Doman Method For Early Reading

It is possible for a child under the age of 3 to read. Surprising, right? To achieve this, the recommendation is to follow the Doman method, which has been shown to teach young children to read at an early age.

The Doman method was designed in the 1950s by the American physician Glenn J. Doman, founder of the Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential, in Philadelphia, United States. This specialist demonstrated that his method is more effective than the traditional syllabic method.

Initially, the method was conceived to work with children with brain injuries, as evidenced by this study published in the journal Rehabilitation . But when noting the excellent results obtained in increasing their cognitive abilities, Doman redirected his research. He was interested in analyzing the effects it could have on healthy children to teach them to read at an early age.

The Doman method: what is it about?

Doman found that the greatest capacities for learning are concentrated in the first years of life of any child. He explained this in his book Teaching Your Baby to Read . In fact, he named the first 6 years of a child’s life as the “genesis of genius” period, since they have an insurmountable capacity for any other moment in life.

Children can learn to read at an early age as long as they are adequately stimulated to recognize words and their meaning, as this article published in ESSAYS shows. Magazine of the Faculty of Education of Albacete . To do this, use pictures with the words close to the child, in a size large enough so that he can recognize the picture of the words.

The Doman method ensures that learning to read can be the same as learning to speak. When the baby hears a word, the same electrochemical impulses are triggered until they reach the brain as if it were perceived through sight.

Therefore, the baby makes the same effort to learn to speak and to learn to read. What makes it possible for you to carry out both learning simultaneously and globally. In this way, both hemispheres of the brain are stimulated. He perceives the word as a whole, without distinguishing the letters, but the drawing that makes it up.

How to teach reading at an early age?

This learning technique is adapted to the characteristics of each child. It has to be a fun and easy process. It is basically about showing five cards with words quickly three times a day. Five at a time, new words will be incorporated.

The written words must correspond to the same category: parts of the human body, family members, colors, animals, toys or actions. But the selection of these categories corresponds to the daily reality of the child.

A word should be written on a white sheet 10 centimeters high by 60 centimeters wide. The words must be written in red, with block letters and in lowercase. 5 words will be elaborated by categories. The process of learning to read at an early age will be in phases.

All this is evidenced in this work carried out by researchers from the University of La Rioja.

First phase: words

In the first phase, single words will be shown. First, nouns will be used, organized by categories (family, animals, food, colors); then actions (verbs) are introduced. The process for displaying the words to learn to read at an early age is as follows:

• First day : Five words from the same category are displayed three times a day.
• Second day : the five words from the previous day plus five words from another category are displayed.
• Third day : the previous ten words, plus five words from another category.

• Fourth day : the previous fifteen words, plus five words from another category.
• Fifth day : the twenty words already seen plus five words from another category.

The Doman Method week is 5 days. After completing the first week, in the following weeks a category is removed and a new one is introduced. The idea is that the child does not get bored. No more than 25 cards will be displayed per day, but they should never be passed together, but five at a time, per category.

The sessions last between 15 and 30 minutes and one second is dedicated per card, that is, they are quickly shown to the child. The little one does not have to repeat the pronunciation of the word. The enthusiasm and motivation that is given to the process is essential.

It has to be a fun game that creates expectations. Watch your child as you say the word loud and clear. Every time you change categories, try to shuffle the cards. Nor should there be two successive words that begin with the same letter.

Second phase: word pairs

The second phase begins after the child has already passed 150 isolated words. In this phase, use pairs of words that you create with nouns and adjectives. Also change the color cards. The names of the colors should no longer be written on white cards, but on the same color that names the word.

Each week show two even word games (five pairs each), with single word games from the first phase. In this way, two sets of word pairs are displayed along with the single word categories.

Third phase: short sentences

In this phase you have to make sheets with letters 5 centimeters high. Enter 3-word phrases with a noun and a conjugated verb. For example: mom is walking or grandpa is eating.

With the phrases you can make a book of about ten pages with illustrations, with a size of 45 centimeters high by 20 centimeters wide. Read this book to your child two or three times a day.

Fourth phase: phrases to teach reading at an early age

In this phase, create sentences with 2.5-centimeter letters and written in black ink. It is time to include the articles. For example: my dad is eating rice. In this phase, also create a book as in the previous phase with the phrases created with similar characteristics to those of the previous phase.

Fifth phase: stories

The time has come to enjoy reading books, although this is a pleasure that you can start much earlier. In this phase of the method, read stories that have between 50 and 100 words. Read them two or three times a day, with normal speed and intonation.

Preferably, look for books that have a single sentence per page, with letters no smaller than 2 centimeters, with the text separated from the illustrations. The stories have to be close to your child’s interests. They also have to give you the opportunity to introduce new vocabulary.

On the Dolman Method for Teaching Early Reading

At the end of each work session, hug and congratulate the child. For Doman, positive reinforcement is essential to ensure the success of the early reading teaching process.

According to Doman, a one-year-old baby can recognize words; at the age of two, phrases to read and enjoy the process upon reaching three years of age.

Later, your child will discover the rules that govern written and oral language. After he has learned to read, you can teach him the alphabet, if it hasn’t happened during the process. Do you dare to teach your child to read at an early age thanks to this method?