I think hothousing is an attitude. I had too many neighbors and moms at the local moms group ask me what program I used or how I got my DS to do this or that. I had one mom describe how she had her 9 month old in the high chair and would show him a flash card and if he said the right word she'd give him a little bite of lunch. No answer, no lunch. It was "Pavlovian training" she called it.
Okay, that's scary.
Really scary.
Call me sheltered: I never went to mom's groups. If this is what moms say they do, I'm beginning to understand the hothousing-thing here a bit more.
[segue]My DD4 is beginning to make the jump to chapter books. We just finished 20 pages of Nate the Great, during which time I kept saying "Okay, last page" and she would respond "No, I want to read one more!"
And I just don't get how she figures out some words. She just seems to be able to
do it without instruction from me, so now I'm getting a tiny idea of the amazement you folks with completely self-taught readers feel.
I'm thinking this is not hothousing.
[/segue]Flashcard-driven meals. Wow.
Val