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How to Give Your Baby Encyclopedic Knowledge: The Gentle Revolution

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First, since I know the Doman program must have defenders with strong feelings, let me say that this is a review of the book, not of the program the book describes. I do have a few thoughts about that, at the end.

It has been a long time since I took the trouble to finish reading a book that was so far below my expectations. (I hadn't read that much about Doman and the Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential before reading the book.) One main problem with it is that it is amateurishly produced and written. The print is large and the margins wide. Each chapter is preceded by a title page with the name of the author(s), followed on the next page by the title *repeated*--a pretentious a waste of space. There is also quite a bit of repetition of its rather threadbare and simpleminded themes. Apparently it's a collection of lectures, and nobody bothered to edit the thing into a coherent whole. Doman's writing tends to use very dramatic (and frequently tiresome, silly, or cringeworthy) short sentences; so there is lots of white space. The long and short of it is that you aren't really getting your money's worth here. You can read the whole 280 pg. book in an evening (if you skim, as I did, the sillier parts--as I'll explain).

As to the style and content, it ranges from the pedestrian and banal ("Leonardo? Shakespeare? ... [overlong list of great men] Not one of them ever took an intelligence test"--as if that proves anything), to gross oversimplification for rhetorical effect ("Babies would rather learn than eat"--except when they're hungry, eh?), to the silly and preposterous ("You can teach a baby absolutely anything that you can present to him in an honest and factual way"--either trivially true or obviously false), to the puzzlingly and simplistically dogmatic ("High motivation is a product of success. Low motivation is a product of failure"--um, I think there's a little more to it than that).

It is also remarkably navel-gazing, constantly referring to "The Institutes" (never enumerating the Institutes individually--do they need more than one?) as if it were some authoritative academic or research institution. Which it ain't. If it were, let's just say I'd expect to see in this book, well, some footnotes and a bibliography of research that The Institutes published. No, of that in this book, there is zero, zip, zilch. There is only a list of other books, aimed at the general public, which you can also purchase from the Institutes. The book also helpfully explains how people come to their various seminars from all over the world, and gratefully buy their products.

Along the same lines, it is self-congratulatory. Doman fills up a third of the book with glowing self-praise and in-group boosting, rather vague stories of wunderkinder, and inspirational pablum that can appeal only to the converted. The whole production has the faint whiff of snake oil and cultishness. In fairness, his co-authors, Janet Doman and Susan Aisen, aren't quite so ridiculous.

The latter two authors elaborate how to make the Bits of Intelligence--i.e., 11" by 11" laminated flashcards (but *don't* call these family heirlooms flashcards!)--which will give babies encyclopedic knowledge. They go into tedious detail--in fairness, it's no doubt useful for people who actually want to follow their precise instructions--about how to physically construct these "bits." They also introduce various pieces of "in" jargon. Bits, you see, are filed under "categories" and categories are filed under exactly ten recommended "divisions." They've got it all figured out, you see. Three levels of hierarchy are all that is needed to give your baby encyclopedic knowledge. A "bit" is, and I am not making this up, a picture and the name of the kind of thing that the picture is of. Imposed on top of the name-plus-picture is a "program" for each bit, which consists of exactly ten important facts, in ascending levels of complexity. Each level is called a "magnitude." Exactly what *sorts* of fact are recommended to teach for which division are helpfully recommended. That is, there are 18 pages of topics/questions that correspond to the "magnitudes" for various popular and important categories of bits. For example, for "programs" about individual U.S. presidents (that'd be a "category"), the first "magnitude" fact is the state where the president was born.

Oh, and then, in order to give your baby encyclopedic knowledge, you just have to flash a set of ten bits in front of the baby (while uttering the word or, later, the facts at greater "magnitudes"), one per second, three times per day. All told, you could go through the program in less than five minutes a day, it seems, and thereby give your baby encyclopedic knowledge. Among the daftest things Doman inflicts on the reader is the notion that, when a baby learns ten "bits" and has thereby learned ten discrete facts (never mind the ridiculous conceptual confusions in *that*), you have thereby given him 3.6 million "connections," because there is that number of mathematical permutations of that number of facts. He takes a whole chapter to be impressed by this pedestrian insight, and never really answers the obvious question: so what?

