FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

A GOOD START IN LIFE
Understanding Your Child's Brain and Behavior from Birth to Age 6

By Norbert Herschkowitz, MD, Elinore Chapman Herschkowitz
Foreword by Jerome Kagan


Published by the Dana Press
Distributed by the University of Chicago Press

"A must read … a gift to all parents."
Rosemarie T. Truglio, V-P, Education and Research, Sesame Workshop


DOCTOR AND EDUCATOR EXPLAIN HOW A CHILD BECOMES A
PERSON

New Paperback Updated With Latest Child Development Research

Why do children become fearful? How can you help your child overcome frustration and curb aggression? When does a child develop a sense of "right and wrong?" Is there a link between early childhood tantrums and antisocial behavior? What are the effects of day care?

Even with countless child development books on the market, few delve into how a child grows into a contributing member of the family and community, and only one gives new parents understandable and practical advice based on solid science: A GOOD START IN LIFE: Understanding Your Child's Brain and Behavior from Birth to Age 6.

Offering brain science's latest information to guide parents in raising their young child, this well regarded book is now available in paperback, newly revised to reflect the most recent studies. The new edition features information from the latest research—including traumatic events in the news, television and learning skills, physical activity, and aggression—along with information of wide interest on temperament and personality, such as the effects of using a nightlight and the influence of music on brain development.

Written by Dr. Norbert Herschkowitz, a Swiss pediatrician and neuroscientist, and his wife, Elinore Chapman Herschkowitz, an American educator, this engaging, reader-friendly book follows the path of a child's personality and social development from gestation to six years.

With a specific focus on the brain, the Herschkowitzes explain how the brain's natural development contributes to a child's personality and behavior. They provide warm, friendly advice, helping parents, teachers, and other professionals guide their child's emerging individuality year by year in a rapidly changing world.

The Herschkowitzes also discuss issues emerging from the latest research:

·A study found that children in day care or at home showed the same attachment to their parents

· Parents and teachers are increasingly expressing grave concern about rising aggression and destructive behavior in children

· A child learning more than one language simultaneously may learn more easily if people in the child's surroundings use only one language when speaking to the child

· High levels of mothers' reported anxiety, especially during the latter part of pregnancy, have been linked to a cluster of behavioral problems in early childhood

· Babies born following a very stressful pregnancy may need an especially calm, consistent environment

· Studies show that temperament characteristics have some biological basis

· Studies show it may be necessary to treat children in the same family differently, based on their temperament, without showing preference

The book begins with "Life in the Womb" and is divided into sections marking each year in life. Each chapter prepares parents for what lies ahead, and deals with a particular phase of child development, such as fear, playing, and belonging to a group.

Each chapter ends with a "To Think About" section that answers frequent asked questions by parents at Dr. Herschkowitz's talks, including subjects such as night rituals, coping with conflict, helping in the family, and developing empathy.

The end of the book features ten helpful "Guideposts" distilled from earlier chapters, which represent behaviors that normal brain development puts within reach of the five- and six-year-old child. Also included are helpful diagrams, a glossary, and milestone charts for a child's developing behaviors.

As science continues to yield increasingly important information about children's brain development, parents often scramble to take advantage of special "windows of opportunity." A GOOD START IN LIFE provides parents with a new understanding into the brain's inner workings, helping them to better promote healthy behavior and a well-rounded personality in their child.

Norbert Herschkowitz is a native of Basel, Switzerland. He received his M.D. from the University of Zurich in 1957, and has authored hundreds of scientific articles and contributed to numerous textbooks. He has spent more than 25 years as a full professor of pediatrics at the University of Bern, Switzerland, and is an advisor to the Swiss Federal Health Department on child development. Elinore Chapman Herschkowitz holds a B.A. in German from Mount Holyoke College and an M.A. in German from Stanford University. She spent 14 years teaching English at the Bern State Teachers' College.

 

The Dana Press, a division of the Dana Foundation, publishes health and popular science books about the brain for the general reader. It also publishes periodicals and educational material, as well as informational material on behalf of the Dana Foundation and Dana Alliance.