Customer Reviews

Your Five Year Old: Sunny and Serene

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

When you know what behaviors are "normal" for your child's age you can relax, stop the worry, and focus on appropriate solutions. This whole series of books accurately defines the ages and stages of children. These books keep your expectations realistic and allow you to avoid anger caused by a lack of understanding of your child's developmental stages.

I enjoyed reading the book especially the sections on school readiness and how a 5 year old child's mind works. This is a good book for parents to read in light of the tendency to push children academically and socially before they are ready developmentally.

This entire series of books in very insightful. It is very helpful as a parent to get the "heads up" that these books provide. The questions of "what is going with my kid?" and "when will it end?" are answered leaving you with the feeling that you actually know what you are doing!

When I gave birth, I hoped the manual would have popped out right after the baby, alas,I was wrong. We used The What to expect books until they no longer covered our age group. A local bookstore suggested Dr. Ames' books and they have been a GOD SEND! These books are the best from 2 to 5 so far they have been right on the money...Our son turns six in March and we are buying the 6 book tomorrow. My husband & I can not think of any other book(s) that has been more helpful or informative, than those written by Dr. Ames. Kudos to her and her easy to digest books.

Although some of the passages in this book and it's companion volumes are quite dated, it is still one of the most helpful parenting books that I have found in 25 years of teaching preschoolers. Many parents through the years have breathed a sigh of relief after reading these books which start with "Your One Year Old" and go all the way up to "Your Ten to Fourteen Year Old".

These books are gems, though they are not traditional "how-to" parenting books. There are several of those that I would recommend in conjunction with these books. These books are "how-to" in a different way; how to think about your child, how to understand how your child thinks and why they do what they do. For any parent who is at all introspective, this information can be used to help adjust your focus on the things that are appropriate for your child to learn and do and to "unfocus" on things that are inappropriate for your child to be able to learn and do at a given developmental "age". I appreciate the subtitles of each book (in this case "Sunny and Serene") because it does provide a general frame of reference for engaging with your child...yes, my 5 year old still tests me, but when i think about the book's assertion that 5 year olds truly want to please their mothers (more than 4s and more than 6s), I can look at him and it fits - and it's a gentle reminder that I should like to see that behavior more than the stuff that drives me crazy...it helps me put that other stuff into perspective.

yes, the pictures are outdated, and some of the suggestions seem a little dated as well (party suggestions, for example), but put in terms of where kids truly are developmentally, rather than compared with the materialistic frenzy parents often work themselves into in terms of toys, playdates and party themes, I actually found them refreshing and "child centered".

These books are recommended in "The Blessing of a Skinned Knee", another lovely parenting book that I came to after I found these books.

It is not just the outdated photos that are off-putting. I could get past those. No, it's actually the information that has not been edited or updated since 1979. In fact, in a section about discipline this book suggests that 'if you emotions should overcome you' and you do spank your child, 'don't feel guilty' because afterall, 'you do have the upperhand.'

Really?

It also advises us parents that many five year olds prefer listening to their own records rather than the radio.

Really?

Though much of the basic information may still hold true, it is hard to wade through the outdated advice to get any good information.

I would recommend this for every parent to read! About 10 years ago I bought the book for 12 year old years and it was so helpful. That was for me and my husband to read about his daughter (my step-daughter). Now we have children of our own and I remembered this book and decided to by it again and get an early start for the younger years. It helps put things in perspective and renews my patience as to why they do stuff. I'm so glad I bought the books again.

Your Three-Year-Old: Friend or Enemy

All of the books in this series should be in each parent's library. I used them to help me understand my children (1979, 1982, 1983) and have purchased copies for my own daughter. We are also educators in our family and think that early childhood and elementary school teachers would find this series very useful. The books are clearly written and describe the norms simply but eloquently. The books are easy reads.

I received my series in superb condition - hardly even looked used. Thanks to Amazon and its re-sellers for excellent service and keeping me informed of the progress of my order.

My friend swears by these books. She says they really help her understand where her child is coming from.