Active Baby, Healthy Brain

December 21, 2009
Sasse, founder of Australia-based ToddlerKindy GymbaROO, offers a practical handbook for parents hoping to boost their baby'sintellectual and physical development. The author, who died last year at the age of 80, divides her program into eight sections ranging from newborn to age five–and-a-half. In each, she offers specific, age-appropriate exercises and activities, accompanied by illustrations: each exercise takes only two minutes or less, totaling about 10 minutes per day. Along with instructions, the author provides the rationale behind each activity; for instance, in a section titled “vestibular fun,” she asserts that rocking chairs and swinging cradles not only lull an infant to sleep but also provide sensory stimulation, contributing to the accelerated development of motor skills. Sasse explains why “tummy time” is essential to building pathways in the baby's brain, and encourages the use of dance and music for stimulating nerve endings in the inner ear. For toddlers and older children, the author offers interactive activities that employ the use of beanbags, hoops, balls and other resources. Sasse's focus is on fun, but she also provides parents with an informative manual that outlines the crucial connections between movement and the health and development of body and brain.

November 23, 2009
Any time this columnist sees something about "maximizing brain development," a warning light goes off in her head. Like other paranoia-inducing texts, this book by late child development expert Sasse takes a normal, innate response like movement (just try to hold a baby and not rock) and says it's imperative to "overcom[e] primitive reflexes" and increase "vestibular stimulation." Whoa! Did you know motherhood required a Ph.D.? Get this: "To help your infant stimulate his eyes, show him flickering. Christmas tree lights, for a few minutes, four times a day." Approaching infancy like a recipe that will be spoiled should one misstep occur is not helpful or advisable. Too bad; the drawings are cute.-Julianne J. Smith, Ypsilanti Dist. Lib., MI

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