Putting the Affirmations for Your Baby Into Practice
BY ARLENE F. HARDER, MA, MFT
"A truly appreciative child will break, lose, spoil, or fondle to death any really successful gift within a matter of minutes."
— Russell Lynes
The first step in helping your child learn about doing things is recognizing that the developmental skills of this stage involve her need to move out into the world and explore as much as she possibly can. The second step is finding a way to support her efforts so that her natural inquisitiveness is encouraged. You have to do this while maintaining her safety, which can be a challenge, for you have many things to do besides watching a busy child assert her independence.
Toward that end, I have several suggestions. The first is a series of one-minute videos that the Talaris Research Institute that they call their "crib notes" on the latest scientific findings of early brain development. These videos give you a short introduction to other material they provide in written form. On their research spotlights page, you will find videos on: Getting in Tune with Baby (which continues what you've started from Stage 1), It's a Stressful Life!, Mommy, Is This OK?, Imitative Behavior, Hypothesis Testing, and Speaking Parentese.
While these are great videos for parents, I have strong reservations about videos for young children. You may want to check out Will Baby Einstein Videos Turn Your Child Into a Genius? if you are considering using "educational" videos for your baby.
The following articles have lots of information to help you teach your child the importance of exploring the world and doing things.
 The Magic of Everyday Moments® Campaign
This is a program developed in partnership by ZERO TO THREE and the Johnson & Johnson Pediatric Institute. It is designed to help you and other busy caregivers can understand how to use simple, everyday moments to promote your child's social, emotional, and intellectual development. The material they provide shows you how to use very simple, ordinary interactions to encourage his development.
Nurturing Your Child’s Development
This is an excellent resource to help you understand exactly how you can best support their child’s healthy development and growing brain. These handouts, developed to coincide with well-baby check-ups, are based on "Neurons to Neighborhoods: The Science of Early Childhood Development," a report by the National Academy of Sciences. They were created by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the ZERO TO THREE organization and are in the form of easy-to-use PDF files.
I Want My Mommy
There is a common age when most babies begin to experience a fear of people they don't know. What can you do to make life easier for your child?
It’s a Stressful Life!
Let’s face it, stress is a part of life. And modern life…. Birth to 1 year -- Also has a video
Are You Okay Daddy?
Big feelings from little ones. (empathy 1 to 3 years)
A Good Helper
Learn when children can follow directions and start to control their urges 1 to 3 years
I’m Embarrassed!
Why is my child embarrassed? Learn how big steps in self-awareness lead to new feelings like embarrassment. 1 to 2 years
Peek-a-Boo!
A simple game, loved by children, reflects how young brains develop.
Copycats
What do your children learn as they watch you? Since children learn through imitative behavior, notice all the things they learn by watching you.
Baby See, Baby Do
For decades, scientists didn’t think babies could remember much. Although parents and caregivers suspected that more was going on inside their young children’s heads, many “experts” thought babies experienced the world as simply a blur of sights, sounds, smells and textures. They were wrong.
Brain Quiz
Test yourself to see what facts and misinformation you have heard concerning infants and brain development research.
Look Who’s Talking
Is that babbling and cooing designed just to make us melt? Or is your baby learning language? |
