They are among the first pupils of a new `dance education' group which is supposed to boost reading skills in babies.
It uses movement and dance to improve the youngsters' spatial awareness and train them how to focus on shapes and recognise them - the first vital skills for reading - from as young as six weeks.
The lessons are being trialled at the Swinton-Moorside Children's Centre, where eight babies and toddlers, aged from four months to 14 months, were put through the exercises.
Spokeswoman Sherry Landa said: "It really does help the children to read because it helps them to focus and concentrate.
"The children follow objects with their eyes and they are making eye contact with the objects. This is really important for children learning to read and they really are never too young to start."
The technique was developed by child therapist Sue Sutherland and dance tutor Olwen Maurer, both from Bury.
Stimulating
They base their classes on child development studies into movement and brain activity. They say stimulating babies' eye movement and early motor skills will help them gain language skills much faster than normal. In one activity, babies are given a ribbon-topped stick designed to fit in their hands.
By waving the stick and following the moving ribbon, the babies will learn the actions needed to focus on letters on a printed page. Other activities include crawling and rolling exercises.
Sue, who taught children with autism and other learning problems before training as a drama and music therapist, developed the exercises with colleague Olwen, a former dancer and trained ballet instructor.
Sue said: "We are encouraging the children to roll and crawl. There is a lot of research to suggest that movement can help infants develop reading skills much sooner because the part of their brain that deals with movement is still developing.
"We also include a lot of activities which encourage them to focus their eyes and track moving objects.
"We believe that children shouldn't start to learn reading until they are ready but we are laying the foundations so that when they do go to school they are ready."
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Why do we want to "boost reading skills in babies"?
Why do infants need "to develop reading skills much sooner"?
yes i was thinking the same thing.......can anybody assist?
We do NOT want babies to read sooner. I can't emphasize this enough. Look at Megan in the hammock or Chidumebi on the ball or Amy with her mum and a scarf...no books in sight. No flash cards, no writing pens and worksheets, no stress, no hassle, just FUN!What Baby Moves does is it uses research findings which prove that there are links between some difficulties, such as dyslexia or dyspraxia and the lack of certain skills. It then works on these skills-communication, coordination, perseverence etc. Through sensitive and fun interactions it gives babies and children these skills so that they will succeed at school and EVENTUALLY, when the time is right, they will learn to read and write more easily. Yes, babies can enjoy books, but reading and writing are far more than decoding words and being able to write letters neatly. We would NEVER want to force children down paths they are not developmentally ready for. All we want to do is ensure academic success through fun, laughter and loving relationships. I hope this clears up any misconceptions.
Sherry Landa Education Lead Teacher at Swinton-Moorside Children's Centre