A-B-C, Easy As 1-2-3
Clara has become a counting fiend lately. Not necessarily counting objects with any rhyme or reason (she often starts at four or seven, or counts three lights when there are two) but she seems to really enjoy calling out the numbers. I think we may have this video to blame.
And you’ve already seen her counting on her changing table back in November.
She’s also having fun with letters lately, and even shouts out requests like “do letters!” when we color. She’s really good at identifying frequently used ones like S, O, E and those that are in her name…
… but sometimes Z are called S’s, and Q’s are commonly called Os. Oh well, there’s no rush! It’s just so much fun to watch her soak things up like a sponge. Perhaps she’ll be starting a blog soon, where she’ll only be using certain letters (sample post: “Clara O See So Clara!”). Sounds exciting…
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SO CUTE! You realize you have a little genius, right? :) I call she’ll be reading by summer time!!
How adorable and super smart is Clara?! Well done you guys! I’m definitely sitting my little dude down with that numbers train later!
Totally did this and he loved it! He’s just turned one year old and it blows my mind that soon he’ll be counting and “reading” like Clara (I hope!).
These are adorable. You have a smart little munchkin on your hands!
She is so smart! And look at her using that iPad!
So cute! I love how easily she uses the IPad.
Haha, the babies of the 21st century are so technologically savvy!
xo,
s
She is so adorable!!! What a smart little girl!!!!
I’m simply amazed at how quickly she is learning to identify numbers and letters! My daughter is only about 2 months younger, and she is just starting to pick up a few words here and there. Do you guys have any tips for encouraging vocabulary growth?
We just talk to her all the time! And if she seems to take an interest in something we chat about it for a while (ex: “oh yes, that’s the mailman, he’s coming to bring our mail. He goes to all the houses in the neighborhood and his truck is filled with mail”). She has also always loved reading and singing, and I think those help her understand words and sounds and even beginner little sentences. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
We did the same – talked to our daughter incessantly. About anything! What we were doing, read out loud, made things up. From day one we talked to her whenever she was awake. She’ll be 2 in three weeks and she talks in full sentences, counts to 29, knows her ABCs and the lyrics to about 15 songs (anything from Happy Birthday to Adele), and can repeat any word you tell her. We get weird looks as we walk through the grocery store having full convos with her or when she says things like, ‘I would like to have a piece of that.’ Sometimes the perfectly correct grammar even freaks me out! People don’t expect a 25 pound dynamo to tell them about her day. I honestly think just constantly talking is what did it. Not proud of her or anything. :)
She sounds adorable! What a fun little chatterbug!
xo,
s
We also did baby sign which helped. She said her first word by 6 months and started signing by 7.
I agree with the constant talking. My little niece is 4 yrs old and she speaks like an adult. Her parents always had conversations with her since she was a newborn. If her mother was making dinner, the baby would be close by in a basinet and her mother would explain what she is doing, naming all the foods, utensils, how to cook food and why it is being baked, fried, steamed….just talk, talk, talk all the time about anything and everything. Such a simple thing to do but so very powerful.
What a little smarty pants! You guys obviously are skilled in other areas than home improvement, you’re awesome parents as well.
Must be all the reading you do with her! Precious!
She’s a genius! My 3 year old is still working on her letters and my 17 month old doesn’t know any. Good work Clara!!! She’ll be reading chapter books by Kindergarten!!
HOW fun! We have a little boy close to Clara’s age, and you’re right…they are such little sponges! It’s amazing to watch them learn and grow every day. He’s constantly blowing my husband and I away at the things that he does/says/learns. We’re always like, “He’s a genius!” When in reality, he’s just being an 18 month old…lol But still…it’s just amazing to see the things they know at such a young age. You guys are awesome parents!
Love it! Dexter was like that too. He knew all of his letters and numbers by 18 months. He’s 2 now and can count easily into high numbers, and can recognize up to 100. He’s always been obsessed with letters and numbers!
