An Act Of Infant Kindness

This mom’s discovery was too good not to pass along… Hi Janet, An amazing thing happened this past weekend that I wanted to share — maybe it’s only amazing to a first time mom who’s amazed by everything, so bear with me! We went to a music group with my 11 month old son and there are several “instruments” (wooden sticks and shakers, silk cloths) that we all have and bring with us to group. A little...

Baby Buddy Movie – Developing Social Intelligence

As the little guys in this brief video demonstrate, there is nothing more intriguing to babies than other babies. Infants learn a great deal from each other, especially when allowed to engage spontaneously — to play and socialize their way.  Yet free play between infants is routinely discouraged and interrupted because it doesn’t look “nice” or “polite” to an adult’s eye. If we could enter our...

Dealing With Parenting Differences Among Friends, Family And Kind Strangers

Those of us lucky enough to have discovered child care methods that resonate with us (like Attachment Parenting or Magda Gerber’s RIE Approach) often find ourselves in awkward situations with well-intentioned grandparents, friends or kind strangers who engage with our children differently than we’d like. Of course, it’s not their fault – they aren’t on ‘the program’ –and it always comes down to,...

Baby Games – How Infants Develop Social Skills (Video Demo!)

When infants play together, we adults often don’t recognize it as such (play, that is). Sometimes, baby interaction can be a little unnerving to watch without interfering, especially when our own child is involved. But these are precisely the moments when babies are first investigating and testing the boundaries of social interaction with their peers. They ‘read’ the responses they receive, and in doing so...

What To Do About A Toddler Toy Taker?

She’s bold, bright, a leader – no wallflower this girl. She’s eager to connect with her peers, and a simple hello isn’t enough. She wants their attention. She wants interaction. And, ideally, she wants a reaction.  Naturally, her social skills are a work in progress, and while she’s learning how to engage in play, she’s often misunderstood. Her antics sometimes worry and embarrass her parents and elicit...

Shhh…Babies Playing (Scenes From a RIE Parenting Class)

I have a reverence for babies at play. Actually, any child at play. Even when my 9-year old builds forts, or creates stories with his soldiers, knights and dragons (sadly, becoming a rare occurrence) my husband and I are careful not to interrupt. So, I had very mixed feelings about filming the 7-10 month old babies playing during “observation time” in my RIE parent/infant class. As I’d feared, holding up my...

Wow…A Worldwide Response!

It’s been three weeks since the community forum began, and we already have 6 countries in 4 continents and 4 of the United States represented!Thank you to the moms in Taiwan, Texas, Argentina, England, Rhode Island, Chile, Mexico, Georgia, and California who have checked in! Many of you have been contacting me privately, and I so appreciate you taking this opportunity to reach out to other parents in your...

Is Two Too Young For Preschool?

Dear Janet, I have a different type of question and very much value your input. Where I live there is some social pressure to start one’s child in a daycare/preschool at the age of 2. The school we selected is considered one of the best and has been around for 30 years, so I know we will be in good hands. They have a special program, routine set up that includes independent play, group play, outdoor play and a...