Being Educated About Educating

One of my favorite type of books to read, beyond Christian doctrine and apologetics, would be those that revolve around the brain of a child. Even from before birth the mind of a baby is like a sponge, absorbing everything it sees, hears, tastes, touches, smells, and experiences. While this topic has always captivated my attention, it is even more fascinating, and often convicting, to read these books now as a parent. To understand just how much a child is capable of learning, and how much they absolutely crave new knowledge and experiences and language, is such a motivator to me to surround my kids with positive and beneficial stimuli. These first six years are the most influential developmentally, and as a stay-at-home Mom, I'm the key player in what kind of influences they encounter! What a job!

There have been a handful of books that have been incredibly powerful in sculpting my outlook on specifically the developmental aspect of raising children. There are many others that were significant in my outlooks on disciplining and spirituality, but I want to focus today on those regarding mental and psychological development.

The book that sticks out most clearly in my mind as having made an impression early on in parenting (as in, when I had just found out I was pregnant with my first child) is Pre-Parenting: Nurturing Your Child from Conception, Thomas R. Verny, M.D. and Pamela Wientraub. This in-depth look at what a child is experiencing in-utero, and what effects those experiences can have on the child throughout their lifetime, is entirely spellbounding! Through the years the messages of this book have stayed at the forefront of my mind during pregnancies, and helped remind me to -- within my own realm of control -- provide my unborn child with as peaceful, relaxing, and loving an environment as I can. I handed this off to my sister when she got pregnant, who then handed it off to my other sister when she got pregnant, and I am planning on re-reading it again as soon as it makes the rotation back to my house!

Another book that made an impression on me was Talk With Your Child, by Harvey S. Wiener. Below is the description from the jacket of the book:

"Directed to parents of children up to six years old (but applicable to parents of older children as well), Talk with Your Child shows how, by actively engaging in conversation about everything they possibly can -- daily events, television, dreams -- parents will not only enjoy their children more, but will also stimulate language acquisition. The book presents an overview of what the experts know about how language is learned, and gives concrete suggestions for putting theory into practice, beginning with chats at cribside."

I am so thankful to have stumbled upon this book early in our parenting! Our children are humans, and in talking to them as such we are teaching them how to interact with and interpret the world around them. One of the most revolting sayings, in my opinion, is the old adage that "a child is to be seen, not to be heard." Oh, how that sends chills down my spine! This book advocates engaging children in life, rather than dragging them along for the ride, and I agree wholeheartedly!

A third book that I gleaned so much from as a parent -- and specifically as a parent who will be homeschooling -- was Eric Jensen's Enriching the Brain. I read this when my second child was a toddler, and a much different little toddler than his older sister had been! I remember a lightbulb going on while reading this book that helped me understand that there are different types of learners and different types of intelligence, and each of my children is a unique, intelligent mind who would need personalized experiences in their educations to truly meet their maximum potential. Much concern and anxiety were alleviated while reading this book, having come to the realization that not all of my children had to have the same strengths intellectually, but that all needed an enriching environment to blossom and grow in educationally!

Baby Read-Aloud Basics, by Caroline Blakemore and Barbara Weston Ramirez is a great book to read about reading! While this book didn't really open my eyes to ideas I was unaware of, it did do much to bolster my conviction that reading to my children was a vital part of my job as their Mom. This book offers many examples and study findings that show just what reading can do for a child, as well as some frightening consequences of not reading to your children. If anything, read this book just to be able to explain clearly to others why you are such a believer in reading so much!

Finally, and I know I have mentioned this book several times already in this blog, but I don't think there should be a parent out there who doesn't own a copy of Honey for a Child's Heart, by Gladys Hunt. The first half of the book is filled with treasures of encouragement and incentive to read to your kids, followed by the last half being filled with list upon list of recommended books for different age levels. Although not as heartwarming to me as Honey for a Child's Heart, the book How to Grow a Young Reader, by Lindskoog & Hunsiker, follows a very similar pattern and has been very helpful to me, as well.

These are just one handful of suggested resources for your parenting arsenal, but I think they just may be able to open your eyes to some new theories and philosphies on raising and educating children which could drastically improve the mood and manner of your home!

I'm always looking for more tools for my Mommy tool belt, so if you have any suggestions beyond these, please drop me a note and let me know what they are!

"Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all."

~Aristotle~