There may not be too many in the older generations who would identify their parenting approach as Attachment Parenting necessarily, but this approach to parenting is basically being a nurturing parent. It’s not about babywearing or breastfeeding or being a stay-at-home parent; it’s about responding sensitively to our children and resurrecting the importance of relationships in our families even as our society seems intent on denying this indelible need.

Parents do a lot more than make sure a child has food and shelter, researchers say. They play a critical role in brain development.

A post on the importance of repair in parent-child relationships.

April 23-25, 2014 

New York City

This event brings together over 1100 early childhood principals, teachers, early childhood directors, and other professionals for 3 days of great professional development. It is one of the largest early childhood conferences in New York City.

Researchers found that the quality of the relationship in the first 18 months of life predicted the way in which the brain regulates experiences of positive emotion in young adulthood, 21 years later.

My family loves watching the Olympics, and we marvel at how these athletes are able to get to such a high level of performance, often at very young ages—a 15-year-old ice-skating gold medalist, an 18-year-old skiing medalist and so on. When my children ask how these athletes get so good, I reply that it took them a lot of time and practice.

No doubt there was also a lot of support from their parents.

Every single day can make a difference in the healthy development of a baby, so a new campaign is telling mothers across Tennessee to wait until labor begins on its own. Christian Emmert is a mother of two and a leader with Attachment Parenting International. She said a lot of important development happens in the last few weeks and days before birth - so if the pregnancy is healthy, it's best to let nature run its course.

Expectant mothers are often told to eat lots of fruits and vegetables, and a new study adds to evidence that a healthy diet is linked to a reduced risk of premature birth.

As a graduate student, I had the opportunity to observe a number of idyllic, progressive classrooms where students danced to the pencil sharpener or sprawled across beanbag chairs while completing their work. I read countless books and articles about research that supports physical activity as part of academic success. It made sense to me -- theoretically -- that children should be allowed to move their bodies. Asking them to do otherwise, I came to believe, could be detrimental to both the student and the teacher.

In a previous post, I discussed the problem of children's lack of motivation and grit. Today, I would like to offer some additional thoughts and recommendations for helping kids with this common, but often difficult, problem.
 

To understand a child's lack of motivation, we need to return to first principles: Children, when they are not angry or discouraged, want to do well. They want to earn our praise and approval, and they want us to be proud of them. Children may say that they don't care, but they do care.

API is pleased to cosponsor the free online "Parenting with Presence" Summit, March 18-21, 2014.

We invite you to register for this exciting event so that you may be continually inspired in your growth, expansion, and evolution as a more effective parent - and a more conscious human being.

The little bundle of joy that arrives in your world (without an owner's manual!) magically transforms into a toddler, and eventually, a teenager.  And you're there with them every step of the way - through the ups, downs, and the joys and sorrows.

Leader Milestones

Congrats, Leaders!

1-Year Anniversaries:
Kelly Shealer

5-year Anniversary:
Victoria Brown
Rachael Spencer
Jamie Birdsong-Nieroda

A new paper looks at the relationship between breastfeeding and childhood disability.  The author finds that a longer duration of breastfeeding is associated with a slightly lower risk of child disability:

Only about 37% of babies around the world are exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months of life, as recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). The benefits of breastfeeding for both infants and mothers are well-established. The effectiveness of different types of interventions for promoting exclusive breastfeeding in high-income countries is the focus of a Review article published in Breastfeeding Medicine, the official journal of the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

Research has shown that children who were breastfed score higher on IQ tests and perform better in school, but the reason why remained unclear. Now a new study shows that two parenting skills deserve the credit. Responsiveness to children's emotional cues boosts kids' math and reading skills. Reading to children as early as 9 months of age also significantly improves school readiness. These two skills can give kids an extra 2-3 months' worth of brain development.