SCHOOL FOR THOUGHT

Acquiring the facts of the matter

Here, as promised, are some basic principles guiding the acquisition of extensive background knowledge and vocabulary. 

Wide Exposure is Best

In this case, a little learning is not a dangerous thing. Children benefit from exposure to a wide range of experiences, topics, and places - going to concerts, playing baseball, walking in the woods, visiting a farm, travelling to other places. Especially if you and the child discuss everything afterwards using precise terms, some new knowledge and vocabulary will be retained - providing brain Velcro for additional related information to stick to later on.

Talk With Children

Whenever possible, draw children into conversation. Don’t use baby talk or talk down, but rather use your full vocabulary, and encourage the child to respond in kind. Talk about everything under the sun.

Books

Another excellent way to build knowledge and vocabulary is reading - reading to the child and reading by the child. In choosing books to read to your child, be mindful that the content and vocabulary is suitably challenging and stimulating. A good source of book ideas can be found here and, as well, your local children’s librarian is often a mine of information. At the same time, you should be moving heaven and earth to ensure that your child becomes a fluent reader who enjoys reading, since people who read for pleasure enjoy lifelong cognitive benefits. For most kids, this means the healthy application of systematic phonics. You might like to consider teaching your child to read yourself before he or she begins school.

Start Early

Children who enter kindergarten with impoverished vocabularies and general knowledge are at a terrible disadvantage. Put another way, the number of words and the amount of general knowledge a child possesses are closely related to his or her IQ. Children are never too young to start learning.

A Spoonful of Sugar Makes the Medicine Go Down

Knowledge and vocabulary can be purposefully taught - word of the day, word games, word roots, board games, prefixes and suffixes, Internet games, etc. - but avoid trying to drill long lists of unconnected facts or words.