by Susie Windle | Apr 6, 2011 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, Your Child's Brain
The stress-response systems in a child’s brain are largely influenced by the type of parenting a child receives. If a parent’s form of discipline relies on criticism and commands, the rage or fear systems in a child’s brain can become oversensitive and overreactive....
by Susie Windle | Jan 12, 2011 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, Your Child's Brain
Early experiences influence your child’s later life. What your child learns about the world today influences how he or she will interpret new events as well as shape what is learned next. What is learned next then influences the theories developed about the world as...
by Susie Windle | Jan 5, 2011 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, Your Child's Brain
Making connections with our children (and others) involves verbal and nonverbal communication. When scientists look at the way the brain functions as we connect with one another, they see that the processing that occurs in the brain’s left hemisphere is connected to...
by Susie Windle | Dec 22, 2010 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, The Power of Play, Your Child's Brain
Almost any reading is beneficial for your child, though certain kinds of books will be attuned to your child’s level of cognitive development and will therefore grab his or her attention for longer periods of time. The early stages of reading development include:...
by Susie Windle | Dec 15, 2010 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, Your Child's Brain
Literacy dramatically changes the brain. When we learn the alphabet, we are learning how to carve speech into foundational components. We are also developing phonemic awareness, which creates a distinction in meaning and facilitates the storage and meaning of speech...
by Susie Windle | Aug 11, 2010 | Discipline and Trying Times, Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, The Power of Play, Your Child's Brain
Your child’s transition to pretend play (“Let’s pretend . . .”) and spoken language is a significant developmental milestone. As your toddler relaxes his reliance on the physical, tangible world and begins to imagine things in his mind, he can connect and replay...
by Susie Windle | May 12, 2010 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, Your Child's Brain
Beliefs are our ideas about how the world works, and beliefs are at the center of how we get to know ourselves and others. What we believe is cultivated by repeated experiences, which become the basis of generalizations in our minds—generalizations about how the world...
by Susie Windle | May 5, 2010 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, Parents: Practice Self Care, Your Child's Brain
Breakfast is an important, foundational meal that fuels your brain and body for the day ahead. When you make time for breakfast, you will be better able to think clearly, remember important information, feel energized, and regulate your emotions. Several cognitive...
by Susie Windle | Apr 14, 2010 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, Your Child's Brain
Though boys and girls are different, most psychological gender differences are malleable. Knowing how sex differences emerge is important if you want to reduce stereotyping and cross-train the minds of children to allow them to develop all of their abilities. One...
by Susie Windle | Mar 17, 2010 | Parenting Playbook, Parenting Skills, Your Child's Brain
A lot happens during the first half of your baby’s second year of life. You may have already received your baby’s first kisses and hugs or noticed your (now) toddler’s attempts to speak in full phrases. Another developmental accomplishment is also in the making: your...
