Children Can Learn More Than We Give Them Credit For

I have heard and read many times that children learn the fastest before they are 5 yrs old. From then on learning is at a slower rate. According to the popular womens magazines from "the old days", girls were learning how to mend clothing, cross-stitch an alphabet sampler, make a pie, could read beginner primers and had memorized songs, poems and Bible verses by the age of 4. Boys knew the same academics and were taking over some of their fathers chores by that age. It doesn't sound like they had much free time, but they seem to have gotten up much earlier then, and most chores had to be done before breakfast. It seems they would then have plenty of time to play, and get into mischief.
It's been proven in European countries that kindergarten children can learn more than 2 languages at once, and the ones that start learning different languages before they start kindergarten have an easier time learning additional languages. Teachers I have known have told me that those who are taught to memorize and do reasoning or logic problems before school starts will have an easier time passing tests and comprehending information the rest of their lives.

Those earliest years are the times when our children are constantly with us and we have the opportunity to give them more one-on-one time than they will probably ever have with us. Steve and I put some effort into teaching our kids from day one, but if I could re-do those early years I think I would claim more of that unstructured time and have them join me in my daily chores, and also set aside a little more time for academics and developing talent. This could result on less money spent on toys, less time spent on TV and a bond to family. Since teaching obedience is a "must" for keeping kids on task, an added benefit, in our case anyway, is a disciplined child with some self-control, which is not a common sight to see now-a-days.

Whatever small amount of time you devote to training your child's mind, the most important is to teach God's word and the love of the Savior, also exampled in our own life.