Correct Information

"What is placed in a child's brain during the first six years of life is probably there to stay. If you put misinformation into his brain during this period, it is extremely hard to erase it."

- Dr. Glen Doman

While a lot of Dr. Glenn Doman's work was with babies and young children, the principle has bearing on all of us. I once had a student with an unique name sign up for one of my classes. Having never heard his name pronounced, I pronounced it the way that made the most sense to me. When the class started a couple weeks later, I met this boy and learned the correct pronunciation of his name – it was not how I had assumed it would be. Now I had “learned” the correct pronunciation, but you know what? I had a really hard time remembering to say it correctly. Even though I know what's correct, I first learned it incorrectly and it was difficult to remember to say the thing that I learned, as the incorrect pronunciation has a firmer grasp on my mind. Because of how difficult it is to relearn information, it is very important that our children have the correct information the first time. Then, rather than wasting time re-teaching, learning time can be spent learning all-new (true) information. One way we can do this is when we work closely with them. In a traditional classroom, a teacher doesn't have time to work closely with individuals. For this reason she assigns homework. The students do their homework in the evening and turn it in to the teacher the next day. She takes it home that night to correct it and brings it back to the child the next day. By then, anything the student got wrong is not likely relearned.

This is one area where homescoolers have a big advantage. We get to work one-on-one with our children. When your child makes a mistake, you don't wait two days to tell him. He can be corrected immediately, before the incorrect information has time to settle in the brain. This is one reason why homeschoolers generally have shorter school days. They can learn so much quicker!