Wow- that’s amazing! Clara seems to really love them too!
xo,
s
Clara is so smart! Our daughter is the same age and we just got an ipad for Christmas! Do you have any toddler apps you would recommend?
We actually just have a few “learning videos” on youtube that she likes occasionally (there’s a channel called KidsTV123 that’s great). So we don’t have any apps we use yet. We try to make sure it doesn’t dominate her day or anything, because reading books, and singing, and playing outside and all that other stuff is better than parking it in front of the ipad for three hours, ya know? But she does seem to love her color and number and letter videos and songs.
xo,
s
Clara is so cute! I love how she’s always eating raisins!
Seriously, the girl can’t put them down.
xo,
s
Oh my goodness, we will definitely be checking out the number train video later! You’ve got a smart one on your hands. Keep up the good work!
Adorable! I’m watching her use that iPad like a pro and thinking that she is more tech savy than many people I know. She could teach classes, you know to bring in a little extra money…to buy more crayons. Apple should definitly use her cute face for marketing and reward her with a lifetime supply of raisins :)
Haha, I think that would make her life. Raisins + Burger = Clara’s favorite things ever.
xo,
s
This is so sweet! Our little girl is a few months behind Clara and I LOVE seeing how much more interactive they become. We’re having a blast with our Lorelei beginning to form words, but it’s cute to get a preview into future conversations and learning experiences :) Clara is such a joy!
CUTE! Clara is after my lil dude’s heart. Ethan is a couple of months older and is a HUGE fan of the number train, as well as the fruit train, the color train, the shape train, and the days of the week train. We’re doing numbers and letter everywhere! Thank you guys for being an inspiration for the rest of us working/DIY’ers parents. Happy 2012.
Aw, Clara loves the fruit train too! And has just gotten into the shape train. Ethan sounds like he’s a perfect match. Haha.
xo,
s
I really hope she does start a blog.
She could chronicle her life along two parents who are DIY-crazy and a Chihuahua who likes to sleep in.
I would read it. :D
Need more Burger stories!
There’s one in the hopper! Hold tight!
xo,
s
My 3-year-old son just watched those videos and said “Now that’s the cutest thing I have ever seen on my Mommy’s computer!”.
Hahaha, Clara is beaming with pride at the “cutest thing” title! Especially from a 3 year old boy!
xo,
s
Clara is so adorable, and she really is just soaking in info like a sponge. It is impressive, and with my own seven children I just never got tired of watching their little brains grow. I also think you were pitch-perfect in your responses to her letter recognition. You were excited, you were encouraging, but you weren’t over-praisey.
That’s something I struggled with when I was a young mom, and in my early homeschooling years. (Yes, I have seven children, and yes, I homeschool them.) I really think my kids are brilliant ;) and I don’t take the credit for that, I think it is inherent in them. And I see the same wonderful development in Clara, and a little part of me misses those incredible toddler years even while I’m teaching my youngest to read. You probably don’t need this article as much as I did, because like I said I think you were perfect in your feedback with Clara. But how much would I give to go back 18 years (eldest is 18 next Thursday! gasp!) and to have had this in my head back then? So in case you’re interested in the midst of your guests and renovations, here is an *amazing* article that totally changed the way I parent several years ago. And I think that while it was a bit of a slap in the face for me, it may well be more like a pat on the back for you.
http://nymag.com/news/features/27840/
So interesting!
xo,
s
Clara is an amazing little girl and you and John are amazing parents! I am a kindergarten teacher and you’d be amazed how many five year olds come to me each year knowing zero letters and numbers. On behalf of all the kindergarten teachers out there…THANK YOU, for putting in the time and taking an interest in your daughters learning!
Wow she’s so smart! what a cutiepatootie. :)
Btw what kind of raisins are those and where do you get them? I’ve never seen any in a white package..are they organic?
