Repetition helps, Repetition helps.

As-Salamu’alaikum:

Below is an interesting article I came across that could be quite beneficial to Muslim parents, except in our case, rather than reading the same book, one could easily replace this with reciting Surah’s from the Qur’an, thus giving the child a head start in memorization 🙂  In addition, one can of course do as the study suggests and read aloud children’s books just to improve their vocabulary!

Reading the same book over and over helps you learn faster (if you’re 18-months old)

BY Jeva Lange

girlreadinghungrycaterpilla.jpgWeary parents may roll their eyes at their toddlers’ insistence to have the same book read over and over, but a new study by the University of Sussex finds that the repetition is important for little learners.

Dr. Jessica Horst and her researchers say that children who were read the same story three times back-to-back, instead of three different stories, actually retain 3.6 of the new words they’ve been introduced to instead of the 2.6 of the “variety” group.

“You don’t need to go crazy and buy every single ‘Thomas the Tank Engine’ book. Reading the same books over and over again helps,” Dr. Horst told The Independent.

According to the study, it’s actually a waste of money to buy enormous collections of books for your toddler, as much as we might want them for ourselves. Instead, young children benefit most from the attention to a favorite few. Additionally, just 30 minutes of one-on-one reading sessions can improve a child’s reading age by nearly two years in less than five months.

For those worried about flipping about “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” endlessly, take comfort in knowing this doesn’t last forever. Eventually little Suzy will move on to “Ulysses” — but until then, her best chance at a Joycean vocabulary might just be that thirteenth recitation of “In the light of the moon a little egg lay on a leaf…”

About Umm Maryam

I am an American Muslim homeschooling mom of four who is living in Canada and trying to become stronger on the deen as each day passes, InshaAllah.
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