A Mother Reading to her Baby |
When our first born was very young, we had been gifted a picture book with farm animals in it. I would point to the figures and say, horse, cow, sheep, duck, chicken and so on - - naming each item in the pictures.
Then I would touch his mouth
and say, “mouth,” and in turn, touch and speak words for his nose, ear, eye,
and tummy with a little tickle and a laugh.
Also at bed time I would sing
the old hymns that he was hearing at Church.
He developed a love of books and began to talk distinctly at an early
age.
If I knew then what I knew
now; I would have done the same thing with our second and third daughters.
I must have been too occupied with others
things because I failed to read and take the time individually with my
girls. Both girls were late to speak clearly
enough to be understood and although both of them can read, neither love books
the way our first born does.
Studies show that children
from the time they are (still in the womb) and as a newborn they need to hear their mother (and father) speak soft loving words to
them. You may think a newborn will not
understand as you read from the book of Psalms, or the stories of Jesus - - but
their spirit is picking up your words and storing them in their
subconscious.
About now, some of you may be
scoffing and question, “Of what real value is it for a newborn to be read to
from the Bible or a Bible story book?”
Hebrews_4:12 For the word of God is
quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the
dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a
discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
A Dad reading to his baby |
When our grown son’s first
born came along, our son being an avid reader, must have researched that children
need to hear their parents speak words to them.
At what our son considered a reasonable bed time, he began to lay his
boy down in his crib and to read until the baby fell asleep and shut the door. Before long the baby was sleeping through
most of the night.
Researchers tell us that it is
NOT words from the TV, radio, or lullabies from a CD or DVD that will lodge in
the child’s mind. It is their parent’s
human voice they long for and need to hear.
In the October 2014 issue of
Readers Digest, Melissa Rae Greene wrote an article about “Word Power for
Babies. She stated that to break the
cycle of poverty young children need something as abundant as the air, and that
is - - words from their parents.
Babies need the basic things
for a good start, mother’s milk, or something like it, love, attention, and
playtime; clean clothes, and a safe place to sleep.
Parents all over the world
try to give their babies these essentials, but educational researchers have
uncovered something else babies need to develop properly. Many babies suffer from a shortage of words -
songs, nursery rhymes, story books, chitchat, and the everyday stuff.
Proverbs_16:24 Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to
the soul, and health to the bones.
Proverbs_18:4 The words of a man's
mouth are as deep waters, and the wellspring of wisdom as a flowing brook.
This post is shared at Charlotte ’s Spiritual Sundays
2 comments:
I love it! I was reading too when my child was very young :)
Good thinking and sharing as usual. Baby stuff gets complicated, especially in our present day world with so much that can be poured in over and over again. I try to my grandkids, whether MINE physically or MINE spiritually through the Bhutanese and others. Your sharing piece was filled with reality. Thank you.
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