> > Half the argument against teaching certain things at young ages seems to derive from a mistaken belief that "THIS is fun, THAT is work". Kids aren't born thinking certain things are fun or not fun. If you make arithmetic, reading or anything else a game, little kids will have fun doing it. If you force them to sit down and play with blocks in a certain prescribed manner for four hours a day, they'll think of that as work, and they'll hate it. Give me a break. My parents taught me to read at an adult level before I started school, and I never thought I was being forced into anything or losing my childhood. It was fun.
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> I learnt to read very early on and read Arthur Hailey's "Airport" when I was ten. I loved reading the serious novels and stuff. My English Teacher was highly impressed too.

I've probably said this on here before, but I'll say it again. I taught myself to read by the time I was four years old. My mom did not help me because she thought that I was supposed to learn in school, and I would be out of place if I knew how to read when the other kids did not. I wanted to learn to read, I was ready to learn to read, and so I taught myself to read. I got to Kindergarten and the other kids loved it. I read the directions to them so they didn't have to wait for the teacher to tell them what to do.

Learning such things at an early age is not for everybody. If a child is ready, then teach him, no matter how young he is. The little girl I used to babysit learned how to read at age four and could type at age five, and she liked doing both of those things. She saw them as "fun," not as "work."

If children show interest, encourage them. I don't think anybody is too young to learn.

Ell"I like miniature soap boxes"myruh