"Bits of Intelligence"

What is a "bit of intelligence", you ask?   It's a fancy flashcard.  You make them with 11x11 inch posterboard, then glue the item on the front and the name (and 10 facts about the item if you're really organized) on the back.  All the instructions are in the "Encyclopedic Knowledge" book by Glenn Doman.

Brendan's favorite categories (at 27 months old) are Continents, States, State Flags, Presidents, World Leaders, and The Solar System.   And of course anything to do with Letters and Numbers!  He can identify all letters, put them in order, count to 100, add his 1's and 2's, and identify numbers at least to 40. 

Some other categories we have include:  colors, great art masterpieces, self-portraits of the great artists, works of Pablo Picasso, works of Vincent Van Gogh, works of M.C. Esher, works of Norman Rockwell, works of Leonardo da Vinci, works of Claude Monet, organs of the body, bones of the body, mammals, reptiles, sea creatures, dinosaurs, puppies, leaves, butterflies & moths, insects, state flowers, state birds (still working on this one), countries of the world, flags of the world, explorers, inventors, composers, musical notes & symbols, people of the Bible, regular polygons, parts of a circle, angles, mathematical symbols, and even sports cars!  We have about 1,100 in all so far.   You can teach absolutely ANYTHING!

These are Brendan's Continents.   His favorites are Antarctica and South America.  Go figure!	"Which one is Europe, Brendan?"
See how much he loves them?   He even has to take them to the grocery store sometimes.
Now tell me, is he working or playing?  PLAYING, of course!	This is a sampling of Brendan's Presidents.  His favorites are Jimmy Carter and George Bush.  Can YOU name all these guys?

Click below to see a video of Brendan in action at 19 months old (8 months ago!):

Warning:  These videos contain TESTING (the big "T" word)!  Glenn Doman warns against testing your child for fear that learning will become monotonous output rather than joyous input.  HOWEVER, after Brendan knows a set of bits real well, he likes to do what we call a "quiz".   I think he likes the quizzes better than the actual bit showing!  If he didn't like this so much, I wouldn't do it, but, well, whatever works to make Brendan happy while learning!

If you get an error message "The file format is invalid" when you try to view these, just hit OK, then hit PLAY on the Media Player and it should play anyway!

Brendan doing his colors	34 seconds, 4.97MB
Brendan doing his states	30 seconds, 4.38MB
Brendan doing his state flags	35 seconds, 5.12MB
Brendan doing his presidents	39 seconds, 5.59MB

Other Programs:   We also do some words for the reading program, and "dot" cards for the math, although he likes the numerals better.  We don't do much with the "physical" program, but reading the book has opened my eyes to the importance of physical activity, and I will probably sign him up for tumbling classes soon.  He has always been interested in "getting around" (he walked when he was 8 months old).  

I have also made several homemade books with pictures of him and special people, and one BIG book on the solar system since he loves it so much.  He has been able to say all the planets in order since about 18 months old! 

I have made 2 homemade videos of me presenting the cards, reading books, etc. and he asks for these videos even more than Veggie Tales or Elmo (I'm glad about this).  "Mama on T.V." he says. 

This is me, looking VERY GOOFY, on one of my "Mama on T.V." videos.  Trust me, he likes these videos even if I DO look goofy and act a little silly!

For more info: Glenn Doman is the founder of The Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential, which includes a school in Philadelphia, PA.  To learn more about this organization, you can see their web site at www.iahp.org.  This site will also tell you how to order the books and other materials (such as videos and "ready made bits").