Learning when you're not looking

I know that Children pick up the mannerisms and habits (and language!) of those around them but I hadn't quite realised quite how much they learn when you're not looking.

For a few months now I have been reading The Complete Adventures of Curious George to Toby at bedtime. We don't read from this every night and we took a big break in December for Christmas stories but the book is a few hundred pages long and we are almost at the end. Toby stands in his crib watching the pictures and listening to the story as I read. He then marches around the crib, he plays with his Panda a little and then he stands up to watch the pictures again.

The other day as we were leaving daycare one of the other parents arrived with his little boy to pick up another child. The little boy jumped out of the car to get his sibling, grabbed his Curious George soft toy and started to walk in. Toby stiffened with excitement, pointed at the boy and said "George! George! George!" I was shocked, impressed and unbelievably proud of my little boy.

He hadn't said George before, not even when we were reading the stories, so not only did he recognise who George was and know the appropriate word, but he recognised him out of context and in a different format. He didn't want George, he didn't try and clamber down me to get to the toy, he was just happy to see the curious little monkey.

Reading matters. Husby and I both read to Toby whenever we can and I always read from something other than a Board Book when he goes to bed at night. He enjoys it, I love it and now I know he is actively paying attention and learning from the words I bring to life for him.

Read to your child tonight. If you don't have a child, take a book over to a friends child and introduce a new world. They listen!