OK, so I’m not thrilled with the title of this book – it brings to mind those how-to-turn-your-baby-into-a-prodigy sorts of books. However, I’m quite smitten with the concepts presented by the author and the well organized and practical ideas this book presents. Frankly, it’s not a thing like the make-your-baby-into-a-brain books. Let’s start with the learning model, which is elegant in its simplicity. Information gathered by our sensory input organs is encoded into mental images. These encoded messages are stored in short-term memory long enough for the child to search through long-term memory for a close match. If there’s a close match, we know exactly what it is and we file the information away in long-term memory. If similar, then we know what category to place it in and again it’s filed away and we learn something in the process. If there’s a mismatch, then learning is erroneous. If there’s no match, no additional learning takes place and the encoded message drifts away. This matching and learning process moves information into long-term memory. From there it can be recalled, applied to output (i.e. writing, etc.), or utilized in thinking. The activities in this book are carefully arranged to provide maximum opportunity for effective learning – building concept upon concept in learning sequences and providing practice and the mental “pegs” (pegging) to facilitate recall. In other words, here are all the building blocks for a very solid foundation which will facilitate thinking and creativity. All that’s left is the motivation – and the book addresses that, as well.

Now, before you conclude that the book is solely an essay on learning theory, let me hasten to say that all the above info is covered clearly and succinctly in the first twenty pages. From there the book gets down to the nitty-gritty. Divided into eight sections each corresponding to a learning time frame (i.e. 0-1 year; 1-2 years, 2-3 years, etc.) and color-coded, these sections provide very specific activities in multiple areas. I turned to the 1-2 years section because that’s the age of my grandson. Headings include: naming objects, size, shape and colour (note British spelling indicative of the UK origin of this book), counting, exploring, creative play, and developing play. Not only do each of these sections provide information on what to look for and expect at that age, they also give you very specific learning activities – i.e. objects to name, sorting activities, water play, sticky-paper shapes, and animal hide-and-seek – to share a few from the Baby on the Move (1-2 years) section. By the Starting School (ages 5-7) section, the headings sound more like school subjects – English, Math, Science, and Activities. The activities impressed me on several levels. They are powerful, yet simple and easy to implement. They are well illustrated and materials needed are kept minimal and easily attainable. They are noticeably and superbly sequenced with acquired skill building upon acquired skill. They assume a high level of interaction between parent and child.

There’s an obvious underlying assumption that the child will be attending a public school, but interestingly, the general tone of the book is that it is the parents who are responsible for the learning environment of their child and that they will be actively involved in providing a maximum experience for each child both prior to formal education and alongside any formal educational experience. So how would a homeschooling parent use this book? Providing an excellent learning framework, here’s all those things you should be doing with your baby, toddler, preschooler, kindergartner, etc. Yes, many of these activities and learning opportunities come naturally as we nurture and interact with our children, but how reassuring to have a step-by-step reference. I’ve often commented to parents that kindergarten and first grade (i.e. formal homeschooling) is just a natural extension of all the learning activities they’ve already been doing with their child. This book underscores and illustrates the reality of that statement. How much do I like this book? Well, I just sent one off to my daughter and her husband to use with that eighteen month old grandbaby. ~ Janice