On Becoming Toddlerwise Author: Visit Amazon's Gary Ezzo Page | Language: English | ISBN:
0971453225 | Format: PDF
On Becoming Toddlerwise Description
- Series: On Becoming...
- Paperback: 172 pages
- Publisher: Parent-Wise Solutions (November 2003)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0971453225
- ISBN-13: 978-0971453227
- Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.2 x 0.5 inches
- Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
As a physician and a mother, I have found the Babywise/Toddlerwise/Childwise series to be extremely helpful for raising and training my children! As an aside, I raised my daughter using the principles in Babywise. I nursed her for 8 months, and never experienced difficulty with optimal weight gain. My daughter slept through the night at 9 weeks, and was a happy baby. I am often complemented by friends and work colleagues about how well-behaved my children are, and I owe much of that to the Ezzo texts for teaching me some practical things about child-rearing.
For those of you with children between 2 and 3, you may find further useful information in the next edition, Childwise (ages 3-7). There was not as much information in the Toddlerwise edition about controlling/preventing certain behaviors (e.g., tantrums), but I found a wealth of information in the Childwise edition.
I will say that I felt the potty training section in Toddlerwise was less helpful to me. I did purchase their recommended text, Toilet Training in Less Than a Day (also recommended by Dr. Phil), and found it to be inspiring, but somewhat disappointing.
For the contemplative parent, who is considering this purchase:
Yes, there is a foundation based on Biblical principle, with practical applications. If you find offense in Bible-based theories, then don't bother with the Ezzo series, because you lack the foundation on which to build these principles. If you are the type of parent that seeks to be "an equal partner" with your child, don't bother. The principles presented in the Ezzo texts will continually challenge your parenting philosophy.
Most of the 1-star reviewers feels that the methods of this book is abusive and restricting - I think that's complete rubbish.
Having a routine and structure with your kids does not mean you are loving them less, abusing their creativity/freedom, and abusing them in the name of discipline. In fact, the book advocates different types of playtime: roomtime being an independent playtime in a room, free time being a time where the child gets to choose what he wants to do, structured playtime being a time when a parents chooses the activity, and playtimes with family members. Which one of these sound abusive or restrictive? When the child grows old enough to go to school, what do parents think happen? The teachers choose the activities and there will be a disciplinary guideline that your children will follow, so how is this book anything different?
Also, when it comes to handling curious toddlers who get into everything, the book suggests substitution over restriction and distraction. Substitution as defined in the book is to offer an equally desirable experience similar to the original one that caught the toddler's attention, but the location and time will be decided by mom. An example in the book, a child gets into the dog bowl and splashes the water. The alternate substitution for this behavior would be to give the toddler a clean bowl of water on the patio and let the child have at it. Again, what about this is abusive or restrictive?
I also see one reviewer comment on the sample schedule in the book (she gives a paraphrased version in her review). The problem with this reader is that she is not keeping in mind that this is an example routine that ONE mom used for her kids.
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