The Scientist in the Crib : What Early Learning Tells Us About the Mind by Alison Gopnik, Andrew N. Meltzoff, Patricia K. Kuhl Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Scientist in the Crib : What Early Learning Tells Us About the Mind
Book Review: An interesting topic, but suffers from poor organization.
Summary: 3 Stars
I bought this book because, having recently become a father, I wanted to get a better idea of what my baby thinks about and feels from people who make a living studying just that. I also wanted to know how scientists organize and practice the study of infant development; how do you observe an infant's actions and draw information about them based on what they do? (or don't do.) While The Scientist In The Crib is full of a lot of interesting anecdotes, and I certainly wouldn't question the authors' credibility, it is disappointingly organized around very general concepts as opposed to chronology, so that the thread of actual development is difficult to follow from one section to the next. This book really seems more like a series of articles, some more and some less interesting. The chapters examine what children learn about people [chapter 2], things [chapter 3], and then language [chapter 4], and then what scientists have learned about children's minds [chapter 5] and then what scientists have learned about children's brains [chapter 6](the distinction between minds and brains is probably much more meaningful if you're working in the field). There are two different sections entitled 'what newborns know.' I found myself skipping around looking for information relevant to my son and the age that he is now. I suppose if I was not so personally invested in these questions I could examine things in the lofty and generalized manner of this book, but, really, parenting is more a practical than a philosophical pursuit, and a chronological approach would have made the information (and there is a lot) much more accessible and interesting for parents.Book Review: A WINNER
Summary: 5 Stars
I gave this book to my sister-in-law (a first-time mom to a 6-mth old, in Minneapolis) for her birthday, and it seems to be a hit. She wrote me: "The book is awesome! I'm reading it while 'pumping' at work (20 minutes twice per workday) and it's just been fascinating -- thank you SO much!" I was a little worried that it might be too academic for her taste. But the authors seem to have hit the mark. Not to be missed!Book Review: The best book on babies I've read! I really loved it.
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm a mother of six children and thought that I didn't need any more baby books. Then a friend showed me this book and I couldn't put it down. It was the best one I ever read! As a parent, I could see my own children in the book's descriptions. And I laughed at the amusing stories and writing. It's really a terrific way of learning about what your child understands about people, about things, how they learn language, and how experience, including how we parents treat them, affects their brain growth. What a great read, written by these parent-scientists.Book Review: Amazing scientific study of what babies know and learn
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a fascinating report of research studies that compare the mind of a baby to a computer. The brain is programmed to receive and sort out information from all the senses and to use input from adults and kids to change the program as learning provides new experiences. The authors have done their own research and reviewed other studies about babies and toddlers to back up their analyses of infant learning. Parents and grandparents will be fascinated as they compare the development of young children in their families to the explanations of the infants' "scientific" explorations, classifications, and language learning. You'll find out why everyone talks "motherese" to babies. You'll realize that the kid in the crib is not just lying there waiting for the next diaper or bottle, but is very busy indeed figuring out the world and how it works. A truly fascinating book!