Touchpoints: Three to Six Book

Like a soothing tonic, Touchpoints Three to Six offers a simple theory and plenty of sound advice to parents who struggle with their child's ever-changing moods and behaviors. Noted pediatrician T. Berry Brazelton, M.D., bestselling author of Infants and Mothers and Touchpoints, builds on his theory that kids essentially "rev up" prior to reaching developmental milestones (like walking, talking, and potty training). Unfortunately for the whole family, such revving typically involves temper tantrums, night waking, and regression. Teaming with child psychiatrist Joshua D. Sparrow, M.D., Dr. Brazelton offers compassionate suggestions for recognizing key touchpoints in children 3 to 6 years old, helping kids work through them, and keeping one's cool throughout the process.

The first four chapters--one per age--provide fairly exhaustive study material on five topics: temperament, learning, moral development, building relationships, and separation and independence. To make the reading more engaging, Brazelton and Sparrow whip up four imaginary children, each with a distinct temperament, learning ability, and level of adaptability. Their shared experiences--from exploring the playground at age 3 to "entering the real world" during their 6th year--provide a helpful backdrop for discussing a myriad of pertinent issues. Smart dialogue, accurate depiction of parents' emotional responses, and surprise discoveries both amusing and serious all add to the breadth of information covered. The second half of the book offers about 200 pages of alphabetically arranged "perennials" and "current issues," for troubleshooting specifics like Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, computers, divorce, habits, sadness, and toilet learning. An excellent resource for those who support empathetic parenting. --Liane Thomas