Child Development
56 Articles & Excerpts
How the Brain Develops
by Child Welfare Information Gateway
The raw material of the brain is the nerve cell, called the neuron. When babies are born, they have almost all of the neurons they will ever have, more than 100 billion of them. Although there is research that indicates some neurons are developed
Effects of Child Maltreatment on Early Brain Development
by Child Welfare Information Gateway
Brief periods of moderate, predictable stress are not problematic; in fact, they prepare the child to cope with the general world. The body's survival actually depends upon the ability to mount a response to stress.
Fathers in the Healthy Development of Children
by Child Welfare Information Gateway
One of the most important influences a father can have on his child is indirect - fathers influence their children in large part through the quality of their relationship with the mother of their children.
Communicating with Your Baby
 Dr. Spock's The First Two Years : The Emotional and Physical Needs of Children from Birth to Age 2
by Benjamin Spock, M.D.
Babies can express their feelings and needs in many ways. Learning to read your baby is very important, especially for parents who want to respond to their baby's needs appropriately. Crying is a major source of communication that the newborn baby has.
Challenging Change
 Failure to Connect
by Jane M. Healy, Ph.D.
Rather than mindlessly accepting "change" as important and necessary for our children, we should begin by pausing and reflecting on the long-range personal and cultural implications of our new technologies.
From Techno-Pusher to Critic: A Journey of Puzzlement
Failure to Connect
by Jane M. Healy, Ph.D.
My own experience with educational computing is typical of those of many educators who have reluctantly moved from bedazzled advocacy to troubled skepticism. It is also instructive in several respects, not the least of which is shaking up some simplistic
Blundering Into the Future: Hype and Hope
Failure to Connect
by Jane M. Healy, Ph.D.
Technology shapes the growing mind. The younger the mind, the more malleable it is. The younger the technology, the more unproven it is. We enthusiastically expose our youngsters to new digital teachers and playmates, but we also express concern about
Today Is My Birthday
 The Brightening Glance: Imagination and Childhood
by Ellen Handler Spitz, Ph.D.
Dr. Ellen Handler Spitz looks at how children feel, sense, and relate to what is around them, and she examines the unlimited imaginative dimensions of their everyday experiences.
In the Beginning
 Changed by a Child
by Barbara Gill
In the space of a sentence our whole world can turn upside down and inside out. We learn that our baby has a disability, and suddenly we are uncertain about everything we think, feel, and do. This includes our sense of self as well as how to take care of
Speaking of the Nature of Boys
 Speaking of Boys: Answers to the Most-Asked Questions About Raising Sons
by Michael Thompson, Ph.D., Teresa Barker
Q: This may sound like a stupid question, but I am an expectant mother, and we know it will be a boy. I've never had any experience around little boys. I never had any brothers and my sisters never had boys.
The "Colicky" Baby
 Baby Hearts: A Guide to Giving Your Child an Emotional Head Start
by Linda Acredolo, Ph.D., Susan Goodwyn, Ph.D.
Poor Lisa and Jimmy. The baby has colic. So goes the sympathetic lament when we hear about a baby who never seems to stop crying. But what is colic? Is it a disease? Are the children crying because they are in pain?
Nature's Contribution: The Biology of Emotions
Baby Hearts: A Guide to Giving Your Child an Emotional Head Start
by Linda Acredolo, Ph.D., Susan Goodwyn, Ph.D.
NEWS FLASH! There's More to Mothering Than Meets the Eye, Scientists Discover. New York, New York. What happens when Mommy Rat runs away from home, leaving her litter of pups to fend for themselves? They get hungry-very hungry. No surprise there.
The Importance of Reading to Children
 Your Baby and Child: From Birth to Age Five
by Penelope Leach, Ph.D.
When parents read aloud to their children, everyone wins. It's fun for the adult and great for the kids. Easy for you and good for them. You don't even have to ration it because, unlike TV or ice cream, there's no such thing as too much.
Introduction
 Put Yourself in Their Shoes
by Barbara Meltz
On a wintry January morning, I stood transfixed in the lobby outside the gym of the Jewish Community Center while a twoish-year-old had a temper tantrum. It wasn't the toddler I was watching, though. It was his mother.
Kids' World
 Kids: How Biology and Culture Shape the Way We Raise Young Children
by Meredith F. Small
I'm sitting on a tiny blue plastic chair with my knees wedged under a very short table. My hands rest on my lap to stop any fidgeting while I wait for the midmorning snack of crackers, juice, and vanilla yogurt.
The Evolution of Babies
 Our Babies, Ourselves: How Biology and Culture Shape the Way We Parent
by Meredith F. Small
Several years ago, The American Museum of Natural History in New York City sponsored a special exhibit of human ancestors. Their goal was to bring to the public a four-million-year record of original human fossils.
Physical Development Through Puberty
 Caring for Your School Age Child: Ages 5-12
by Edward L. Schor, M.D., The American Academy of Pediatrics
Most parents believe that their youngster's childhood passes much too quickly. Only yesterday, it seemed, you sang lullabies over your child's crib, or watched her crawl for the first time or take her first steps.
Introduction
 Is it "Just a Phase"?
by Susan Anderson Swedo, M.D., Henrietta L. Leonard, M.D.
While it may not be worth a million dollars, the question of whether a child's behavior problems are 'just a phase' or something more serious is one that parents ask frequently during the grade school years. Problem phases occur so predictably that child
Are You Concerned About Your Child?
 Normal Children Have Problems, Too: How Parents Can Understand and Help
by Stanley Turecki, M.D., Sarah Wernick, Ph.D.
Eight-year-old Joshua looks unhappy most of the time. He is easily disappointed and reduced to tears. Playmates don't call as much, and Joshua says sadly that no one likes him. He has become whiny, and he shadows his mother around the apartment.
The Road Not Taken: Turning Boys Away from Their Inner Life
 Raising Cain: Protecting the Emotional Life of Boys
by Dan Kindlon, Ph.D., Michael Thompson, Ph.D.
Luke, thirteen, pauses at the office door, undecided whether to take his baseball cap off or leave it alone; he pulls it off and steps in the room-the school psychologist's office. 'Come on in, Luke. Have a seat in the big chair.'
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