Your Five Year Old: Sunny and Serene

Rating:
Summary: Not Very Enlightening
Review: As parents we all require occasional assistance when it comes to parenting. We seek advice from friends, family members, doctors, and other "experts," and if you're like me, you reach for a book. My five-year-old is delightful in most ways, but I'm concerned that he should take more initiative and accomplish additional simple tasks on with limited guidance. In fact, it seems he has been conditioned to wait for my wife and me to perform simple tasks for him and, therefore, he has been "taught" to be helpless in many situations. For this reason, I sought a book to give me a few ideas on everyday responsibilities that five-year-olds ought to be accomplishing on their own.

I bought "Your Five-Year-Old" by Louise Bates Ames after it was recommended to me by an expert in positive discipline.

The book is very short, at 111 pages, and is divided into ten chapters:

1. Characteristics of Age Five
2. The Child and Others
3. Routines, Health, and Tensional Outlets
4. Discipline
5. Accomplishments and Abilities
6. The Child's Mind
7. School
8. The Five-Year-Old Party
9. Individuality
10. Stories from Real Life

It also includes appendixes on good toys and books for five-year-olds and also books for parents of five-year-olds.

Because I have more reasons to dislike the book than to find it appealing, I'll begin by sharing my complaints. My first criticism is that the book is dated, having been written in 1979. The time period of when the book was authored leaves the contents with many outdated notions, many of which I would have overlooked had they not been so irritating. Firstly, the father-child relationship is referred to only a few times, and primarily in a stereotypical manner. Conversely, the mother-child relationship is referenced in much detail throughout the text. Secondly, there is a disparaging reference to Indians, albeit as shared by a little girl from a nightmare. Thirdly, the book recommends that a five-year-old ought to be able to walk alone two blocks to a store. Not that crime against children is any worse now than in the late Seventies, but what parent in his or her right mind would let a child of this age do this? (Am I wrong?) Fourthly, and perhaps trivially, when it comes to common activities for five-year-olds, many are dated, such as listening to records.

My second criticism of the book is that it gave me no new ideas on how to have my son initiate and complete more simple tasks on his own, which was my purpose for buying the book.

On the positive side, the book can be read in a few hours. Secondly, it contains several enchanting pictures of smiling five-year-olds. The "Accomplishments and Abilities" chapter does give the reader some indication as to whether your five-year-old is on track, but the substance is primarily common sense.

All said, I doubt this book will provide much enlightenment to parents looking for suggestions such as I sought.

Rating:
Summary: Not Very Enlightening
Review: As parents we all require occasional assistance when it comes to parenting. We seek advice from friends, family members, doctors, and other "experts," and if you're like me, you reach for a book. My five-year-old is delightful in most ways, but I'm concerned that he should take more initiative and accomplish additional simple tasks on with limited guidance. In fact, it seems he has been conditioned to wait for my wife and me to perform simple tasks for him and, therefore, he has been "taught" to be helpless in many situations. For this reason, I sought a book to give me a few ideas on everyday responsibilities that five-year-olds ought to be accomplishing on their own.

I bought "Your Five-Year-Old" by Louise Bates Ames after it was recommended to me by an expert in positive discipline.

The book is very short, at 111 pages, and is divided into ten chapters:

1.Characteristics of Age Five
2.The Child and Others
3.Routines, Health, and Tensional Outlets
4.Discipline
5.Accomplishments and Abilities
6.The Child's Mind
7.School
8.The Five-Year-Old Party
9.Individuality
10.Stories from Real Life

It also includes appendixes on good toys and books for five-year-olds and also books for parents of five-year-olds.

Because I have more reasons to dislike the book than to find it appealing, I'll begin by sharing my complaints. My first criticism is that the book is dated, having been written in 1979. The time period of when the book was authored leaves the contents with many outdated notions, many of which I would have overlooked had they not been so irritating. Firstly, the father-child relationship is referred to only a few times, and primarily in a stereotypical manner. Conversely, the mother-child relationship is referenced in much detail throughout the text. Secondly, there is a disparaging reference to Indians, albeit as shared by a little girl from a nightmare. Thirdly, the book recommends that a five-year-old ought to be able to walk alone two blocks to a store. Not that crime against children is any worse now than in the late Seventies, but what parent in his or her right mind would let a child of this age do this? (Am I wrong?) Fourthly, and perhaps trivially, when it comes to common activities for five-year-olds, many are dated, such as listening to records.

My second criticism of the book is that it gave me no new ideas on how to have my son initiate and complete more simple tasks on his own, which was my purpose for buying the book.

On the positive side, the book can be read in a few hours. Secondly, it contains several enchanting pictures of smiling five-year-olds. The "Accomplishments and Abilities" chapter does give the reader some indication as to whether your five-year-old is on track, but the substance is primarily common sense.

All said, I doubt this book will provide much enlightenment to parents looking for suggestions such as I sought.

Rating:
Summary: General information on what to expect from a 5 year old
Review: I enjoyed reading the book especially the sections on school readiness and how a 5 year old child's mind works. This is a good book for parents to read in light of the tendency to push children academically and socially before they are ready developmentally.

Rating:
Summary: Practical, helpful information.
Review: When you know what behaviors are "normal" for your child's age you can relax, stop the worry, and focus on appropriate solutions. This whole series of books accurately defines the ages and stages of children. These books keep your expectations realistic and allow you to avoid anger caused by a lack of understanding of your child's developmental stages.

Rating:
Summary: Practical, helpful information.
Review: When you know what behaviors are "normal" for your child's age you can relax, stop the worry, and focus on appropriate solutions. This whole series of books accurately defines the ages and stages of children. These books keep your expectations realistic and allow you to avoid anger caused by a lack of understanding of your child's developmental stages.