Now, I'm trying not to be too mean, but it's hard. For me, one of the biggest disappointments about this book is that it utterly fails to support its central assertion that undertaking the program described in the book will "give your baby encyclopedic knowledge," or that the wunderkinder were made so by being flashed a lot of bits. I also am utterly baffled why one ought to use flashcards as opposed to good old books. That was never explained that I saw. Now, for all I know, the program works brilliantly and the world just hasn't woken up to it. I am open-minded enough to think that it might, and that Doman and his colleagues simply have not done their own methods justice in this book. Indeed, like any parent who wants the best for his children, I was rooting for the authors. After all, I already knew that very small children can be taught to read (search YouTube for "baby reading" for some remarkable videos).

But I was very disappointed. I was prepared to do without research data (albeit very reluctantly). I was prepared to try to analyze individual cases and theories--but there really aren't any here, not of any weight. You just get some nice generalizations about smart children--nothing at all like a case study--and then an explanation of how to make and use "bits of intelligence," without any explanation whatsoever of how using bits on babies will turn them into the wunderkinder.

Suppose the program is as wonderful and brilliant as Doman promises. Suppose Doman's motivations are as admirable as he tiresomely portrays them (he says children have the right to be made intelligent, and says several times how certain wunderkinder are his favorite people, and how he tears up when their feats of brilliance show how his program works, to the astonishment of the unbelievers). And he's been at this for many decades; he's pushing 90. Suppose he firmly and sincerely believes his hype. Then why on Earth would he not go out of his way to test his claims scientifically? Or to let or encourage someone else test them? I must assume that there are no supportive studies, because they aren't reported on in this book. But that then makes the book utterly useless from a scientific point of view. Doesn't Doman and the staff at his Institutes know that if science proves him right, many more people will follow the methods? Wouldn't that further their inherently philanthropic mission?

I mean no insult to any of the well-meaning mothers and others using Doman's methods--indeed I mean no *insult* to anyone at all. For all I know, you're doing the right thing for your children and you have given them a lot of useful knowledge. Bravo for that. Indeed I might try my own little unscientific experimentation with my own little boy and some online powerpoint "bits." This review is not about you or Doman's methods, it is about Doman's very disappointing book.

Two stars, for passing along a few interesting ideas about how to entertain kids, who definitely are like little sponges and who desperately want to learn.

I taught in Japan in a highly competitive school for children under the age of 5. We used the Gentle Revolution and were amazed by the results. Not only did the children recognize words by the age of 2, but also they could read at the second grade ENGLISH level at age 3 - 4. Keep in mind these were children whose parents did not speak English, in a culture that was completely in Japanese. We only saw the children for a few hours a day and devoted only about 5 minutes per hour to the Doman method. I have nothing but respect for the methods in these books, and although reading through them is easy to understand but difficult to stomach, DO NOT disregard the method for the fuzzy writing. It is sound, and I hope everyone recognizes the potential for intelligence that every child is capable of.

Yes, they are flashcards. Yes, sometimes your child won't look at them. Yes, you have to be interested in them too. Yes, you must be excited. Yes, there is a jargon but it's easy to learn and makes sense later. Yes, your child will learn faster and in the end, don't we all want our kids to be the best little kids they can be???

I thought this book had great ideas and it really inspired me to try them with my child. However when it came to actually making the cards required (bit of intelligence cards) I am finding difficulty aquiring the appropriate pictures to use and as such I cannot get started. I realise this is not the fault of the authors and would still reccomend purchase of this book, just be prepared to use a little ingenuity in seeking out the required materials. I believe the princilpes in this book to be sound and that they would definelty help any child to aquire more general knowledge.

I was so lucky to read this book and 4 other books by the same author when my baby son was 9-mon, I spent 5 nights to read Doman's 5 books, and started to teach my son with Doman's method immediately. I started with 25 words and add 5 new words every day, 1 second per word, 3 times a day. Same thing with the bits cards and math cards. To my surprise, my son absorbed every thing so quickly and after 3 weeks, he started pointing to the right objects so often when I showed him the word!

