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Hah, I read Stephen King very early. Carrie at age 10. I never asked permission to read a given book. Censoring my reading just wasn't something my parents, both educators, would have been interested in doing.
Exactly. We don't censor books. My 7th grader has The Stand on her list of books to read. I believe Dune is the next book she plans to read after she's finished with the current series she's reading.
Middle school and high school teacher here who also taught kindergarten in a Montessori school for 16 years.
Two pieces of research are relevant to your interest.
First: there is no consistent correlation between precocious reading skills and future school success as traditionally defined. Early reading is a taught skill but not a necessary benchmark for future cognition.
Second: when kindergarten teachers are asked about school readiness alphabetic and numeric information is of little interest. The current discussion lies in the area of executive function skills:can a child share, follow directions, be sympathetic to others, dress and toilet independently, take turns, delay gratification, take responsibility for behavior, apologize etc etc.
Certainly many of us know adults who do not meet these parameters!
I wondered why people thing that is a good thing that children are reading at 3. Children at that age are still learning other things that are the basis for a healthy development. If they start using their brain from so early, wouldn't that affect them later in life? My guess is yes, but I have nothing to back that up.
What is wrong with reading? I am sure OP does not have her sweet grandchild chained to a chair with books shoved down his throat. He probably lives for cuddles on grandma’s lap reading a book.
Of course she has described a life in which a little bit of playgroup and park time could be added, but “if they start using their brain so early”? God forbid they become programmers or scientists or professors or something.
I know many people who learned to read between 3 and 5. Most of them turned out great.
Most grandparents I know still work. My husband and I still do. We don't have the means to take grandkids or step grandkids on 6 week trips.
If I had "retired" while my son was home we would have starved. Where would we get money to live on?
I have many, many friends that are grandparents. Of that entire group only one couple was retired when they had their first grandchild-----and that was mostly because their daughter was almost 40 years old at the time she had a baby (and they had her when they were in their 30s). I know several grandparents who had their first grandchild when they were 40 to 45 years old-----decades away from being retired. They certainly couldn't afford, either the time or the money, to take their grandchildren on four to six week home-schooling "learning adventures"
My grandson can read fluently (K level), and will not be 4 until next month. I've been working with him all summer, and he's been doing My Baby Can Read since a toddler. He can spell also. Worlds like "mountain", and his first and last names. Problem is, he misses the cutoff of Kindergarten for his school by six weeks and can not enter Kindergarten until he is almost six. That is in TWO years. By that time (with the way I am working with him) he'll probably be at second grade level. He can recite the alphabet FORWARD and BACKWARD.
What do you think we should do? His dad knows the school superintendent. Testing to get him in Kindergarten early is my opt, but they probably cannot do it. Or wait a year and skip Kindergarten to get into first grade? There is a local Montessori, but it is beyond their means financially. Daughter wants to home school him to keep him from "dumbing down", but I think he needs a classroom setting with other kids.
I spend a lot of time with him, and he does seem to enjoy learning (we make it fun). He LOVES reading, numbers, and letters, and spelling. He plays UNO. At three!!!
Should I cut back on my teaching and let him watch TV? Am I making him go too far too fast? His Mom read at age 4, and I took her to the library, but I didn't seem to push her.
Please be aware word calling and true reading are two different things. I wouldn’t push him into school. Let him be a kid.
He will be fine, he has a family who is invested in his education and his future. It's great that you picked up on his "appetite " for learning! His intense interest, combined with your dedication is a positive. There doesn't seem to be any indication of what can very rarely be a concern with early readers:
I have the "gift" of Hyperlexia, defined as "precocious reading ability".
I've never met a fellow hyperlexic, nice to meet you! I enjoy annoying my book club by reading the book earlier that same day. My comprehension hasn't gone down as I've aged, but my eidetic memory disappeared in my early 20s, and so my memory in general is now pretty average.
I agree with much of what's already been said in the thread - don't worry about it, grandma. If the child is gifted, the school should pick up on it and offer services, and it has little to do with reading ability. Our "gifted" kid wasn't reading at 5! And now are one of the best readers in their grade. So enjoy the precious time you have with your grandson, and follow their lead on their interests. I had grandparents who spent real time with me, and those are some of my most precious childhood memories.
What is wrong with reading? I am sure OP does not have her sweet grandchild chained to a chair with books shoved down his throat. He probably lives for cuddles on grandma’s lap reading a book.
Of course she has described a life in which a little bit of playgroup and park time could be added, but “if they start using their brain so early”? God forbid they become programmers or scientists or professors or something.
I know many people who learned to read between 3 and 5. Most of them turned out great.
In the past people waited until the kid was 7 to start teaching them intellectual things as opposed to letting them learn by themselves from the family environment. Maybe they thought the brain is developed enough at that age to start learning from books.
How old are those people that started learning at 3? Are they over 50? If they are ask them about their mental abilities and memory. That would be an interesting study.
My oldest child could read in kindergarten, but what I didn't know is that she wasn't understanding what she read, just reading the words on the page. She tested very high for reading in kindergarten. That came back to bite us when she was in 3rd grade. We finally discovered her disability and she spent a year with a speech and language pathologist correcting that. She's a smart girl (very advanced in math) and it was a tough issue to catch, as it showed up in physical conditions (headaches, stomach aches). If I could go back, I would focus way more on reading to her and helping her comprehend (not truly sure if I could have helped or not - turns out her father had the same disability). Also, she's never been good at play and imagination. Wish she had spent more time developing play skills. She has a December birthday and was one of the older kids in her class.
Now my youngest, we tested in to school at age 4 (October birthday). She's a 5th grader now and so far it has been a great move for her. Even as the youngest kid in class, she's at the top of her class. She also has no trouble making friends. She has always been a super lazy learner (you cannot force that kid to do anything she doesn't want to!), but has a very strong sense of play and imagination. I think that imagination is what fuels the love of reading (they can be super skilled at reading and still hate it) and makes the story come alive.
Basically, it is so hard to know how they will take to learning in the long run at his age.
I have nothing against homeschooling. Almost pulled my oldest out and home schooled her at one point. But it might be worth starting kindergarten. If he hates it and his parents hate it, he can always be pulled out to homeschool. Some states allow for partial homeschooling too; part of the day at home and some subjects learned at school. At least by becoming familiar with the school, your daughter can make a more educated decision about her resources.
Also, my kids did full day kindergarten at a public school. Part of the time they had gym class, music class, dance class, 3 recesses, library time, and of course learning. After kindergarten they had walk to math, so kids could do math at their level. There is so much more to school than sitting down and reading all day. Our district also had a gifted school where the kids worked 2 years ahead. I worked there for 2 years. Some kids really thrived. Others looked like they were on the verge of crying half the time.
After kindergarten or first grade, you will have a better perception of his abilities and needs. In the meantime, any time he spends playing and learning won't be wasted. Gifted kids don't need to be pushed from 4 years old or they're lost to the world.
Best of luck! It's so hard making those decision when they're young!
In the past people waited until the kid was 7 to start teaching them intellectual things as opposed to letting them learn by themselves from the family environment. Maybe they thought the brain is developed enough at that age to start learning from books.
How old are those people that started learning at 3? Are they over 50? If they are ask them about their mental abilities and memory. That would be an interesting study.
I'm 40 and I learned by myself. Lots of people learn to read early by themselves. It's a specific type of thinker that picks up this pattern early and I seriously doubt it causes mental decline early. Why would anyone expect that to happen? And poor memory just because you're a quick learner? Why?
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