Yes, they’re organic from kroger. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
I asked and you guys delivered — I love Clara vids, she is so sweet, and 1 is my favorite age, the emerging language is adorable !! :)
Oh.My.Gosh she is so cute!! I can’t handle it!! I love her little voice. Thanks for sharing! :)
I just have to say that first, Clara is ADORABLE! I love that counting train video.
Second, it is SOO great that you guys are following her interests with letters and numbers at such a young age without overwhelming her! She seems to be having a blast and it’s amazing how young she is, but how much she already knows. I teach Kindergarten at a school with a lot of poverty–many of the parents don’t pay much attention to their little kiddos or place much importance in talking about such things at home. Your Clara already knows more than the majority of the students I get when they first come to me each year! Props to you :)
Oh my…..how adorable and smart she is. You can def tell you guys work with her a lot. And she knows her way around that I-pad. So cute!!
My son is two and knows almost every letter and number. Kids are ALL smart, its just the parents who put the time in, like me and you guys, to teach it to them.
Sherry,
I can definitely tell you were a Montessori kid! Even though I know you and John are going to go the way of public school I think the work you are doing with her this early on is amazing! I love the Clara videos, they always put me in a happy mood!!
Love,
One former Montessori kid to another.
Aw thanks Cora. That makes me smile!
xo,
s
You are great parents and she is ADORABLE! She could probably teach me how to use my iPad.
How cute…and her voice is so adorable! i love how kids say numbers and letters. My son uses our ipad sometimes to watch short shows on Netflix but he doesn’t stop poking it (because he knows something will pop up! does Clara ever try to do that too?
Haha, she used to do that but has learned that sometimes the video stops or goes away so she tries to sit there and not touch it (while chewing raisins or sucking her thumb usually, haha).
xo,
s
It’s so cool watching her learn her numbers and letters!
Aww, she’s so cute! One thing you might think of, since she is getting such an early start with an interest in numbers and letters, is to remember to teach her what the letters say. I teach elementary kids reading, and one thing that helps build good readers is something called phonemic awareness or the sounds letters make. Readers who struggle often have poor phonemic awareness. There are tons of books on Amazon if you type in “phonemic awareness”. Just a thought from someone who is thrilled (like so many others commenting here) that you are so involved in Clara’s learning.
Climbing down off my soapbox now.
Thanks for the tip! The funny thing is that one of her favorite online alphabet videos says word that goes with each letter so she sees a V and says “V, violin!” – it’s the only letter she does so far other than the C on her door (she squeals “C for Clara!” whenever we walk by it). So much fun! Off to google phonemic awareness now…
xo,
s
So cute! What a little smartie pants! :)
Oh man, she’s adorable—and super smart! My niece just turned one and since she’s the first kid in our family, I can’t wait to see her start doing this. I just bought her the Very Hungry Caterpillar, so maybe counting will be soon. :)
Def get the Starfall app!! It’s great for learning letters and it’s so fun!
Thanks!
xo,
s
It must be such a joy for her to spend such a great amount of quality time with her parents. It’s obvious she’s a happy girl!
My son, Sammy, is about the same age and he love counting and letters. However when he was counting the people at our Christmas table it went like this “2, i, 2, i, a, o…” He knows how to count but I think he gets creative at times and I love it.
Does Clara enjoy puzzles? My son LOVES them. Such a fun learning tool for them.
Hahaha, hilarious! Sometimes we hear 4, 5, 6, mommy, daddy, Burger, grammy… Hilarious! She does love puzzles and is just getting into stacking blocks too. So much fun!
xo,
s
She is too cute and so very smart! I love hearing her little voice…it never gets old to me! :)
She’s a little genius! It’s been so interesting to watch her grow up. :-)
It warms my primary teacher’s heart to see her excited about learning and getting parental support. When you are teaching her to write her name, be sure to teach her the way she will be writing it in school with lower case letters. Often times students come to school only knowing the uppercase letters for their names and it can be difficult for them to have to relearn. I know it sounds like such a silly thing, but it does make a difference. I just thought I would mention it, because I think most people don’t think about it.
