Book of the week: NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children

Po Bronson's NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children was recommended in my favorite magazine, The Week.  The Week rarely lets me down, so I expected great things from this book, and I was not disappointed.  This book is a compilation of the latest scientific research about children and how modern parenting ideas are failing our youngsters.

Each chapter deals with a different aspect of parenting: praise (given way too often), sleep (getting less than ten hours per night takes the equivalent of two school years off of performance) and race (kindergarteners will notice race and come to their own conclusions, whether you mention it or not), to name a few.  This is a fascinating read for anyone who deals with children and challenges many of the rules that we have been taught to believe.  This title would make a wonderful choice for a school-wide book discussion.