I attended Dr. Doman's "How to multiply your baby's intelligence" baby brain development course in his "The Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential" in Philadelphia in order to meet those experts and little geniuses in person. The Institute is for both well babies and brain injured babies, which was founded by Doman 50 years ago. It is a non-profit organization. ([...])

We saw all those 4-6 year-old kids and other 8-12 year-olds in their Institutes could read more than 3 languages, read many big thick books, do Math, science and encyclopedia, gymnastics, swim, play violin in almost professional high level!!! They were taught by their parents who most of them did not have any foreign languages and musical background and etc. Everybody in the class was astonished, thrilled and speechless; many were cried in the very formal graduation ceremony.

I started teaching my son reading when he was 9 months old. And the result was amazing. Three weeks later he could point to his name word when I say his name; and point to my bellybutton when I showed him the big word card: bellybutton. However, he lost interest of reading completely in 2 months when he can walk around. I had to stop my teaching for a while and search for methods that can intrigue his interest.

When he turned 18 months old, he can accurately name and read every part of the world map puzzle, he can read all other body and organ parts words and flower/tree parts words and other 1,000 words cards. When he is 21 months old, he can read dozens of children books. Now my son is 25 months old, I am starting teaching him the elementary curriculum for 10 to 20 minutes every day.

My son is just an ordinary child, if you think he is a GENIUS, then every baby is a GENIUS including your baby, as stated in Doman's theory, because every baby is able to read and do math if you prepare such an environment and opportunity for him to learn. And babies love to learn, it is fun and it is their surviving skill...

You do not need a college degree to be able to send your child to college or even Harvard, the love with all your heart to your child makes the real difference when you decide not taking the chance of winning a baby Einstein lottery that might be related to your family Genius Gene. Every hard effort you put to your baby, God knows, and your child knows.

Do not waste your baby's precious first 6 genius years! I highly recommend this book and all Dr.Doman's books!

It might be too overwhelmed to spend weeks to cut and write hundreds of words cards and math cards, you can buy a set of "Teach your baby to read within one year kit" for $9.99 on eBay. You can type the keyword "Teach Your Baby to Read within 1 Year Kit / Montessori" on eBay to search for the kit and the relevant subjects' material.

My family used Glenn Doman's program many years ago - my husband and I both attended the week long seminar in Pa. and our children were members of their off-campus program. I have to say it was one of the most enjoyable, exciting and fun things we ever did with them! The "bits of intelligence" you are taught to make with this book definitely do work and my children, who are now in their 20's and 30's, look back on them with fondness. In fact, my older daughter is now pregnant and is going to use the "bits" I used with her as a toddler with her own baby! You won't regret doing this program with your children, and neither will they.

The review written Y. Liu "My Baby Can Read" is TOTAL GARBAGE.
The book is very good and you should get it but his review is only to try to get you to purchase some software off of Ebay. I unfortunately did this and it is GARBAGE! A total waste of money barely installed and after it did and I got it running I wish I had not. I have seen better programming from Junior High kids on there TI-83 Calculators. Nothing in his Ebay description accurately describes the software and he refuses to let you try it because he know if you did you wouldn't buy it. So BUYER BEWARE...
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On a lighter note I own all of the Glenn Doman Books and they all are very good. the how smart is my baby is a mix of them all but I would recommend just getting all the others they have better detail for specific areas.

A gripping read - like an educational 'whodunnit'.
Glen Doman (et al) introduce their work at The Institutes and describe the children they've helped over the years - children who incidentally are some of their favorite people in the whole world - giving a rather long introductory background of around 100 pages before reaching the crux of the information - 100 pages which you'll read with pleasure and not once realise that you're yet to learn how to give your child encyclopedic knowledge - Rest assured, you will - the background paves the way to understanding exactly why, how and THAT the methods discussed in the second half of the book actually work ! Well worth the money and time - Read it ... or don't... see if I care.
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Kieran Bogan is a qualified and professional educator, teaching English Language to adults and children from non English speaking backgrounds at Advantage English School, Sydney; www.advantage-english.com.au