The Toddler Brain: Nurture the Skills Today that Will Shape Your Child's Tomorrow

by Laura A. Jana

What if, despite the best of intentions, we are raising our children to succeed in a world that no longer exists? The Toddler Brain helps parents recognize the connection that exists between their own parenting behaviors and their child's ability to acquire valuable twenty-first-century skills. Dr. Laura A. Jana draws on studies and stories from pediatrics, neuroscience, social science, and childcare, as well as the world of business and innovation to show parents how to equip their children with seven key skills. Dr. Jana explores the importance of play and curiosity, imagination and empathy, and strategically strengthening children's neural connections in their first five years.

Genres: Parenting, Nonfiction, Education, Business

288 pages, Hardcover

First published February 14, 2017

Reviews

[Allie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I struggled with this book. I thought I'd skim it, see what the author had to say, and move on. Instead, I got stuck in chapter one. Repeat after me: children are not start-ups! They are not our entrepreneurial projects! *ahh*

The obsession of merging start-up language and culture with every other sector or part of life is so bizarre to me. I've seen it in non-profits, in higher education, and now in parenting? No thank you.

[Bea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dear deity, this book was so thick and dense and easy to put down. The author synthesized research and theories from different areas - primarily business, education, and philosophy- and applied them to raising children, particularly the toddler years. The book is aimed at parents but is not a quick or easy read. It is heavily researched, which I appreciated, and there are extensive notes and bibliographies. Still, the result is a book that is complex, often dry, often boring and also thought provoking. I am not in favor of education being treated as a commodity, and the school chain she used to work for is known in the early childhood education community for curriculum that is rigid and overly academic. So, I disagreed with a lot of what she preached, and yet she also had some excellent points. NOTE: the ECE chain I currently work for is a direct competitor with the chain the author used to be part of.

The book has given me a lot to think about and some parents will find it interesting. While I was initially resistant to the idea of using business practices and theories in guiding child growth and development, I was pleasantly surprised at the relevance and natural intersection of business, education, and child development. I still don't want education or child care treated solely or primarily as a business but I have to acknowledge business's contributions to child growth and development.

While I still disagree with much of the book's approach and philosophy, and the book is frequently slow and dry, it has value to parents and early childhood educators alike. There are insights, carefully backed up with research, that are a mix of obvious and eye-opening. It's worth a read, just stock up on the caffeinated beverage of your choice for those dry, boring passages.

[Graeme · Rating 2 out of 5]

Neoliberalism is a truly reprehensible worldview and it seeks to swallow everything: "the direct relevance between business and parenting, and between workforce development and early learning, is popping up everywhere" (22).

If you can ignore all the paeans to the child-to-business drone pipeline (and that's no small task), there is some good, practical advice in here.

(It's also ironic that these kinds of authors like to use the words of famous figures such as Keller or Einstein to adorn their epigraphs.)

[Bonnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book though I found the formulaic style and comparison to the corporate world off-putting. This is a book to skim. We may know much of the information already but Jana reinforces the phenomenal importance of brain plasticity and the first years of a child’s life.

I urge current and prospective parents, grandparents, and teachers to read this book if only to underscore what we know, what we must continue to do, and the importance of sharing this knowledge with as wide a circle of people as possible. We are raising citizens of our future world.

Strong statements regarding what we have learned from neuroscience research are helpful. Some facts are truly astonishing:

“What makes the first few years of brain development so dynamic is the fact that all hundred billion or so neurons (a number said to rival the number of planets in the Milky Way!) quickly begin connecting with each other at a mind-expanding rate of up to seven hundred new neural connections (or synapses) per second. As a result, 85 percent of brain growth is believed to occur within the first three years.” (pp. 40 – 41)

“What strengthens these neural connections? The answer is deceptively simple: it’s us. All of the early, everyday experiences we share with our children serve as the key ingredients necessary to effectively build and strengthen their neural networks, their brains, and ultimately the toolkit of skills they’ll need to succeed.” (p. 41)

How can we prepare our children for the future when we as adults cannot even envision the jobs that will exist in their future? Jana comes up with a list of seven key (QI) skills which she juxtaposes to IQ.

It is impossible to ignore the fact that at this moment funds for Early Childhood programs in the United States are being cut right and left: this is a crime.

