May 27, 2006

Today is my dad's birth date. I need to tell him thanks for all of the times he helped me learn about life on the farm. He was the best at giving me metaphors and examples to explain exactly the point he was making. He was not a highly educated man. In fact, he was retained 2 years in grade school...mostly because he was too shy to answer. However, he continued on continuing on to finish high school. So my point is that parents do not need to be extreme intellectuals to teach their children well. They only need to be willing to provide educational opportunities to their children. Talking is one of most important things that parents can offer their children. Verbalization while working, playing, reading, or whatever will give the child an opportunity to build a much needed vocabulary. As with learning a foreign language, first we learn the language by listening to the words spoken. We hear the words and know what we are hearing. Then we learn to verbalize it ourselves. It's a natural progression which holds true for children learning a first language. So as a beginning process for educating your child.....talk, talk, talk.