What's Going on in There? : How the Brain and Mind Develop in the First Five Years of Life by Lise Eliot Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of What's Going on in There? : How the Brain and Mind Develop in the First Five Years of Life
Book Review: Excellent!
Summary: 5 Stars
This book is especially good for readers with rudimentary knowledge about neurobiology. However, it is also good for the absolute layman if one can 'read' pass the jargon. Book Review: Useful and informative
Summary: 4 Stars
One of the most interesting parenting books that i've read: it's based on scientific research rather than arbitrary advice. It helped me understand *why* kids (and people) do what they do, and thus enabled me to better handle undesired behavior. Highly recommend - must read for any parent!Book Review: Intellectual, but interesting
Summary: 5 Stars
I LOVED this book. Her writing style reminded me of my favorite professor in college: to the point, intellectual, but interesting and not at all pedantic. As a grad student in psychology and a new mother, this book was a perfect fit for me. Those who study psychology professionally will enjoy this book for its detail. Those who are beginners in learning about psychology will find it interesting because of its writing style. Eliot does review the basics which I found to be a helpful review, but she doesn't spend too much time on them (and I skipped some of the parts that I already knew).
She focuses more on pre and postnatal influences on the brain. While the cover suggests it covers up to age five, I found little material that talked about the brain above the first year. This did not bother me, but it may bother the parent of a preschooler who wants to learn how to parent their four year old. I liked that she covered multiple sides of issues (ie, nature/nurture debate, and any other debate I ran into), provided an explanation of the significance or lack thereof to certain milestones (ie, whether it makes a difference in the future whether a child is walking at 8 months vs. 12), etc. Even after 2 child dev classes, 1 adolescent dev class, and 1 adult dev class, I learned a LOT from this book, and apply the info learned in it to my own daughter. Before I read this book, my daughter was right on track developmentally--not ahead, not behind. Now she is in the top 25%. (Which means little, as you will find in the book, but it still gives you an idea of what you can do with this knowledge.)
A MUST read for all new parents, daycare workers, and psych students interested in child psychology/neuro.
Book Review: Excellent reading for the scientifically curious!
Summary: 5 Stars
This text is presented as an introduction to brain development without speaking down to those unfamiliar with state-of-the-art neurological/molecular vocabulary and research. The writing style is engaging and the presentation style motivates each successive topic in a compelling manner. It is both a page-turner and an excellent reference, and my copy has been rebound and has important passages marked. Specifically interesting to me, as a pregnant mother, are neurochemical sensitivities during fetal development, and language development after birth. It makes for excellent reading for expecting parents who have any curiosity in science at all. Indeed, my friends with engineering and science backgrounds have been enthusiastically passing it around. My sister took my recommendation, and is using it as an undergraduate textbook in molecular neurobiology at Carnegie Mellon U. Book Review: A how-to book on nurturing neural pathways!
Summary: 5 Stars
The old debate regarding nature vs. nurture when it comes to learning ability and all kinds of human traits has essentially ended. Both contribute. It's true that any child's (or adult's) cognitive abilities can be directly enhanced with the right kind of environmental stimulus/experiences. Dr. Eliot's book offers a very thorough overview of how the process of neuron development and "pruning" works and offers parents insight into how they might help optimize their own child's potential. A fascinating read.. Great reference for parents and professionals who deal with kids.