[Bonnie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is maybe a 4.5, but I was surprised at the low average rating and wanted to bring it up. I found this book to be easy to read and accessible while also based in statistics and other sources. I like the popular science feel of the book. And the connection between the business world and parenting is really interesting. I like the specific skills Jana enumerates as guidelines for good parenting. I wish there were more specific, actionable examples of how to grow those skills. There are some, I would just like more. But I also understand why she maybe didn't include more; the message of this book is that to succeed as adults, today's kids need to be creative and willing to take risks. Modern success is not really based on memorization and following a specific set of rules. So we as parents also need to do that too! Still, I did take note of several things I could do better as a parent to foster these modern skills--and I appreciated finding scientific backing for some of the parenting decisions I'd already made on a more instinctual level. I definitely recommend this book to other parents of young children. You can even start when your child is just a baby!

[Steph · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did not finish, just read the first third then flipped to the practical bits of each chapter.

I think the title of this book is wrong - it sets expectations high then turns out to be quite narrow.

There’s lots of good research in this book, and the premise (that the same skills successful adults need for their 21st-century careers are the same skills we should be teaching our toddlers now) is sound, but I don’t need convincing: I am already trying to raise a cooperative, resilient child. Do we need this very specific frame to do that? Perhaps for some families, but not for mine.

I also found the balance between the “why/what” and “how” too skewed towards the former, though perhaps my expectations were set too high by Dan Siegel, who is not just strong on neuroscience but also detailed and broad examples and illustrations that show where parents like me tend to go wrong. I’m going back to Dan instead!

[Elissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book. It fits in perfectly with my delving into parenting books as well as leadership book because it is all about shaping children for the world they are going to inhabit when they are adults. It sounds weird to say to get by the business world, but the skills caregivers should nurture will help them be successful adults generally.

Jana splits the skills up into seven QI skills: ME, WE, WHY, WILL, WIGGLE, WOBBLE, and WHAT IF. The chapters covering each skill are easily digestible and Jana offers examples of how these skills present themselves at different ages/developmental stages and ways you can encourage them.

[Chrissy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super informative and written in an exceptionally engaging way for a non fiction book. It’s written with parents as the primary audience which, based on the research, makes sense. It is useful information for anyone that works with or interacts with kids 0-5 years.

Had a lot of specific tip to maximize babies and toddlers development of QI skills which are the skills that aren’t intelligence but are linked to success in life like grit, adaptability, creativity, self management, working well with others and more.

Really interesting read. And quick too.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting book. It discusses how important it is to nurture in our children the skills that aren't academic, and how these skills will better prepare them for the world we currently live in and will give them an edge in their professions. I agree that these skills are important and I liked that the book gave different ideas for how to nurture them.

My main problem with the book was that it reads too much like a textbook. It didn't really bother me, but I didn't think it was right for the audience. Personally, I do a lot of reading and thinking about parenting (I have the luxury of time), so the information here wasn't really that new to me; I've already thought about how important these skills are, although the way Jana framed it was new, and I already use a lot of the strategies she suggests. The people who really need the information in this book are not going to find this book accessible. Also, I thought the title "The Toddler Brain" was sort of misleading; really it's the subtitle that describes the book.

[Christine Lussier · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received an digital copy of The Toddler Brain from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I found the book to be tedious & slow going. As an educator for parents with young children, I would say this is better suited for teaching students, than to be recommended to parents. Short quips are fine, but the statistics & comparisons will lose the reader. That said, it is interesting, I just do not feel the average parent will read & enjoy it.

[Gena - My Book Reviews for You · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book! I liked how the book compares important adult skills and abilities to a toddler's abilities. The author, Dr. Jana, discusses how we can foster these skills in our children and prepare them for success as an adult. She discusses the things that we already teach our children and gives some additional ideas to further their learning. The QI skills covered are me skills, we skills, why skills, will skills, wiggle skills, wobbles skills, and what if skills. Parents are a key part in a child's learning, especially since their very early years are the most important for learning. She also discusses how we can help other parents and children who are at a disadvantage for learning necessary skills.

[Катерина Полчанова · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciate that author has good reputation and has conducted plenty of researches.

I didn't read this book because despite in the description of the book the author is concerned with the 21st century challenges, innovations, changing world, business, new traits of character children need to develop, I couldn't find electronic version of the book on the internet.

It costs more than 40 dollars in Ukraine, which is 15 hours of my work. But I would gladly buy the electronic version of the book even for 20 dollars. But both sides are too business and revenue oriented - author's/publisher's and seems like Ukrainian side as well, because there is no e version available.

Alas. In other case it would bring more profit and less resources used.

