At Pregnancy Awareness Month® the first of our 4 Initiatives is Educate.  We feel that it is important and actually crucial to educate yourself as you step into your role as a parent.  Parents are perpetual students, constantly learning and striving to understand all options that lay before us, so that we can make the best and most informed choices in the best interest of our family.  It is a continual process.  We gain knowledge and information from other parents, from elders and our parents, from scholars and experts in the field, from our own personal experience, and from reading.  Luckily there are many books out there to support this endeavor.

A favorite of mine is “The Well Balanced Child Movement and early learning” (http://www.amazon.com/Well-Balanced-Child-Movement-Learning/dp/1903458633/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1344919688&sr=1-1&keywords=the+well+balanced+child+movement+and+early+learning )

by Sally Goddard Blythe.  She walks you thru “why movement matters to your child” explaining its impact on brain development.  And describes the importance of balance and how that impacts sensory development.  That from the very beginning of life there is movement, and so it is the basis, the foundation, and from it strengthens our neural pathways. She explains how movement connects us to everything in the universe; a common thread of existence is movement in some form.

“The experience of movement is shared by every living thing, from the rotation of the earth on its axis to hearing the birds sing.” Blythe pg 5

It is a powerful explanation of the role of music and the brain, reflexes, the necessity to be given the space to play, etc.  It certainly gets into the science of it all, however, I was also illuminated, fascinated and inspired.  A definite read for the pregnant family.  It certainly brings the “wow factor” of being a creatress to the forefront of your thinking.

Alisa Donner, MSW, LCSW

Co-Founder Pregnancy Awareness Month®, yogini, mompreneur, social worker, and mother to an amazing wonder

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