The Importance of Being Little: What Preschoolers Really Need from Grownups

4.5 | 521 ratings

Price: 21.88

Last update: 08-23-2024

Top reviews from the United States

Erica

Excellent resource for parents and teachers

Reviewed in the United States on April 19, 2019

As a parent and teacher, I highly recommend this book. I got this originally for insight on raising my kid and creating an environment that supports learning (human connection and play are more important than test prep and work sheets, unsurprisingly), but it also had an impact on me as a teacher. Though I teach high school, it's inspired me to try out some things in the classroom that might help ignite students' interest in actually learning vs. getting good grades.

This book is pretty common sense, but still worth the read. The author is pretty realistic, and aside from the fact that after turning an outdoor frog (or was it a toad?) into a pet for a while, she released it back into the wild, she has some good ideas and advice.

J. S. Lewkowski

The Importance of Being Little in order to be A Contributing Big

Reviewed in the United States on June 25, 2016

After working in the field of Occupational Therapy for forty years, the last twenty involving from - "being very little" persons, to - "being very big little" persons.

My love and interest is in the processes observable in the field of “developmental delay”.
Captured in this label or scope, are areas of sensory, motor, perpetual, auditory-language and emotional processing, with differences of various extremes. The common denominator appeared to be that these people are extremely intelligent, intuitive, motivated, cooperative and with unusual initiatives.

The common interruption and violation……… the education systems, the educationists, the politics and stupidity of people who don’t understand children and their development until death.
In her, book , Erika Christakis has presented her experiences, insights and tremendous knowledge and understanding, as well as the simple solutions possible to help little people grow to be fulfilled,self-fufilling and contributing adults.

Jennifer Lewkowski
Occupational Therapist - ResultsOT
Dip.OT : Jerusalem. Advanced Dip.OT: Neurosciences :Johannesburg. South Africa.

Tel: +27 11 887 5945
Email:[email protected]

Kindle Customer

Very good points on early childhood

Reviewed in the United States on June 26, 2023

So... I agree with the author on most of her points and I found her book a real eye opener but I am rating it 4 stars because I felt like I was reading a very promising draft rather than a finished product (it felt wordy at times and some ideas were not very well articulated) I felt I needed to make my own independent notes to make the information digestible. I will use these notes as my toddler grows up and I think that shows reading the book was time well spent :)

N K Carroll

Being little is important and so is this book

Reviewed in the United States on February 19, 2016

Erika Christakis writes with passion, scholarship, heart and humor. The Importance of Being Little offers insights about how young kids think and learn and offers ideas on how we can vastly improve pre-school. Christakis is a fierce advocate for PLAY and through the research she sites, shows how young kids think and learn. Her writing style is completely appealing, full of stories that hold our interest. This book is a great read for early childhood educators ( bless their souls! ), young parents and grandparents and all who care about the next generation. I hope The Importance of Being Little is the first of many from an original and well informed thinker. I look forward to the next scholarly book, or even a novel, by this author...she is that good!

Kelly

Great read for anyone who has young children in their life

Reviewed in the United States on December 12, 2017

I feel like every early childhood educator and parent of young children needs to stop and read this book. It made me take pause and reevaluate my own parenting and teaching priorities. This book is incredibly eye- opening and refreshing. This book has completely shifted my perspective and taken off my blinders to look beyond rigor and assessment-obsession. The author is kind of annoying, though. I had to reeeally look past her humble brags and condescending comments about early educators .

David Taitelbaum

Great read

Reviewed in the United States on November 2, 2016

Great read from an educator with a long history in early childhood development who has worked at some of the leading institutions in the field. In our never ending attempt to help children race to the top we've missed out on an incredibly important piece of early childhood: letting kids enjoy being kids. This isn't some hippie dippie navel gazing; Christakis persuasively argues that children develop through play in a way that is frankly missing in our skills driven preschool and prekindergarten. Highly recommended for anyone with a toddler and is mulling over the options for preschool and beyond.

Jocelyn B.

Romanticize the natural world?

Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2024

I realize we pay to read the authors opinion but this whole paragraph had me spinning.

Elliott Walker

This book looks at early childhood through the eyes of a child (a refreshing and curiously rare approach) and offers a wonderful

Reviewed in the United States on February 9, 2016

An insightful, witty, and very welcome response to the crazy “educational” pressure on children that is starting earlier and earlier and has now invaded pre-school. This book looks at early childhood through the eyes of a child (a refreshing and curiously rare approach) and offers a wonderful message that parents, teachers, grandparents, and anyone who cares about seeing little people grow up happy, well-rounded, curious, and successful will want to hear. Grounded in scholarship but fresh, funny, and accessible, this is a must-read if you care about kids. Highest recommendation.

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