by Carl Peterson

Since 1989 Peterson Reading
has been advocating auditory modeling
for students.

This includes both audio tapes
and adult modeling examples
for the students.

Another key procedure is
chorusing with other students
to allow more copying
to limit criticism
to allow inclusion
to learn new languages and
to overcome pronunciation deficits
----------------

INFANTS AND PETERSON READING

Reading abilities
are learned in infancy.

Parents can model Peterson Reading
for their infants
to maxmize early language
and reading skills.

If reading is important
to the parents
it will be important
to their children.
An infant or pre-school
reading advantage
improves later learning.

Reading allows children
more participation in life.

Modeling of Peterson Reading
will improve your relationship
with your child.

Peterson Reading capitalizes on
the almost universal
emergence of certain
abilities and qualities.

Peterson Reading provides parents
an easy to use way
to set educational examples
in the home at an early age.
Bare beginnings develop
to sophisticated minds.

All it takes is two hours
per day.
-----------------

INFANTS AND LANGUAGE

Language development
is easy and predictable
most of the time.

Any normal child
in a specific verbal environment
can learn language with ease.

The few exceptions involve
rare forms of aphasia
caused by developmental
inefficiency or injury.

The window of opportunity
for maximum language development
is from birth
to three years.

Within the first month infants are:

1. applying language.

2. purposely communicating with sounds.

3. connecting objects
and their sounds.

4. understanding symbols.

Infants are also
teaching themselves
with crib talk.

Children learn
to play with the sounds.

The infant brain grows and changes
every minute.

Multiple experiences with languages
use more of the brain.

Each new experience adds
to previously learned information.

Exposure, Exposure, Exposure
is the key to language development.

Peterson Reading increases exposure
from dozens
to thousands per day.

The infant brain capitalizes
on the window of opportunity
to absorb these phrases and
maximize language development.

Infants progress quickly,
using and refining
the rules of conversation.

They move rapidly
to complex ideas,
syntax and grammar.

They extract the meanings
of sounds and movements
almost automatically.

Infants tune up these abilities
over millions of trials
and successes.

Success with language
will encourage more trials.
---------------

LEARNING LANGUAGE FROM PARENTS

Language is learned primarily
at home.

Children want to copy
the talk of their parents.

Mothers constantly talk about
what they are doing.
Adults use "motherese,"
with exaggerated pitch
and stretched out or expanded sounds.
----------------

HOW DO WE LEARN GRAMMAR AND SYNTAX?

It is not a mystery
or hard wiring.

We are too quick
to call our narrow vision
of experiences
a genetic mystery.

We underestimate the billions
of language examples
presented
to infants and toddlers.

We don't realize how fast
infants copy
and learn.

Children will copy
correct grammar
unless they are constantly
exposed to incorrect
or different cultural examples.

Children are motivated
to share talking.

They use grammar and syntax
from their data banks.

Children try out
many combinations
of words and endings

They quickly stop using
many combinations
of words and endings when:

1. they realize they do not fit the rule.

2. those forms are not used by others.

3. they are corrected.
-------------------

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PARENTS:

Let your child grow up
in a home that
provides a consistent
reading model.

Lead the child by example.

Children want to copy their parents.

Your life is fascinating
to your child.

Say to your child:

"I'm interested in you."

"I will take the time
to learn these phrases
so you will know
how you need to learn."

Stop saying,
"do this"
or "do that."

Just say,
"copy me."

Provide daily non-punitive structure.

Listen and write together.

Walk and talk to each other.

Take turns when talking--
pass the talking stick

When queried,
children usually want
more time with their parents.

Have fun together.

What makes the difference
is the total positive time
spent together per day.

Teach imagination
through story telling.

Listen
to the child's interaction
with the story.

Let the child create
his or her own version.
-----------------

AVOIDING MISTAKES
THAT HINDER LEARNING

The change from the period
of grateful newness
to impatience at a child's learning rate
is a common problem
in child rearing.

Parents get irritable and impatient.

Children copy
their parents'impatience signals
and distress them further.

There is a crisis
of rising expectations.

Optimism for learning
is easily destroyed by parent
and peer criticism.

Avoid "dressing down"
underperforming children.

The consequences are
too pricey.

Constructive criticism
is a procedure
that doesn't make sense.

There is too large a jump from A to E.

Children need steps B, C, and D
to be successful.

Education should be
a chain of successful experiences
rather than an opportunity
to be caught doing the wrong thing.
-------------------

SPEECH DEPRIVATION
IN ANY FORM
CREATES LIMITS

Oral speech,
inner speech,
story telling.

Any event that limits opportunities
to think,
speak and write
reduces the ability
to develop intelligence.

This is true in physical development,
why not in mind areas?

Becoming a sports personage
requires a lot of practice.

Children need extensive practice
until necessary skills
of speech and writing
work automatically.

Little forethought is needed
for an expletive
or an explosive comment.

Finding out that other persons
think and solve the same problems
adds much dimension
to our "automatic responses."

The solution:

In 555
the long process
of speech and writing experiences
is compressed
into a few months.

This growth is possible
because of the receptivity
of the human mind.

The mind can hear and observe,
record and extrapolate information
into sophisticated grammar.
----------------

CREATING INFANT
AND PRESCHOOL MEMORIES

Children like
their own pictures.

They are naturally curious
about their pictures
and their own memories.

Positive memories
are very valuable.

Regularly reviewing
pictures of childhood friends
will keep the memories alive.

They quickly learn to create
or fill in their own stories.

Their stories usually parallel
the plots of children's books,
audio tapes
or TV.
-----------------

AUDITORY AND CULTURAL TRAINING

Kids can't make
the right life decisions
on their own.

They will choose less than optimum.

The best of the breed
passes down the information
that helped it survive:
mate,
win battles,
find food.

Rituals of life are discussed,
modeled,
rehearsed and practiced
step by step.

The most informed
are the most likely
to survive.
--------------

AUDITORY MEMORY
AND MUSIC MEMORY

I am impressed by
the auditory memory skills
of church members,
choir singers
and other musicians.

Musicians practice copying details
of a new passage
until they get it copied right.

This is an easily renewed memory.

Hearing or playing the piece
once or twice
will dramatically improve
their recall and accuracy.
------------

COMMENTARY

DiVinci is a highly acclaimed
quartet of musicians
that have been playing together
for many years.

They are very committed musicians.

All teach other musicians.

Repetition

A conversation with the cellist
of the DiVinci Quartet
supported my auditory learning theories.

She has commuted from Denver
to Colorado Springs
3 times per week for over 10 years.

As she drives
she repetitively plays
CDs of music
she is trying to learn.

We talked about
Peterson Reading for Infants.

She suggested I find out
about the Suzuki method
for teaching music.

I wish I had read their material
years ago.

Several parts of their philosophy
agree with Peterson Reading.

Their teaching experiences
validate my conclusions and statistics.
------------