I will be enrolling my son in preschool (nursery) tomorrow. He’s only turning three this July, but I think he’s quite ready for school because of the following reasons:

He can follow simple instructions from switching the electric fan on and off, getting his glass of water from the refrigerator, getting his dad’s/mom’s slippers, packing away his toys, etc.

He can already recite the alphabet and identify all 26 letters, count 1 to 30, and identify shapes and colors.

He knows a number of nursery rhymes already and loves to sing and dance.

He knows how to use a pencil and write some recognizable letters on paper and draw recognizable shapes and objects.

He enjoys working with his hands, whether it’s coloring, finger-painting, or gluing as evidenced by his summer class artworks.

He is showing interest in books. Sometimes, he assumes the role of a storyteller and tells a story based on the pictures.

He knows how to use the computer, playing online games, watching videos, and typing letters on the keyboard.

He knows how to spell his two-part first name, Justin Edward, and can even type it on the cell phone.

He loves being around people and is usually very friendly.

He is very curious about his surroundings, noticing things, big and small, and experimenting with them if he ever gets the chance. The tiniest insect cannot escape my son’s prying eyes.

Eleven days ago, my son Justin could only identify the following letters o, s, and x, although he knows how to sing the Alphabet Song by heart. That was before he started watching the Brainy Baby DVD that teaches the alphabet. He watched it several times since October 23, and today, he can identify letters a, d, l, o, s, v, and x. He can also recite numbers 1 to 20, but he keeps forgetting numbers 15 and 16. And he now recognizes colors red, yellow, orange, and black.

Justin could sing the alphabet song when he turned two years old. (He is now 2 years, 3 months, and 16 days old.) But he can only identify three letters so far: o, s, and x. A month ago, his dad bought him Phonics Flash Cards to help him learn to identify the letters. But it wasn’t any good. Justin is more interested in the objects that were seen with the letters. He didn’t pay much attention to the letters. He actually ignored them. He already had a Brainy Baby book on the alphabet when he was just one year old, and he could identify most, if not all, of the objects in that book, but not the letters.

Last night, while looking for new DVDs to watch, I stumbled upon some of the gifts Justin received on his previous birthdays. There was a Brainy Baby DVD that teaches the alphabet, complete with the sound of the letters and things that start with a particular letter. I think this is a better way to teach him to learn to identify his ABC’s because the moment I played it, he was hooked. In fact, he was just lying on the bed intently watching what was being taught and not minding the rest of us who were in the same room with him. His daddy was able to play uninterrupted chess on the computer. You see, Justin loves playing with the computer keyboard, pretending to type something, so we can’t really use the pc with him around. Last night, though, was a different story.

I intend to make Justin watch that DVD over and over again until he gets to identify all the letters of the alphabet or until he gets tired of it, whichever comes first.

We’re training our son Justin to become bilingual. We teach him both the English and Filipino versions of words. He knows that “hungry” and “gutom” are one and the same thing, for example, and he uses them interchangeably. This way, he understands quite well what we or others tell him or show him, regardless of the language it’s spoken. Below is a list of some English words and their Filipino translation that Justin knows by this time:

water; tubig
umbrella; payong
ball; bola
chair; upuan
car; kotse
light; ilaw
spoon; kutsara
fork; tinidor
mirror; salamin
pillow; unan
get; kunin
ride; sakay
write; sulat
sing; kanta
dance; sayaw
change; palitan
hide; tago
throw; itapon
spank; palo
wrong; mali
open; bukas
closed; sarado

Justin has yet to learn the Filipino translation of the following English words, though: paper, pencil, slippers, table, read, borrow, skip, hop, jump, run, walk, bow, clap, slide, stop, park, wash, dirty. But he knows what these words mean, and he uses them every so often.

My son is 2 years, 2 months, and 18 days old today.

Justin’s latest preoccupation is watching Dora the Explorer every morning on a local TV channel. This prompted his Daddy to buy him his first Dora the Explorer DVD last week. Last Friday night, I bought him his second Dora the Explorer DVD that we both watched until he fell asleep. Watching Dora the Explorer, it’s easy to see why kids adore this show. Dora the Explorer has got what it takes to make kids glued to the TV sets: interesting characters, exciting adventures, great music, and valuable lessons.

First, Dora the Explorer features an interesting set of characters complete with a protagonist, a sidekick, and a villain. The lead character is, of course, Dora, and her sidekick is Boots, the monkey. Then, there’s Swiper, the mean fox who swipes things from Dora every time he gets the chance. Other major characters include The Map who shows Dora and Boots how to get to their destination and Backpack who keeps Dora’s things, which often come in handy with each adventure.

Aside from its colorful characters, Dora the Explorer is filled with fun and stirring adventures. Dora, together with Boots, is seen either sailing in an ocean on a pirate adventure or going to the cloud castle or heading to some remote island to retrieve something or to help someone in need.

