The Emotionally Intelligent Child: Effective Strategies for Parenting Self-Aware, Cooperative, and Well-Balanced Kids

by Rachael Katz, Helen Shwe Hadani

If you're like many parents, you may wonder what's going on inside your child's mind when they throw a temper tantrum, refuse to cooperate, or become overly excited. Written by two experts in child development and education, The Emotionally Intelligent Child offers a groundbreaking approach for understanding your child's behavior in the context of their development, as well as tips for parenting with compassion, and strategies for helping your child build emotional intelligence--a key element of success in today's world. In the book, you'll learn all about the stages of development your child goes through as they gain social awareness and emotional balance--and how you can nurture this development using the authors' innovative MIND framework. By shifting your thinking from an adult viewpoint to a child's, you'll discover how you can scaffold and support your child's social and emotional learning; and ensure the development of prosocial behavior, impulse control, and perspective taking. This shift in viewpoint will also help you gain more patience as a parent, respond with less reactivity, and--most importantly--cultivate more joy together as a family.

Genres: Parenting, Nonfiction

211 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 1, 2022

Reviews

[Ashley Bouchard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just as this books aims to help children to be more compassionate, respectful, self-aware, happier and well-balanced, I am walking away from this book with a stronger confidence, awareness and ability on how to better embody these characteristics as an active member of society and most importantly as a parent to three wonderful children. Talk about “practice what you preach!” This entire book was a huge example of how to be meaningful, direct, concise and thoughtful in the information you share - that’s exactly what these authors did. I found the language easily accessible and straight to the point. There was no fluff or bias opinions or views. It felt research-based and scientific rather than arbitrary, repetitive, disconnected and ambiguous. Each tenet was followed with a clear strategy making this the most helpful and accessible parenting book I’ve ever read. And lastly, it was free of judgement and shame; just the kind of book parents need today.

As other reviews mentioned, this book is a necessary buy. This started as a library book for me, but it quickly became a purchase for my personal library (which is very small and exclusive) because I filled the margins and marked up this whole book to reference back to many times in the future.

[Katherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-researched and anecdotally-rich text that is a valuable read not only to parents of young children, but those who work with that age group (toddler-early elementary grades). Lists, graphics, and flow charts help the reader learn about how children learn to perceive the world and how to help them be better socially acclimated through Theory of Mind. A focus on language early on in the text introduces ways to introduce vocabulary to build emotional intelligence early on in a child's development. The value of play, inquiry, and puppet play is also discussed and examples given of how it can be implemented to help young children acquire skills that can build empathy and foster kindness. A great reference that I plan to keep handy in my school setting and a valuable read for any teacher of younger grades.

[Brianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Emotionally Intelligent Child was a great read to help further my understanding of my children’s development. I try to read parenting and developmental books as often as possible and I am especially interested in emotional intelligence, so I am grateful for the opportunity to have read this in advance!

I thought that this book was laid out well, it was easily understandable and had various ways of presenting the information, such as illustrations, examples, and longer written explanations. You could read it front to back, but it was also easy to navigate if you were looking for something specific.

I usually tend to listen to parenting information on audio because it can be dry but I didn’t find that to be the case here. I will be buying a copy for my shelves so I can refer to it as my children grow.

This book is out in June 2022, and I will definitely be grabbing a copy for my shelves so I can refer back to it as my children grow.

Thank you NetGalley and New Harbinger Publications, Inc., for the free, electronic ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like the structure of the book & its intimate and informal tone. Throughout, I heard the voices of authors Katz & Hadani talking to me and giving me advice like a friend. I love how there are repeated references back to earlier chapters to keep the neurons active and make connections explicitly.

This book shares the nuggets of wisdom from the many years of living and teaching by two educators in an accessible way. There were research and facts, but lots of personal and classroom experience weaved in beautifully, as well as practical tips and takeaways. I read it to help with my job as an early childhood educator, but I naturally kept thinking how I could level and apply these principles & ideas to work with my two teenage sons. And maybe even with myself.

[One Cool Cat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish this book was published when I first had kids, 8+ years ago now.

Having read parenting books of many stripes over the last decade, there's a lot of the same ideas across the genre with differences in the details. Obviously there are quite different parenting philosophies, but most experts are writing the same basic principles.

This book repeats a lot of the ideas I've read before (especially in the genre that includes Whole Brain Child). I like the presentation and explanations a lot though! I think it's possibly more accessible than average for current parenting books.

I checked my copy out as an ebook from the library, but it feels like a good book to have laying around to consult repeatedly. I thought about getting a physical copy to keep.

[Katherine Portnoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have so been looking forward to reading this book! I have had the pleasure of knowing Helen for several years now and know the vast wealth of expertise, insight, and empathy that she brings to anything she does, but especially two of her primary areas of expertise: the science of learning and children's social and emotional development. Helen is a fantastic writer -- very accessible and someone who backs up her research with interesting and relatable anecdotes -- and knows her topic backward and forward. This book is a must read for anyone looking to understand how to develop their children's emotional intelligence and become a more understanding caregiver in the process.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worthwhile read for parents

The authors do a pretty good job of avoiding the "follow my rules and your child will be perfect" fallacy. They provide interesting insights about how a child's brain develops and some good guidelines. They also acknowledge how difficult it is to respond to your child and that sometimes what worked today won't work tomorrow. It has good information, though some of the examples feel a little contrived. Overall a great book on understanding your children.

[Aja · Rating 4 out of 5]

I appreciate books that respect little humans, and focus on understanding their feelings while respecting their current stage of development. Another plus of this book is the printable resource that coincides with their chapters. This has been super helpful with recall and also taking additional notes for things that pertain to me.

I will say that if I’m comparing this to the Whole Brained Child, I prefer that book. But I definitely have some takeaways from this book that I’ve already implemented.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked that this book was laid out in a thoughtful, easy to read way. Very informative and gave specific steps to help foster your child's emotional intelligence. As a new parent, I am looking for as much information as I can get to help be the best parent I can be.

Thank you #netgalley for the ARC!

[Cindy Leong-Wu · Rating 5 out of 5]

An insightful book to help parents navigate their little ones with not only helpful 'how' but also the 'why' of child development. In an ever-shifting world, this book is also a wonderful reminder to parents of taking time to reframe their own viewpoints, helping both adults and children alike. I highly recommend this book for anyone who spends time with young children!

[Kimberly Yavorski · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book presents new ways of thinking about challenging parenting moments – ones that focus on the child’s needs rather than the parent’s discomfort and suggests ways to identify the best times to address behavioral issues. It also offers tips and techniques to help children learn about internal and relationship conflicts and how to manage them

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great guide for parents of children from infants to school aged. It's informative and gives specific steps to foster emotional intelligence in your children (and yourself!).

I received an ARC from NetGalley. The book will be released on June 1, 2022.

[Kathleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading the oh-so relatable parenting anecdotes and suggestions for how to handle situations differently so that parent and child can become more mindful and patient with themselves and one another.

[Kristin Mack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Best for parents of younger children.

[Coco Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very insightful book, it breaks down a complex topic into practical actions for every parents of younger children.

[Erica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice book for the early parenting years.

[Sam With Veggies · Rating 5 out of 5]

one of the most simple, straight forward and practical parenting books I've ever read. Loved every chapter of it.

[Ahmed · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very dry

[Ruxandra Visoiu · Rating 5 out of 5]

research based but also practical, recommend

[Katie Hornberger · Rating 4 out of 5]

very clear actionable steps

[Joelle Permutt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so helpful! Gives great perspective on how to raise healthy people. Everyone raising kids needs to read this book.