The Wonder Years

by Tanya Remer Altmann (Editor), American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)

From America's most trusted pediatric authority comes an indispensable, easy-to-use guide to helping your baby and young child flourish in the first five years of life--physically, mentally, and emotionally. The first five years of a child's life are filled with major developmental and behavioral milestones. During this period your infant becomes an individual who has mastered a range of skills--from walking to making conversation-that prepares him or her to enter the world beyond home and family. For parents, this wondrous time provides an opportunity to help children fulfill their potential. The Wonder Years shows you how to make the most of it. Written in the same warm and accessible language that has endeared the Academy's bestselling Caring for Your Baby and Young Birth to Age 5 to millions of parents for over fifteen years, this doctor-approved resource features a variety of fun-filled activities, tips, and hints, and offers the most dependable, authoritative, up-to-date information on child development, - Ideal patterns of growth at every stage--and normal variances - Parent-child activities that help you monitor and promote your child's development- Easy ways to create an enriching home environment - A behind-the-scenes look at what's going on in your child's developing brain- Information on aiding children with special needs-from ADHD, autism, and learning disabilities to those who are gifted- Advice on consulting specialists, including nutritionists, occupational therapists, and counselors- Tips on safety and injury prevention - How factors like birth order and gender impact development With five hundred full-color photographs and illustrations, developmental time lines, charts, and graphs, this family-friendly book is the definitive guide no parent or caregiver can afford to be without. From the Hardcover edition.

Genres: Parenting, Nonfiction

224 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 26, 2006

Reviews

[GW · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5*

[Mary Lepa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice to have on hand to understand what to expect with childhood development.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are a lot of useful suggestions for games and activities to both stretch and occupy young minds here. But I repeatedly found myself questioning the timelines. I know that my son is currently rather ahead of the curve on his gross physical milestones. (The pediatrician is repeatedly surprised.) So it's not that surprising that he's well ahead of a lot of their timelines. But he also regularly socializes with other kids--at daycare, at Gymboree, at the park. So I think I've gotten exposed to a fair number of kids around his age. And it seems to me that a lot of these milestones are so conservative as to be not entirely credible. My kid's 16 months old. With some effort, he can climb up onto a grown-up chair by himself, turn around, and sit at the table. According to this book, he should start being able to do this at...2 1/2. That's over a year from now. And most of his friends aren't that far behind him. So I'm a little skeptical of their milestones, to be honest.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book. I agree with parts of the developmental milestones. I wish I would have read this prior to having my child, had some good suggestions for developmental games and activities. Also ways to calm baby during "fussy" stages. Some of the milestones appear to be a bit advanced (like discussing walking around 32 weeks) but the developmental fussiness was believable and a good discussion.

[Brette · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this a couple months ago. The information is really basic, but I thought it was very helpful for a first-time mom. It does a good job outlining milestones and when they typically happen. I also really liked the ideas for different games and activities that are appropriate for each age group. A good, basic resource.

[Andrea · Rating 2 out of 5]

If this is a book about child development, how can they not address sleep? I would understand if they briefly said the research is inconclusive but to leave it out entirely makes the book incomplete.

[Elisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really great child development stuff, some pretty basic. Good advice on tantrums. Liked this quote: "time spent playing is always well spent" or something like that. Cuz now every time my child plays I feel good about my parenting, haha.

[Amy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nice layout...information is nothing terribly new...especially for second time round parent. Addresses children ages 0-5 years.

[Shauna Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr. Altmann's book gives valuable parenting advice. Highly recommend.