Ellen Galinsky—already the go-to person on interaction between families and the workplace—draws on fresh research to explain what we OUGHT to be teaching our children. This is must-reading for everyone who cares about America’s fate in the 21st century.

— Judy Woodruff, senior correspondent, PBS Newshour

It’s Toddlers on the Loose! The Challenging Transition from Baby to Toddler

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April 15, 2010

by Morra Aarons Mele

The leap to toddlerhood is both thrilling and upsetting for a parent. Your baby clearly has a mind of his own: you can see the wheels turning in his head 24-7. Little babies are cute but their repertoire is limited. But for a toddler, each day brings something new to learn. 

As a young parent working with Ellen Galinsky on Mind in the Making, I sometimes take the life skills to heart a little too much. 

For instance, I breathlessly reported to Ellen that my 14 month old was clearly making connections: when he heard a phone ring, or even the sound of my text message chiming, he put his hand to his ear to mimic the phone. I was so proud of my clearly brilliant son and his ability to make rather abstract connections for one his age: connecting the bell of an incoming text message with talking on the phone. Literally the same day I bragged to Ellen, my husband called to tell me our son had an ear infection and that’s why he was touching his ear!! The mommy guilt I felt was astounding. 

But mostly, using the skills in Mind in the Making gives me more joy and patience as a mom. It’s almost as if I have a new language with which to interpret my son’s needs. 

Life for a toddler is clearly very challenging. My son faces many frustrations and he has no language to communicate them with. He wants to be independent; he needs mommy. We’ll be in the grocery store, and all of a sudden he’ll simply have to get out of the shopping cart to walk on his own. I’ll put him down to walk…but he won’t follow me. I get frustrated. He gets frustrated because often, torn between his desire to explore and be independent and his limitations as a new walker, he’ll just freeze in the middle of an aisle, close to a meltdown. My challenge as his parent is to interpret which challenge he can face alone, and when he needs to be picked up, hugged, and put back in the cart.

I’ll leave you with this video, of my son and his 18 month old cousin exploring the streets of New York. It’s a classic example of toddlers toying with newfound independence. Luckily, you can hear my husband in the background, keeping a watchful eye in case they stray too far.

Do you want to submit a guest post about learning with your kids? Leave us a note on Facebook or comment below.

 
Skill: Focus and Self Control
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Here is a list of Mind in the Making researchers and educators filmed to date

Community Schools: “Mind in the Making and Community Schools: Crossing Boundaries and Creating Strong Linkages for Children Birth through Eight and their Families,” is a collaborative project with The Children’s Aid Society’s National Center for Community Schools and the Institute for Educational Leadership. (Read more)

Learning Communities: Throughout the country, groups of parents, educators, and other family support and health professionals have joined together to learn more about the research on children’s learning from birth through the early elementary school years, and about how to use this research to promote better outcomes for children. (Read more)

Learning Modules for Educators: Mind in the Making Learning Modules for Educators is an 11-part, facilitated learning process designed to bridge the gap between research and teaching practice. (Read more)

Seven Skills Modules: We have created new Modules from the book, called the Mind in the Making Seven Essential Skills Modules. (Read more)

Experiments in Children's Learning DVD: This two-volume series of 42 videos take viewers on a series of virtual “field trips” to laboratories in the U.S. and abroad. (Read more)
View a crosswalk of the experiments to the seven essential life skills

Download a companion Catalogue to Mind in the Making: Experiments in Children's Learning

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