The Brain Game book is meant as a “how-to” guide for parents. It was developed by pediatricians, neonatologists, and childhood development specialists. The aim is to translate complicated scientific research into easy to understand language. We want to explain what is going on in each of the important stages of birth-to-three development. We want to educate parents on things they can do to keep their child safe and healthy in general. We want to teach caregivers the things they can do to simulate development processes in the brain. These are not just general tips. They are timed to coordinate with the brain development processes going on during each critical period.
0-36 Months of Brain Development
The book is divided into five sections by the child’s age. The first two sections are three months each. This is because so much brain development goes on in these periods. The first three months are when the brain learns from light patterns, sense of touch, and realizing the body it controls can move. It is important, therefore, to do the right things to stimulate these sensory connections that are going on. Later on, when the child walks and climbs, there are other sensory connections that are developing. The book gives you age-appropriate songs to sing. For a newborn, it’s just the sound of a mom’s voice singing. For a toddler, it may be a song that prompts certain movements, to help build coordination. All along, the book coaches parents to know what is happening during that particular stage of development.
Included in the book are many hands-on activities you can do with your baby. Music is important, from letting the child’s brain sense rhythm, to stimulating it to move to music, to exploring their own voice. Touching is important, from the first moment a newborn is laid on mom’s chest. But touch can also sooth a crying baby. The book gives you tips on how to do these kinds of touching. There’s also a “Calendar of Firsts” – a kind of journal in which you can keep track of milestones in the child’s development. The date of her first tooth; the date he first ate solid foods. Take the book with you to doctor checkups of the baby, and you can easily help the doctor track the child’s progress.