, it teaches them new words and a wide range of vocabulary at an early age. It is a much better way to make learning more interesting rather than letting the kids play all day, watch unstructured TV programming, and find them end up being so bored at the end of the day while waiting for them to age for formal education.
Like I said earlier, children are different from each other. Some take the Your Baby Can Read with interest and learn from it the moment they watched and some don’t. If your child has seen other DVDs before and would not take interest in Your Baby Can Read, then it means the latter isn’t familiar with him and would rather watch the former. Kids love repetition, remember? My son didn’t get to see other videos so he only got fed up with them after almost a year. When he did get tired of them, I diversified his programs so that he will see that what he watches are almost the same, fun and yet he learns a lot. From colorful puppets, talking animals, Spell-out characters, characters that sings all classical tunes, and even cartoons that translates English to Spanish or Chinese, they all can help with the learning stages of kids alongside Your Baby Can Read.
Also, no one should expect miracles from this system. Any child would be interested if his parents would make an effort enough to show that Your Baby Can Read is interesting and reading is fun. I often would sing along and read the words to my son and make myself a good example he could look up to. If your family have other kids, make them participate, this will boost the baby to imitate them and eventually be interested in the program.
At this time, Your Baby Can Read is no longer being sold through their website, but there are still retailers who sell it like in Amazon, both brand new and used. Click the green button if you wish to get yourself a copy.
If you are not satisfied with your purchase, I think you can refund it or sell it to those who like hundreds of families worldwide would want to benefit from it.
