Baby talk
Reading to your little one increases literacy

We’ve all heard it said that a baby’s mind is like a sponge. It is truly amazing that a 3-year-old will learn more in those first crucial years than he will in all the subsequent years of his life – even if he lives
to be 100!
   
Good habits (and bad ones) get started early, when our babies’ brains are still malleable. There’s plenty of research out there in the scientific community and your own neighborhoods that proves moms and dads who start reading to their children as early as infancy jump-start their children’s literacy and language skills.
   
“Babies learn phonetic awareness (the ability to perceive individual sounds in the stream of speech) in the first eight to 10 months,” according to the authors of “Baby Read Aloud Basics.” By 18 months, they may already understand an average of 50 words. After age 2, babies acquire vocabulary at an awesome rate (about eight to 10 words a day). By age 6, a child understands about 13,000 words.
   
Caroline Blakemore and Barbara Weston Ramirez, both certified Reading Recovery teachers, have a combined 50 years of experience helping children with reading difficulties. In their book and on their Web site (readtoyourbaby.com), they demonstrate the benefits of reading to your child and provide strategies for making storytime fun, as well as educational.
   
Babies respond best to books when they are content (full belly, clean diaper) and when they are in a quiet, calm environment. Nursery rhymes and short rhyming stories are perfect for little listeners. Use an expressive singsong voice, and don’t worry about reading the same story over and over – repeated readings are good for your baby’s language development.
   
In between diaper changes and late-night feedings, it seems there is precious little time for bonding over a good book. Don’t feel like you need to dedicate hours to reading; in fact, if your baby can sit still for five minutes, you’re doing great. Turn off the TV, reach for Dr. Seuss and snuggle with your baby – it’s one of the smartest things you can do for your child’s future literacy.


Are you sleepy yet?
No mere mortal has yet discovered the sleep secrets of infants, though I found Dr. Mark Weissbluth’s book, “Healthy Sleep Habits, Healthy Child,” invaluable in helping my firstborn learn to soothe himself.
   
Weissbluth says that “protest crying” at bedtime will not cause permanent emotional or psychological problems. “In plain fact, the contrary is true,” he says.
   
Another “gem” I gleaned from his book is the counterintuitive concept that “sleep begets sleep.” Weissbluth says babies are less fussy at bedtime and sleep longer when they’ve had restorative naps during the day.
   
After swinging and shushing yourself silly, it helps to know that it’s OK to give your child a chance to learn how to soothe himself. Here are a few other sleep tricks:

> Line your baby’s curtains with blackout fabric.
> Play soft music in the nursery to drown out loud sounds.
> Institute a wind-down ritual before bedtime that may include a warm bath, baby massage or rocking.


Gift registry online

Looking forward to unwrapping the baby gifts, but not registering for them? Check out myregistry.com – your one-stop shop for just about anything you can imagine for the new arrival.
   
The site allows you to register for baby necessities from thousands of retailers, compare prices on stuff from cribs to car seats, and even receive cash gifts for Junior’s college fund – without leaving the comfort of your home office.
   
Register for booties at one store and burp cloths at another. If you’re welcoming a second child to your brood and have a garage full of baby gear, invite friends and family to chip in on spa services, airline tickets or restaurant gift certificates. With so many goodies at your fingertips, it’s easy to get greedy. Just don’t max out your supporters’ generosity, since you’ll need them soon for some free babysitting!

S. Danyelle Knight is an award-winning contributor to Inland Empire Family magazine.