Customer Reviews

You Are Your Child's First Teacher: What Parents Can Do With and For Their Chlldren from Birth to Age Six

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book is one of the few books on parenting and early childhood education that is based on the child's true needs. This book truly allowed my inner parenting philosophy to blossom. Other readers should note that this isn't another book on what to do with your child to "make them smarter" or "advance their development", and such conceptual paradigms are actually inappropriate for promoting our children's internal developmental timetables and learning processes. It is also important to note that the foundation of this book is based on Rudolph Steiner's approach to parenting and early childhood education, known as the Waldorf method. My twins are soon approaching toddlerhood and we are researching different educational styles before they reach their preschool years. Even though I am not sure if my husband and I will choose a Waldorf education for our children, I believe the arguments in this book made sense in terms of creative and explorative play being the critical foundations of learning for small children, and that drilling them with academic lessons too soon may be harmful to their ability to truly learn once they reach their school age years in terms of developing critical thinking and problem solving skills as well as giving small children the impression that learning is a chore rather than something that is fun and exciting. As a new parent I was so tempted to fall into the media-based hype of how to make my babies "smarter" or "advance their development" and buy various advertised products that make those claims. I now undestand how miseducated I was on early childhood development and my children's true needs during their first year in spite of the many books and magazine articles I've read. I think that so many parents feel the pressure to feed into that hype because we are made to feel that our competence as parents is based on how much our children fit into our socially conditioned definition of success which involves placing a high value on attributes that will allow one to have power and financial wealth, thus the temptation to mold our children into whiz kids and star athletes when some kids just aren't meant to be whiz kids and star athletes. This book gave me a reference point as a new parent on the kind of learning foundation and home environment I want to provide for my children, and assured me of the benefits of seeing my children as whole people -mentally, physically, spiritually, and emotionally.

The title of this book is a little misleading if you are expecting (as I was) to learn about ways to develop your child's intellect and/or communication skills. Rather, the author takes a broader approach, that you are your child's teacher in all matters of life. Moreover, you best serve your child not by trying to "instruct" them but by giving them the space to develop in their own time and manner, without undue influence from other sources.

As a full-time mother, I found a lot that was thought provoking in this book. It is quite repetitive and tends to feel like a promotion for Rudolph Steiner schooling. At times I found this a bit much. However it is nice to find a book that says that you are doing a good job just by being there for your child. I was also intrigued by the idea that I should be doing less, not more for my son. That children need space to do their own thing and to observe what you do as an adult more than they need you crawling round on the floor with them or taking them to gymbaroo classes.

I take from this book a few ideas of things to try and the reassurance that there are some things that I don't need to worry about. I am sure that I will read it again as my son gets older. It is a very readable book and one that I would recommend to any thoughtful parent.

This is the book that not only profoundly changed my parenting style, but led to a career change and major lifestyle change for my family. This was the book that introduced me to Waldorf education and led me to pursue Waldorf teacher training. As a result of this introduction, my husband and I were led to re-evaluate our values and our lifestyle, and we ultimately made the transition from a fast-paced life in the show-business world of Los Angeles, to a quiet life living on a small farm in rural Maine. As a Waldorf early childhood teacher, I have recommended this book to countless families as an introduction to Waldorf education. I always give it as a gift to friends and family with new babies. It is the book I wish I'd had before the birth of my first child. I don't expect most families would experience such a dramatic lifestyle change as a result of this book as ours did, but it may help you relax into your role as a parent, realize that less is indeed more, and make your journey as a parent more meaningful and satisfying.

I *mostly* liked this book and struggled with whether to give it 3 or 4 stars. It's a philosophy of childrearing that is insightful, meaningful and very compassionate. I think anyone could benefit from reading it and would recommend it as reading for anyone considering becoming a parent or a teacher, though it probably would not be the first book I would recommend.

I like that the author writes from her conscience and isn't afraid of offending, yet manages to be gentle and non-offensive in doing so. On pages 144 and 145, the author says, "If you can possibly stay home with your baby for the first year, please do so. In fact, it is better to stay home for the first three years!" I agree with this statement and like the non-accusatory fashion in which it is phrased. Far from being derogatory towards working mothers, the author calls for across-the-board support for ALL PARENTS, regardless of job status, and acknowledges how very difficult it is to balance family with career. She doesn't offer an easy way out like so many authors do.

I very much enjoyed the gentle, compassionate, pro-human-being tone of the entire book and I think it has some very valuable things to say.

Yet I can't, in good conscience, give it 4 stars. Be forewarned that it is infused with Waldorf/Rudolf Steiner material. Some of that stuff is just too weird and cultish for me to consciously recommend. The "weird stuff" is interspersed throughout the book along with the useful parts. For example, on page 122 in a discussion about toddlers and books, "it is beneficial to read only one book at a sitting because each book has its own atmosphere, and mixing them can clutter the child's soul, especially at bedtime." HUH? The parts about "soul" sound more like a freaky religious message than a philosophy of childrearing, and the book is full of them. I wouldn't really worry about cluttering my child's soul.