[Erin Gribben · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a bad book to read as a parent. I can understand why some parents don’t like the connection of business with parenting/raising a kid, but I can also see why the author would put them together in her book. A lot of the stuff felt (to me) like common knowledge and reaffirmed my own parenting ideals when our kid makes it into the world. Got this at the library so I did skim through a lot of it just to see how reliable and what the content/bullet points at the end of each chapter was so I’ll probably order this book at a later date just to have in the house (though probably won’t touch it again lol)

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an incredible parenting book! It gave me a lot more insight to things that really matter for my son's future; for example, I will not just stop reading to him when he wiggles away now. I realize he can still hear me & is listening even, but needs to move!
I also learned that 85% of a child's brain develops from 0-5 (so by the time they start school!) If I wasn't already an advocate for reading to your child, I surely am now...that is SO important! Kids need to hear a certain amount of words hourly on a daily basis to build their vocabulary.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

Creative approach to coordinate parenting research with the business world. Much of the information is well documented in many other books (READ TO YOUR KIDS!!!) but the tie-in to business certainly makes a intriguing leap to how these skills you are arming your kids with will serve them in their future. Although it was a little wordier than necessary, I very much appreciate the action steps offered, as well the thorough appendices. I read one chapter a night, and that's the approach I recommend. It would definitely be a tough one to dig into for long stretches at a time!

[Kari Heggen (checkedoutbooks) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not counting this towards books read in 2024 since I skimmed the whole thing but wanted to still review it so I don't accidentally pick it up again

The title of this book was extremely misleading as it was not at all about the toddler brain except in broad context. A ton of fluff and dozens of pages I skimmed or skipped all together. This weirdly focused on comparing childrens abilities to corporate leadership & business skills. No thanks. The gist I got was read to your kid a lot, teach them personal and social skills, skip electronics and let them wiggle. Wow groundbreaking material

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great information! Each topic is broken down into manageable chunks, and if you're pressed for time, she's broken each chapter in such a way that it's easy to find the key takeaways. There's a lot of research about why each thing is important, but the "what to do" are clear and concise.

I hate self help books because of the writing style, but this one was great, and had a LOT of information I can use.

[Becca Loo · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite parenting books so far. Most parents know the bullet points of this book but it’s good to be reminded. I really liked her parallels to the business world because it kept me focused on the future of my children. The format was easy to read and if you don’t have the time to read the whole thing it’s easy to skim the conclusions at the end of each chapter. Plus there are pretty good book suggestions for kids and parents in the appendices. Highly recommend.

[Caitlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was filled with interesting information about child development, and each chapter included actionable steps to take to use the information. It was dry in parts, but I was motivated to learn the information, so I kept going. I especially love the booklist at the end that recommends titles to read to kids that will help develop each of the skills discussed.

[Rachelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

My new favorite book about raising toddlers. Good balance of the current research both around motivation and learning and ways to implement constructive strategies. I like the QI skills and found them easy to remember, relate to, and apply. WIGGLE and WOBBLE and WHY and WHAT IF were some of my favorites. Highly recommend this read for any new parent entering into the toddler stage!

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started this bc my 2yo was having meltdowns every day for almost two weeks, and I thought this might have some tips on how to deal with it. This is NOT that book.

That said, the premise of “parenting is like a start-up” is interesting, and she made some good points. The book reads quickly too, which is always much appreciated.

[Maeve · Rating 2 out of 5]

A 21st century business-like approach to parenting in the digital age, with an emphasis on skills that will be useful in the workplace.

Kind of a bore to get through. The text was meandering, and it felt like there was too many excerpts that took away from the core message.

[Lacy Lovelace · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! I think all educators and parents should read this book because it helps the reader understand what is needed in the foundational years (first 5 years). I think it was creative how the author was able to weave parenting with the business world.

[A · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't make it far in this book. Very wordy, not interesting introduction and first couple of chapters.

[Alexandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not much new in this book.

[Zachary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative and thought provoking

[Maggie · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a teacher and Montessori lover, this book felt redundant. That being said, Jana did suggest some picture book references that I will read to my daughter.

[Dalia Aouad · Rating 4 out of 5]

shaping tomorrow
50 years of inspiring youth
thimun

[♛primadonna♛ · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book seemed like it wanted to be the "parenting book of the 21st century" and I just think it was trying too hard.

[Margaret Fast · Rating 3 out of 5]

Have not actually finished but will attempt to do so.

Jun 13, 2018. Skimmed thru remainder of book today. Surfeit of acronyms. Some useful insights.