Reading, reading, reading

More reading...

Two books of note: one I just finished and the other I've just started.

Building Emotional Muscle by Jack and Kerry Kelly Novak
This book was recommended to me by Ed Sprunger (who is both a Suzuki violin teacher and a psychoanalyst) and given to me by my sister (who is a a social worker).  Excellent, and very dense book.  I will be using it as a reference in the next few years!  It's based on the authors' work at a pioneering preschool which seeks to help babies through kindergarteners and their parents build the character skills they need to be successful in their relationships with each other and the wider world.  Each chapter is devoted to one of the six first years of life and goes through and discusses what kids and their parents need to learn about emotions, how to use/deal with them, and how to develop strategies for growing through each phase.  Lots of practical suggestions and it's based on a model of authoritative parenting and care-taking of kids, rather than authoritarian.  Definitely mind-opening and fortifying.  I'll be back to look at bits and pieces again as my kid grows up. (Also I felt vindicated to read about what some actual dangers are of little kids watching TV as well as lying to kids about Santa Claus... And I point that out, because these are not conservative, religious people, but rather people who have spent a long time studying and working with children as well as working with many, many others in the same field - it's not just the consensus of two people who have their own strong opinions.)

The Myth of the A.D.D. Child by Thomas Armstrong
This one I just started this morning, and was lent to me by my mother-in-law after I told her about some of the challenges I have in my nanny job.  She is a special education teacher and she raised a very, very energetic little boy named Jared....  The author points to lots of research which shows that ADD isn't one specific thing - it's not a defined disease like diabetes or schizophrenia.  Instead, it is a complex set of possibilities which might manifest themselves in a persons' life which can include inborn temperament, unreasonable societal expectations, a difficult fit between a particular child and parent, generational differences, intense exposure to electronic media, food allergies, and teaching techniques which don't meet a particular child's needs.  The author in no way denies that children who have received this label can present big challenges for their parents and teachers, and he recognizes that medication does prove to be very helpful in some cases.  However, he believes that the label doesn't look at some other important issues - specifically: 1) what other than medication can be done to really help kids and their parents/teachers with some of these challenges (and most of the book is going to talk about different strategies and options available) and 2) how labeling kids as "diseased" means that we then don't spend a lot of time looking at what their unique strengths and talents are and how to help them develop those to become exceptional people in their own right.  I'm hoping to get some good ideas for working with my little charges!