Babies become interested in books at various ages and in different ways. Some babies like to hold the book and "read" themselves, others want to focus on the pictures while others enjoy hearing every word read to them. A literacy group located in Pittsbourgh gathers specialists together to determine the 10 best books for babies and toddlers among hundreds of books. For a list of these books, please visit: http://www.scrippsnews.com/node/13045
Posted by Child Works at 10:15 AM | Comments (66)
The debate about when it is okay for children to watch television, what is appropriate and how much is okay is a hot debate among parents and child specialists. NY Times has recently published an article explaining current research on toddlers and television:http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/05/health/psychology/05tots.html?ex=1158120000&en=0abfbce3c6bde299&ei=5070
Let us know your thoughts and experience regarding your child(ren) and television!
Posted by Child Works at 09:18 PM | Comments (1666)
Just today I heard from a client who completed a Child-Works sleep plan when her son was 4.5 months old. At 16 months he had a sinus infection. After many nights of being up with him because he did not feel well, this mom knew she needed to return to the plan to get him back on track. After one night her son is back to sleeping wonderfully. She called to express how much happier he is now that he is rested. Even though he protested having to sleep independently again without his mom coming to him every hour as when he was sick, he is so grateful for having quality sleep and feeling good. This client was remarking that it still amazes her to observe the striking difference between her well rested son versus her overtired son. The bags under his eyes are now gone, he no longer cries and whines all day, he enjoys being left with Grandma and plays independently. Enforcing healthy sleep habits is truly a gift to our children!
Posted by Child Works at 10:56 AM | Comments (2583)
A parent the other day shared a terrific story of how he overcame a "sleep obstacle" with his 2 year old son. This family had successfully completed our sleep package. Their son had transitioned to his big kid bed and was sleeping 12 hours a night. All of a sudden, their son began waking earlier and earlier and getting out of bed. Both parents new that he was doing this in order to start his day as early as possible to play with mom and dad. After trying different strategies, the father finally figured out what worked.
Posted by Child Works at 01:00 PM | Comments (5500)
A client who looked to us for help with her sons sleep recently came back to discuss potty training. Like many of us, she received lots of well intentioned advice and in the end felt discouraged and unhappy with how she handled it all. Her two year old son showed a clear interest in leaving diapers behind and using the potty. Normally this is an ideal time to shop for spiderman underwear and happily give away any unused pull ups! However, it's important to look at the big picture. In this case, her son was learning to sleep in a big kid bed and recently stopped using a bottle to sleep. Due to all the other new skills he was having to incorporate into his world, potty training was best left for a little while longer. By all means, if he asked to use the potty he should be encouraged, but nothing beyond that. It is good to let your child to be the leader at first. Many times when parents try too much at once or try to go too fast, potty training turns into a behavioral battle ground motivated by asserting control instead of learning a new skill.
Posted by Child Works at 01:48 PM | Comments (308)