I watched the Today show with the 17m old who can read.

[lynn]

I was just wondering do you think spelling will come naturally to her? I guess from the interview the parents were trying to figure out what to do for her. I was thinking keep doing what you're doing don't make that sweet little girl someones science experiment.

[hpymomof3]

I was wondering if they had her read flash cards or if she was really reading anything given to her.

When my dd was not even a year old I bought a book about teaching your baby to read. My dd loved listening to books and was very verbal so I thought it would be something we should try. By the time she was 1 1/2 she could read many words but they had to be in huge print. I do believe that it helped her to be an early book reader. We also had to satisfy her huge appetite for reading. She would want us to read a whole pile of books to her at one sitting.

We ended up stopping the flashcards though because she was becoming a "circus" act. For instance my mil would mention it to other members of the family. They would state their disbelief right in front of my dd. Then they would see that dd could actually read and they would make a huge deal about it. It got to be too much and dh and I realized that it just wasn't healthy. We went back to just having fun with reading.

[StaceyinLA]

my sister lived in NC and the rest of us in Louisiana. There were 3 other grandkids (of my mom's) that were the same age as him and, of course, none of them were remotely doing anything like this. Everyone just thought she was making it up, that he had memorized stuff, whatever.

Well, they came for a visit. I was about 17 at the time. He was reading stuff here and there, but I figured it might just be things he had memorized too.

We went shopping at K-Mart and he started reading the department signs (Mens, Womens, Shoes, etc). I still wasn't really convinced since those words were so common. As we made our way to the front of the store though, I was totally blown away when he said to my sister, as he pointed toward the front, "Look Mom, hot delicious popcorn!" Sure enough, there was a machine at the snack counter with a sign on it. None of us ever thought she was lying again...

;-p

BTW, this kid definitely turned out to be a genius in almost every area of study. He is now 26 years old, living in New York (having done about 2 semesters in a Comm. College), playing in a band. Go figure!!

[Needleroozer]

I had one like this, too. He started sounding out words when he was just over two, and was reading by 2 1/2. I never did flash cards. I actually never did anything- he just started reading. Someone gave him the BOB books and he started reading with those.

This is my verbal kid- he was talking in complete sentences by the time he was 8 months old. He was always a very good natural speller, until just this year (10th gr.). Now he is having trouble. I think it is mostly those pesky boy hormones, though.

He is very smart, but not in typical ways.

[CleoQc]

My husband told me my son knew his letters when he was 10 months old. I didn't believe him! But sure enough, he would point to the accurate letters when we named them!
At 18 months old, he wasn't reading yet, but he would spell out license plates, letters and numbers. He wasn't talking yet. The first time he said 'mama', he was almost 2yo. It was a frustrating time! Whoever has ever heard of a child who could spell out words, but not call for mama??? :mad:

[Mama Lynx]

I was reading at age 2. Seriously and honestly. That's why I freaked out when my oldest was not reading ... by age FOUR. LOL. I thought that was late, and that something was wrong.

Boy, do I know better now :)

[Amy in Orlando]

I was reading at age 2. Seriously and honestly. That's why I freaked out when my oldest was not reading ... by age FOUR. LOL. I thought that was late, and that something was wrong.

Boy, do I know better now :)

ROFL - me too. I was my family's party trick for years. Fortunately (for him) my oldest read very early. The other three really freaked me out! I thought there was something wrong with them. :eek: Live and learn.

[Laura Corin]

Calvin was a late walker, and there was a woman in his baby group who every week used to say brightly, 'And is Calvin walking yet?' (her daughter walked at nine months). He finally walked at fifteen months, then at eighteen months toddled up to her TV and spelled out S.O.N.Y. Hah!

He didn't actually read until he was four, but then went from C-A-T to Harry Potter in fifteen months.

Laura

[Amy in Orlando]

Calvin was a late walker, and there was a woman in his baby group who every week used to say brightly, 'And is Calvin walking yet?' (her daughter walked at nine months). He finally walked at fifteen months, then at eighteen months toddled up to her TV and spelled out S.O.N.Y. Hah!

He didn't actually read until he was four, but then went from C-A-T to Harry Potter in fifteen months.