Great tip Chrissy!
xo,
s
She’s so smart! She talks and knows her abc’s better than my four year old nephew.
So sweet! My son, who is about a month older than Clara, has been doing the same thing lately! We’ll write his name and he says the letters. Even if we wear a sweatshirt with letters on it, he’ll call them out. It’s so fun having a toddler! And even last night, I caught this video!
http://vimeo.com/34355555
Clara is too sweet! Hope you all had a fabulous holiday!
Such a cute video! His voice even reminds us a bit of Clara’s too. Must be that age… :)
xo,
s
The great thing about kids who learn this early is that they DON’T STOP. My now five year old was obsessed with numbers/letters when she was little, and would actually beat us on the arms with her little board books when she wanted a story read to her. She is now learning to read (not even in Kindergarten yet!), and has this insatiable curiosity about everything. It’s awesome. My three year old daughter didn’t love the letters and numbers as much, but she’s a totally different kid–way more active and hands on (even DIY, if you will, haha) than my oldest. It’s amazing how much of their personalities are evident from such a young age. The jury is still out on our ten month old, but so far, she seems to have a career of demo ahead. :)
Thanks for posting Clara stuff and being so great with all the feedback! I feel like I learn something new every time i read a clara post. We JUST started using kidtv123 with on our iPad last week thanks to your suggestion on the blog! Our little girl is a month older than Clara and v violin was one of the first letters she started repeating too. I’m not sure how to start teaching lowercase letters, but think that may help her stop confusing E and F. We definitely have a hard time with letters that look alike! Keep up the great work with her and be sure to let us know what new teaching/learning is working best.
Sooooooo Cute!
“I will not compare our kids. I will not compare our kids.” :P
She’s super smart! Great job you all! I’d love some tips on working from home and still encouraging growth. It’s just me at home with 2 little ones, so if I work during the day, they have to entertain themselves usually. :-\ And working only at night makes for not so wonderful mornings on little sleep. I know you all have some similiar issues with having the internet there 24/7, so anything or a routine you’ve gotten into that you think has helped you balance, I’d love to hear it.
We usually try to chat with her and engage her as much as we can! She definitely has independent play while we’re in the room with her working on a blog post in the background or something, but we also try to go outside with her to play or on a walk, and whenever we’re out (ex: grocery shopping) we chat away with her (explaining nearly everything we’re doing). She seems to love time to play on her own and other time to chat with us and have our full attention. It’s so hard to find enough hours in the day to work and give C our undivided attention, so I can totally relate to your struggles! I’m right there with you!
xo,
s
Thanks! I definitely think I need to start chatting more with her. It’s hard for me to think of stuff to say, but I like how you’ve said you talk about what you’re doing. It feels weird to me at first, but hopefully it will just become natural. :)
It’s definitely hard to find a balance. Good luck to you all this year! :D
♥
So cute! And just curious, what kind of cover do you have for your iPad? I’m looking for a good one and was wondering if you would recommend the case you have. Thanks!
We have an Otterbox cover. Love those! Very durable, which is key for the bean!
xo,
s
Hi,
This is random…but thought I would share with you…I work with Kindergarteners and First Graders, and some have parents that have taught them to write their names in all caps. I spend a lot of time trying to get these students to use lower case too. So, I just wanted to share that as a suggestion, you may want to show Clara how to write her name and spell her name as Clara, and not CLARA. And, it will save you lots of reteaching time later! Just wanted to share…you guys have helped me so much with decorating ideas…I thought I would share some literacy ideas :)
Someone else mentioned that the other day. So interesting – and good to remember. Thanks!
-John
My son Rowen was so much into educational YouTube videos that it made me get back into 3D animation after a 10 year hiatus. I created these for him and posted on YouTube. I hope Clara and others enjoy them.
Little Train of Numbers: http://youtu.be/28ONVSw-B7s
Little Train of Shapes: http://youtu.be/g3cqbHkBe14
Cool! Thanks Matt!
xo,
s