As an aside, the index is badly organized. I had to practically reread the whole book in order to find the examples I used for this review!

Despite serious reservations about the weird religiosity in this book, still, I would recommend it to anyone who works with small children. It's a valuable point of view that will give you good ideas about how to understand and work with your child rather than trying to push your child into adulthood before he/she is ready. This is a good book.

Dancy's book provides a good introduction to Waldorf and Steiner child-raising. I think it is helpful and valuable in that respect. But it is important to bear in mind that it is really just an opinion book, without much science or studies to back it up. Her two main sources of information are Rudolf Steiner and Barry L. White. Steiner got all of his ideas from his spiritual insights. Barry L. White is a researcher with Harvard associates who wrote two books about early childhood development. I googled White, and could not find a web page about him, nor a Wikipedia entry. I found out nothing more about him.

I think this book is a good way to learn more about the Waldorf and Steiner perspective, but do not expect much in the way of factual evidence. Instead she relies on anecdote, and sometimes her own perception of what she has seen.

Example: Dancy says that children should be given natural and unfinished toys like dolls without finished faces and gives a couple reasons. I agree that these toys are more attractive and interesting to children and toddlers, but it's her backup examples that were purely speculative. One reason was that she once saw a photopgraph of a child holding a finished toy with a smile, and she thought the child was blindly imitating the toy's expression. Her second reason was that she heard a story about a girl who was droopy and listless and always carried around a doll that was droopy and listless. When the girl was given a new toy that was more natural, then the girl perked right up.

Overall, this book provides an interesting perspective, but it is suffused with Steiner's spiritual insights (which sometimes sound a bit wierd). Dancy offers her reader a very loving and caring approach to child raising that make one more aware. The book allows for some thoughtful reflection on the part of her audience. But do not read this book expecting much in the way of research. She makes a lot of statements and contentions that do not have any citation or evidence to back them up. Thankfully, she does refer to the work of David Elkind, professor at Tufts, a few times and his research into child development.

I read this book with thoughtful interest and brought along a grain of salt.

This is a terrific parenting resource, offering: insights into your child from birth through age six; suggestions for meeting parenting challenges from discipline to fostering creativity; and reinforcement of the importance of your role as a parent. I found the section on Rhythm and Discipline in home life particularly helpful. A friend passed this on to me; I have since bought 4 copies and passed them on to other mothers.

I read this book 8 years ago. I have read over 50 parenting books since then and this book is still my favorite. This book gives you the sense of stepping back and trusting your instincts and really enjoying your child. Ms. Baldwin gives wonderful resource lists for simple toys, games, beautiful music and additional books. This book gives a wealth of information on practical ideas for creating a harmonious, beautiful life for your child. All parents should read this book.

I picked this book up when I began doing research on homeschooling. I found it to be a wonderful book about gently teaching children.

This book focuses on leading children through a path of exploration in various areas (art, music etc.) It is especially geared towards little children and babies. Most of the activities suggested are easy and cheap using on hand materials and things found in nature.

Although I didn't view this as a parenting book per say, I found it to be more of a philosophy of living with children. It certainly has influenced the way I parent and some of the activities I do with my children.

As and added benefit, I did a lot of research taking off from this book on Waldorf schooling and found a lot I liked about it. I certainly do plan on using this method as I begin to teach my children.

I certainly would suggest that this is a good book to read when you have a baby.

As a first time parent I bombarded myself with books about child raising and child develpment but this is the one to which I return to over and over again. It matters not that this book is aligned with Steiner principles, the information contained within its pages is timeless, and stirs a forgotten knowledge that can be found within all of us if we only take the time to look. In a consumer driven material world where we are bombarded with ten million ways in which to bring up our children, it is both refreshing and mellowing to find a book that gives power back to parents. Everything we need to know about raising happy, well adjusted, self-loving children is within us already. This book just helps to bring it into our conscious minds. If every new parent were given a copy of this book and put this forgotten knowledge into practice, what a wonderful childhood our next generation could enjoy.

I just purchased a copy of this book in English, because my wife has been translating the Thai version form me and we are both completely impressed by the wisdom contained in this book. My wife is Thai and her parents raised her with the same considerations and compassionate love that the book uses as the foundation for guiding parents how to raise their children. Currently, we are experimenting with the classic US style of education at the American School of Bangkok and will also try one of the Thai Waldorf school near our home and observe how the child responds the each on all levels of development. We, because of living in Bangkok, have the multiple education options incudintg British system, French system, Australian system, Multiple Intelligenc system, Montisori system, Christian schools etc..., and are very impressed with what we have seen in the Waldorf schools. Regardless of which education modality we choose the foundations in this book will guide our child development decisions.

I am completely put off by reviewers splattering their judgements of cultish, religous etc around this book. I just don't get it. If someone writes about Montisorei they reference Maria Montisori. If someone writes about Multiple Intellegence education they reference Harvard's Garnier. The primary researcher is always the source of the knowledge. Let's stick to what we know and not conjecture and judge what we do not know. Steiner was definitely on the something, and in today's world we definitely need all the help we can get in raising a new breed of human.