Laura


I LOVE stories like this -- you just never know when they are very young what's going to come next.

[amy g.]

My oldest could read probably 50 words by the time she was 2. She could tell you the name and the sound for every letter.

She is almost 14 now, and still a horrible speller. I've tried everything I can think of to help, but she is meaning oriented, not detail oriented, so she just doesn't care about misspellings. This year, she is taking an outside class that requires extensive writing. Her spelling is actually improving by using Microsoft Word and spell check.

My son could read before he could talk. I carried him in a sling while I taught preschool, and he just absorbed it all. He has never missed a spelling word on his standardized tests even though he has not used a formal spelling program. He is just the kind of kid who notices every little detail.

I remember putting off teaching him alphabetical order. One day when he was 5 he said, "I wish that they made little dictionaries you could carry in your pocket." I asked him if he knew how to use a dictionary. He said, "Are there people who don't?" He didn't even know how he had learned how.

[GothicGyrl]

I am so thankful my family never turned me or my girls into little science experiments. I was doing everything this child(on tv and your children) were doing at a very early age as well. I've got pictures of me roller skating at 8 mos! I had read most of my mother's medical texts by the time I was 3. And not just looked at the pictures, but actually READ them to her and anyone else I could get to listen. Speaking in whole sentences, clearly by 8 mos.. etc...

My brother wasn't like this though. He wasn't a premie, but he was born with Pyloric Stenosis and almost died on the operating table--he was just months old himself. I am so thankful mom was intelligent enough to not "expect" of him what I did.

Fast forward to both of my girls and all I can say is "wash, rinse, repeat" only they were both reading MY CSI texts instead. ;) It's the one main reason I pulled my kids out of school--her "sister of Hitler" principal was insistant on putting my then 4th grader in 1st grade reading classes because she lacked "comprehension skills". I brought in one of my CSI books for her to read in front of the Principal and then started asking her questions about what she read--she not only accurately describe proper technique for working a scene in "spiral" fashion, but demonstrated it.

Turns out that this Principal had a beef with any child who "broke the mould" and prevented them from retaining their Title 1 funding. :anger

Anyway, I am leery of people who make these claims and sometimes do wonder if they are pushing it a bit (I do know one set of homeschool parents like this).. but when I read other's experiences, I usually chill out when I realize *I* and my own children were like this--even if I never taught them anything. We just spoke in normal words, clear and concise and "baby talk" was forbidden. We never talked down to the kids, just explained things in a matter of fact, normal way they could understand.

My nephew is 3 now and it's scary how smart he is. I wish I could convince my sister to let me school him.. ;(

[Pamela H in Texas]

I didn't see this and haven't read the rest of the thread yet but I can GUARANTEE that being an early reader does NOT mean a child will be a natural speller. My daughter was a very early reader and was high school age before spelling was half-decent. My mom and I started reading much later (3 1/2 - 4 years old so still early by most people's standards). I was a natural speller but my mom had the house papered with words to teach herself how to spell EVERYTHING from stove to couch to refrigerator when I was 10!

So reading Charolette's Web, Little House, etc at 2 or 4 years of age means nothing in regards to spelling as far as I can tell.

[Pamela H in Texas]

>>>>>>At 18 months old, he wasn't reading yet, but he would spell out license plates, letters and numbers. He wasn't talking yet. The first time he said 'mama', he was almost 2yo. It was a frustrating time! Whoever has ever heard of a child who could spell out words, but not call for mama??? <<<<<<

Well, my son couldn't call out anything (didn't speak more than a few words before 3 1/2 yrs old...we used sign until he was 5). He was 22 months old before he said mama though he could read about 70 words at that time. Drove me nuts. I cried and cried when he started saying mama...

Edit: Just wanted to add that though he could read several words at 2, he didn't learn to read until MUCH later. He wasn't reading half-decently til 9 and didn't get good at it til 11. At 12, he can read most things but still makes many more mistakes than I would guess normal at his age. Basically, I guess it took him 9 years to progress through the reading stages! He usually does things in spurts like that. That drives me nuts too. I have learned SO much as this child's mom!

Kids are all just so different.