In 1995, American anthropologists Betty Hart and Todd Leslie launched the famous “30 million word gap” survey.
The 2.5-year study followed 42 families and recorded conversations between parents and children. The final conclusion showed that children born into average families hear 30 million fewer English words than children born into better-off families.
At the end of the study, the IQ of the first group was 79, the other group was 117. When the children were 10 years old, Betty and Todd took a survey to test: Children with larger vocabulary were study better.
As a result, the “30 million words gap” has become a microcosm of the gap between rich and poor.
Reading is not the best way to increase IQ
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) research has discovered the secret behind this gap: It’s not vocabulary that affects children’s brain development, but how parents communicate with their children.
MIT is a university that is always in the top of the world and is ranked 2nd in 2021 (according to Times Higher Education rankings).
The results of the study do not completely rule out the role of reading in children’s development. Thus, parents will easily perceive more scientific and effective ways to promote the intellectual development of their children.
The specific content of the study conducted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is as follows: The subjects of the survey were 30 children aged 3-4 years old.
Parents will tell stories to children, in the process, researchers do not limit communication between children and parents. The entire process and activity of the child’s brain is recorded.
Illustration. Photo: ADDitude
Finally, experimental data show that children who are more willing to communicate with their parents have a marked change in their brain waves, the language development area of the mind is very active.
In contrast, children who weren’t very communicative had relatively weaker language skills and small brain regions, leading to delayed responses.
Through this study, experts realized the importance of communication in the development of IQ and EQ for young children.
After all, children’s reading ability is very limited when they are relatively young. While, this is the stage where children learn from communication very quickly. Therefore, parents, no matter how busy they are, should not ignore the role of talking with their children.
So what should parents do?
1. Communicate and exchange more equally
We know that during childhood, children spend the longest time at home and have the most contact with their parents. Therefore, effectively communicating with your child at this time is extremely important.
Parents need to pay attention to exchange equally with their children, learn to respect and listen to children’s opinions. Communicate rather than “force”. Otherwise, the effort will backfire, even causing children to refuse to communicate with their parents.
When the two sides are equal, children and parents are like friends, only then can they know the true thoughts of a child’s heart.
2. Resonance with children
If we want to resonate with children, we need to empathize and transform ourselves into people with similar mentality to children. The feeling of resonance will easily lead to consensus, making children listen and absorb more.
Always stand from the same starting point as your children so that children feel that their parents are companions on the path of adulthood, understanding that parents always want their children to receive the best. At that time, children will be ready to accept suggestions and efforts to change.
Illustration. Photo: Beyond the Bookends
3. Reasonable guidance
In daily life, most children are playful, eat slowly, sleep at the wrong time… At this time, parents should convince their children by reason rather than directing and forcing.
Take time to tell your children why they should not continue those actions, for example, if playing games for a long time, their eyesight will be poor, not eating on time will cause stomach pain, which is harmful to their health. Harms can be explained in ways and words appropriate to the child’s age so that the child can understand.
Thereby, parents have led the way so that children can judge for themselves the benefits and harms of an object or event, then make a decision to continue doing or change themselves.
4. Patience
Being exposed to the world for the first time, children inevitably become curious about everything around them. It is possible that things that parents consider normal are very interesting to children.
At this time, when children are curious or have questions about something, parents should patiently explain. If we encounter problems that we do not know ourselves, we can go with our children to find out and solve problems. This is also a way for parents to guide their children to find information, and at the same time to use the knowledge they have learned in life and learning.
Source: CafeF
Source: Vietnam Insider