The Dignity of the Young Child

New and successful insights for the care and raising of the child in the first three years of life. The contributions in this book deal with the process of incarnation in the first three years of life. They highlight questions concerning the young child--walking, speaking and learning to think--on the one hand from the viewpoint of anthroposophic knowledge of the human being, and on the other hand from research by Emmi Pikler.

- How can the young child be given enough free space to best unfold its innate capacities for the future?
- How can the child's autonomous will to learn be supported and promoted, so that its personality can develop on the basis of trust and security?
- How can the relationship skills of the young child be formed by attentive and trusting togetherness in care situations, as prerequisite to be freely active.
- How should the surrounding of the little child be designed, also with regard to the self-education and self-development of the parents and educators, so that the child can experience being by itself and then again in connection with its surroundings?

The answers to these four essential questions correspond to the current state of knowledge and practical experience. To optimally support children in their development in a world that is often not child-friendly, the interdisciplinary combination of medical-psychological-pedagogical research has proven to be particularly fruitful and forward-looking.

(Published in coordination with the Association of Waldorf Kindergartens and the Medical Section at the Goetheanum.)