There are also specific parts of the show that are set in music, and this makes Dora the Explorer doubly interesting to watch. Of course, there’s the Dora the Explorer soundtrack. There are also songs for when Dora and Boots begin their adventure and when they complete their mission for the day. Likewise, when Dora calls on The Map and Backpack, they both respond with their standard songs: “I’m the Map…”and “Backpack, Backpack…” The melodies used in the show are all danceable tunes, too.

Finally, and most importantly, Dora the Explorer teaches kids some valuable lessons. Counting, identifying colors, singing nursery rhymes, and illustrating action words (e.g., jump, reach, crouch down) are some of the things a kid learns from the show. Dora likewise imparts the values of leadership, friendship, and teamwork to name a few. One also gets to learn basic Spanish words.

So, the next time you sit in front of the TV with your kids, try watching Dora the Explorer. The show would be a treat for sure with its colorful characters, rousing adventures, wonderful music, and great lessons. Who knows? You might even like it, for your kids, I mean.

I was planning to write this piece the very same day I heard my son Justin sing this nursery rhyme, but I wasn’t able to because I was working in our bedroom, which was right next to the living room where my son was singing this song over and over again much to his yaya’s delight. He, too, was proud of what he’s now able to do.

At two years old, this is actually the second song he can sing completely. The first one is ABC. And he can recite numbers 1 to 10. Blame it on the Barney and Baby Genius CDs he watches day in and day out. Because he watches them too often, he knows what each CD contains and he even knows what song is going to be played next. When he’s playing, he sings bits and pieces of the songs he hears on these CDs.

Even before he turned two, he already knew how to say his complete name. Before, when you asked him what is his name is, he would say: “Is Justin Edward Figuerres.” Now, he’s leaving out “Justin” from his name, finding it too long to say, perhaps. But Mommy’s all too keen on reminding him.

He now knows how to say “please” and “thank you.” He forgets to say these magic words sometimes, but all it needs is a little coaxing to make him say them, especially when he’s asking for milk and food.

He now enjoys riding in an elevator. He used to cry when he’s inside an elevator, but he’s now getting the hang of it. He actually enjoys going up and down the building in an elevator, even imitating the voice prompt that says: “Sorry to keep you waiting.” But of course, he’s only able to say the last word.”

He knows the difference between Yakult and Chamyto and can distinguish water from milk from juice to chocolate drink. He even knows Coke Zero just by simply looking at the bottle. This may seem such trivial facts, but I’m amazed at how much his little mind works.

He can distinguish a circle from a square from an oblong, which he calls “ombong,” by the way. He’s still learning about the triangle and the rectangle, though.

He can identify certain personalities he sees on TV, like Sarah Geronimo, President Arroyo, Manny Pacquiao, even Oprah. He calls other celebrities he sees by their names in soap operas they starred in. He refers to Marian Rivera as Marimar and to Robin Padilla as Joaquin Bordado.

He can perform certain tasks if you ask him to, like getting his slippers/diaper/toys, etc., closing the door, brushing his teeth, combing or messing up his hair, and choosing what clothes to wear (he knows what he wears in the house and what he wears outside the house, like when we’re going to the mall).

He also eats by himself using his own mini-spoon and fork and drinks on his own. He even knows how to use the straw when drinking. He announces when he is hungry or thirsty or when his diaper needs to be changed. He is yet to be potty-trained, however.

He occasionally speaks in full sentences, well, not completely full sentences, but words that make sense, like last night when his Daddy was turning off the PC, he said, “Patay Daddy computer” or the other time when he finished drinking Tropicana orange juice, he said to his yaya, “Bili Mommy juice.” A few days ago, when we passed by the convenience store at the lobby of the building, he said to the cashier, “Kuya, bili lollilop.”

And the list goes on. I guess it’s true. Children really absorb things around them. This reminds me I need to be careful of what I say and do, especially when around my kid, as he may imitate what I am doing, believing that Mommy is always right, in his eyes, at least.

This is a rather late posting, but I'll post it anyway.

I can’t resist it. I really must write about this.

Last Monday, January 20, 2008 to be exact, while I was dressing Justin straight from his morning bath, I cooked up a little game. I called it the fill-in-the-blanks game. I just wanted to check how much of the things Justin already knows about he could remember when uttered out loud. This was how it went. I would say something that ended with a word Justin is already familiar with, and I would let him say the final syllable of that word. Here is a list of those words:

1. Manang bought tinapay (bread).
2. Mommy will drink coffee.
3. Ate Tin-Tin wants to have milo.
4. Do you want a glass of water?
5. Justin wants his dede (milk in a feeding bottle).
6. I think I’ll have a banana.

Not bad for a 1 ½-year-old, huh?