Developmental Milestones
Every Child’s Path of Development Is Unique
In recent years, parents have been made increasingly aware of developmental milestones or stages that chart expected timetables of childhood development. A greater and greater premium has been placed on babies achieving these milestones at earlier ages. Parents are often encouraged, by professionals and paraprofessionals, to try to speed up their child’s achievement of these milestones.
Anat Baniel Method® NeuroMovement® takes a totally different approach. We do not focus on trying to have a child accomplish a specific developmental milestone at a given time. We do not recommend that you try to accelerate your child’s development. Doing this pushes your child to perform specific skills before her brain has the necessary underlying neural networks to be able to perform those skills.
In other words, the brain needs to first reach a level of maturity that makes it possible for the child to do whatever skill she is ready to learn and to master.
Every Child Develops at His Own Rate
Every child’s path of development is unique, resulting from the incredibly complex processes in the brain, involving the creation of billions of new connections. At the same time, the underlying processes and conditions needed for successful brain development in kids are the same for all children.
Your child’s brain is a remarkable system that will grow successfully through its own mechanisms if given the right conditions.
Unfortunately, in an attempt to insure and promote child development, many approaches have reverted to trying to force specific outcomes at prescribed ages. Or they try to accelerate developmental milestones out of the belief that somehow that will ensure a better future for the child. Many parents experience great anxiety, concerned that their child is behind their developmental schedule for rolling over, sitting, standing, walking, talking, reading, writing…the list is endless.
With NeuroMovement, we recognize that there are developmental stages that children go through. If a child is significantly behind any of the main stages, it may mean that there is a problem that needs to be attended to. At the same time, we believe that every child develops at his own rate and through his own unique path.
With this approach, we understand that when we try to directly control and force a child to perform what we think he should be able to do, we actually are very likely to interfere in his brain’s development.
Awaken Your Child’s Brain with the Nine Essentials
NeuroMovement and the Nine Essentials powerfully awaken your child’s brain to do its own work. Through the Nine Essentials, we show you ways to access your child’s own brain plasticity so that she can spontaneously grow from within, yielding far greater results with a lot less stress for both your child and you.
You will be able to know which child development activities are good for your child. Through the Essentials, you will connect with your child more fully. You’ll be able to observe and enjoy the remarkable process of growth that is taking place in front of your eyes. You will understand that you are helping to provide your child’s brain with the quality information it needs for optimal development.
When using the Essentials, you and your child will experience great joy. You will be able to relax knowing that you’re supporting, rather than interfering, with your child’s brain development. Your child will often surprise you as she grows to become her amazing, authentic, full self.
And when you have flexible goals, rather than focusing on rigid milestones for your child, you give your child’s brain the opportunities for becoming most ingenious in discovering solutions to challenges. This is when your child becomes most alive.
