Infants

The first three years of life play a crucial role in setting the stage for later adjustment and success. For children with disabilities, children at risk, and even for healthy infants and toddlers born into well-functioning families, support and early intervention can foster optimal growth and development. This concise and readable guide presents a developmentally sound framework for strengths-based intervention with parents and young children. The volume is filled with practical suggestions for building positive family relationships, cultivating parental knowledge and understanding of child development, and enhancing family support systems. Also featured is an extensive annotated bibliography that describes a wealth of additional resources for professionals and parents. Grounded in research and informed by wisdom from the field, this book provides essential knowledge and skills for professionals and students across a range of health care, social service, and educational disciplines.

Martha Farrell Erickson, PhD, is Director of the Children, Youth and Family Consortium at the University of Minnesota. The author of numerous scholarly publications, she also writes a syndicated parenting column and appears regularly as the parenting expert for KARE-TV.Karen Kurz-Riemer, MEd, is a family education consultant, writer, and trainer, based in Minneapolis.