The headlines read:

     NO EINSTEIN IN YOUR CRIB?   
          GET A REFUND.
          (NYTimes.com)

    IF BABY EINSTEIN DIDN'T MAKE
    YOUR KID A GENIUS, 
          GET A REFUND.          

   'BABY EINSTEIN' REFUND:  A TRUE
   NO-BRAINER.

   NEED SOME CASH FOR THE HOLIDAYS?
   SEARCH YOUR HOUSE FOR THOSE BABY
   EINSTEIN VIDEOS YOUR BABY IS NO
   LONGER WATCHING.  SEND THEM BACK.
   PURCHASE BABY BOOKS INSTEAD!

Yes, Walt Disney Co. offers refunds to millions of parents who bought its popular
"Baby Einstein DVDs.

Did you park your "oyfele" (infant) in front of an Einstein video and really think that he/she would be smarter than your neighbor's "kind" (child)?  Now we find out that the "Baby ("beybi" in Yiddish) Einstein" and "Brainy Baby" series may be doing more harm than good.

A research team found that with every hour per day spent watching baby DVDs and videos, your "oyfele" learned six to eight fewer new vocabulary words than babies who "keyn mol" (never) watched the videos. Evidence suggests that passive viewing not only doesn't help children learn, but could also could set them back in vocabulary development.

Dr. Vic Strasburger, professor of pediatrics, says, "Babies require face-to-face ("ponim tsu ponim" in Yiddish) interaction to learn."

Evidence from the American Academy of Pediatricts issued a recommendation in 1999 that no child under two years of age watch any "televisye." The authors of the study might suggest reading, instead: children who got daily reading or story- telling time with their parents showed a slight increase in language skills.  (Note: a story teller, in Yiddish, is a "shpilmener.")

That leads me to the "vunderlekh" Introduction to the late Leo Buscaglia's book, "Papa, My Father - A  Son's Tender And Loving Celebration of His Father." Here you'll meet Martha, a truly  "brilyant"/"klug" child.

   It happened when I was supervising an educational program for disabled children many years ago.  I was observing in a classroom for mildly retarded fourth graders.  I sat beside six children and their teacher in their reading group.  They were reading a story about a little duck that had no father.  As with all good children's books, this one was filled with repetitive phrases.  The refrain was always, "But the little duck had no father."

   The teacher, having learned the best technique from her prestigious school of education, read carefully, distinctly, and with feeling.  When she completed the story, she followed up immediately with a question-and-answer period to check comprehension, as all good educators do.

"Martha," she asked a lovely little girl in the group, "tell us.  did the little duck have a father?"

  The child answered without a moment's hesitation, "Yes."

  The teacher paused for a moment, slightly taken aback by the little girl's response. Finally, she smiled and said, "Martha, let me read to you again from the story, and listen very carefully this time."

   She then repeated several parts of the story, each time accentuating the familiar refrain, "the little duck had no father."

  This time, certain of success, she again asked Martha, "Did the little duck have a father?"

   The entire reading group now had fallen into a tense silence while Martha reconsidered the question.  After several moments she responded very matter-of- factly, "Yes."

  The teacher's frustration was beginning to show at this point, but she was determined that the child would finally get the right answer.  With a slight quaver of annoyance revealing itself in her voice. she took the child on her lap, bringing her face close to her own.

   "Now listen carefully, Martha.  I'm going to read from the story once more."  She again read from the book, "The little duck had no-o-o-o father."  The entire group, and poor Martha, who was now a captive in her teacher's arms, jumped at the sound of the exaggerated "no!"

   "Now," the teacher asked again sweetly, regaining her control, "did the little duck have a father?"

   By this time Martha's large brown eyes had filled with tears of fear and frustration. The entire group waited in anxious silence while she once more thought through the situation carefully.  Finally she answered again, "Yes, the little duck had a father."

   At this point the teacher totally lost control. "Martha, you disappoint me.  You're simply not paying attention!  It says again and again in the story that the little duck had no father."

   Now the tears in Martha's eyes overflowed and ran in streams down her cheeks.  "But, teacher,' she said, "everybody gots a father."
-------------------------------------------
Marjorie Wolfe agrees with Dr. Dimitri Christakis: 
"Every interaction with your child is meaningful.  Time is precious in those early years, and the newborn is watching you and learning from everything you do."

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___________________________________________
Marjorie Gottlieb Wolfe is the author of
two books:

"Yiddish for Dog & Cat Lovers" and
"Are Yentas, Kibitzers, & Tummlers Weapons of Mass Instruction?  Yiddish
Trivia."  To order a copy, go to her
website: MarjorieGottliebWolfe.com

NU, what are you waiting for?  Order the book!