Dear Youngman:

Greetings.  I wanted to mention that I agree with you about
"intelligence".  After reading your site, I kept thinking about it and
what it meant.  I wanted to give you time so I didn't write but I want you
to know that I do agree.

In retrospect,  I've been walking around for years saying that all babies
can read and that Hannah is no genius.  That kind of talk said, "ANYBODY
CAN LEARN!"  This has been an unspoken assumption in our school all this
time--that any child could learn what Hannah is learning given the right
conditions.  I could have learned the way that Hannah is learning, if I
were in the right environment growing up.  Knowing the scriptures early
and how things are to be ordered prepares a person for anything that
arises.


The Suzuki Method of instruction (Hannah's former piano teacher took
children at any age--she had a 10-month old who could play the basic
exercises) is based on the Mother-tongue method and the belief that
"Talent is not inborn, but developed in the environment".

Dr. Suzuki believed that all children could play an instrument well.  His
journey started when a man asked him to teach his 4 year old son how to
play an instrument.  I selected Suzuki because it was the only one that
would take two year olds (Hannah was three by the time she started).  As
"Mother," I had to play too.

Hannah played the Suzuki repetoire for a year and then stopped the lessons
because the teacher refused to teach me note reading (I wanted to be able
to play hymns--playing instrumentals was inadequate for us).  She said
Hannah would "lose her ear" if she learned notes.  Fortunately, that did
not happen.  I stopped taking lessons, Hannah had perfect pitch, and
eventually we came home to study.   I believe that the early instruction
gave her the perfect pitch.  Alhough a Suzuki teacher told me that not all
of their students get it, it may very well be that all children could have
it, with minimal instruction, at an early age.  I am told that it is a
very rare gift--BUT MAYBE THAT IS BECAUSE NO ONE IS TRYING TO INCULCATE
IT.  If we can learn the 24 sounds of a, b, c, etc.  why can't we learn
the 12 sounds on the piano keyboard?

One more item--the abacus.  I don't know if you've ever seen Japanese
children using the soroban (Japanese abacus) but it is amazing.  Hannah's
mathematics included abacus work but it was in combination with paper
pencil algorithms.  I learned a lot from it.  But I see that the abacus
alone would be a better first step.  The history of the abacus is very
interesting.  Life without zero.  Good mathematics without pencil and
paper.  Abacus, stones, corn, counting tables, found all over the
world--including ancient Native American civilization(s) separated by a
vast seas from the Russians, Chinese, Indians, Arabs, Japanese, etc.  It
is highly interesting and compelling to see the knowledge that Adam's sons
took with them when they were scattered from Babel.

I will not hold you longer.  Good bye for now.

Your friend,
Mephibosheth
5-9-09