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Hetty van de Pi[t, Ph.D.,

and
Frans P|ooi[, Ph.D.
1he Most
Important
Deve|opmenta|
Weeks in our
Baby's First
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Yeur Baby's 8 6reat Fussy Phases
For detail, suitable for your family bulletin board, see page 4.
Contents
About this book
Customer Reviews
Introduction
Chapter 1: Growing Up: How Your Baby Does It
Chapter 2: Newborn: Welcome to the World
Chapter 3: 5 Weeks: The World of
Changing Sensations
Chapter 4: 8 Weeks: The World of Patterns
Chapter 5: 12 Weeks: The World of
Smooth Transitions
Chapter 6: 19 Weeks: The World of Events
Chapter 7: 26 Weeks: The World of Relationships
Chapter 8: 37 Weeks: The World of Categories
Chapter 9: 46 Weeks: The World of Sequences
Chapter 10: 55 Weeks: The World of Programs
Postscript: Countless Wonders
Further Reading
Resources
Index
The Wonder Weeks
Eight predictable, age-linked leaps
in your babys mental development
ISBN 9079208019 xix, 348 p. 6.7 x 9.6 inches
Available at Internet bookstores around the world.
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WW_info_chart.pdf page 1 available at www.thewonderweeks.com
Book description:
The Wonder Weeks describes in easy-to-understand terms the incredible developmental changes that all
babies go through during the rst 60 weeks of their lives.
The book is based on the discovery of a little known phenomenon: all normal, healthy babies appear to
be more tearful, troublesome, demanding and clingy at very nearly the same ages. So, the authors are able to
predict, to within almost a week, when parents can expect their babies to go through one of the difcult clingy,
cranky, crying periods when babies want to be close to their caregiver.
These age-related uctuations in need for body contact and attention are related to major and quite dramatic
changes in the brains of the children. These changes enable a baby to enter a whole new perceptual world and,
as a consequence, to learn many new skills, and should therefore be a reason for celebration. After all, its a sign
that the little chap is making wonderful progress. But as far as the baby is concerned these changes are bewil-
dering. Hes taken abackeverything has changed overnight. It is as if he has woken up on a strange planet.
The clingy periods alert parents and make them worried, resulting in a more intensive caregiving and interac-
tion with their baby. This facilitates the new learning and helps the baby to make the leap into the new world.
This book focuses on the eight major leaps which the authors have found every baby takes in his rst fourteen
months of life. It tells you what each of these developments means for a babys understanding of the world around
him, and how he uses this understanding to develop the new skills he needs at each stage of his development.
What this means for new or prospective parents is that they can use this understanding of their babys developmen-
tal leaps to help him through these often confusing times in his very new life. They will be able to understand better the
way their baby is thinking and why he acts as he does at certain times. They will be able to choose the right kind of
help as he needs it, and the right kind of environment to help him make the most of every leap in his development.
Whats in this Book:
Chapter 1: Growing Up: How Your Baby Does It explains some of the research on which this book is
based and how it applies to the parents own baby. They will learn how their baby literally grows by making
leaps in his mental development and how these are preceded by stormy periods when they can expect their
baby to be clingy, cranky or temperamental.
Chapter 2: Newborn: Welcome to the World explains what a newborns world is like and how he per-
ceives the myriad new sensations that surround him. The reader will learn how nature has equipped the baby to
deal with the challenges of life, and how important physical contact is to his future development.
Subsequent chapters deal with the eight major developmental leaps that each baby will go throughat
around 5, 8, 12, 19, 26, 37, 46 and 55 weeks of age, respectively. Each chapter tells the parents the signs
that will let them know that a major leap is occurring. It explains the new perceptual changes their baby experi-
ences at this time and how their baby will make use of them in his development. The chapters are written in such
a way that parents can dive in straightaway, so to speak, after they have left the book on the shelf for a while.
Parents can use the accompanying checklists in each chapter to keep track of the things their baby chooses
to do as each new world opens up to him and his new skills take wing. There are age-appropriate games in
each chapter which make use of their babys skills at each stage of his development.
The book includes:
Week-by-week guide to babys behavior
An explanation of the markers for cranky, clingy, crying (the three Cs) behavior and how to react
A description of your babys perspective on the world around him and how it can help you understand
the changes hes going through
Fun games and gentle activities you can do with your child
This book offers parents:
Support in times of trouble
Self-condence
Help in understanding their baby
Hints on how to help their baby play and learn
A unique account of their babys development
Besides helping parents understand their babys problems and share his progress, this book will also give
the parents the opportunity to compare their experiences with those of the other parents whose comments are
included in this book. In that sense, it is a book by parents for parents.
WW_info_chart.pdf page 2 available at www.thewonderweeks.com
Over the years the authors have asked many parents of new babies to keep records of their babies progress
and also to record their thoughts and feelings as well as observations of their babies behavior from day to day.
The diaries which have been included in this book are a small sample of these, based on the weekly reports from
the original study group of 15 babieseight girls and seven boys. From the many reports from their readers, the
authors have learned that parents feel their baby is growing alongside those in the study group and that they can
relate their observations of their baby to those of other parents.
Most important, parents gain peace of mind and condence in their own ability to bring up their baby. In this
way, this book will be a reliable friend and an indispensable guide in the crucial rst year of a babys life.
Research background:
The authors studied chimpanzees in Africa with Jane Goodall and found evidence for distinct regression
periods periods during which infants return to a high frequency of motherinfant contact and their behavior
changes dramatically. This conrmed research that others had found previously in 12 more primate species.
They returned to Europe to see if these regression periods could be established in human infants. By inter-
viewing and observing mothers and their newborn babies in their homes weekly during the rst 20 months of life,
they found and reported on 10 regression periods.
The original study was based on 15 families. Later these ndings were conrmed by other researchers in 32
families in the Netherlands, 20 families in Spain, 17 families in Sweden and 30 families in England.
Findings were reported in scientic journals and presented in this general book for parents, rst published in
1992 in the Netherlands as Oei, ik groei! For links to references, see www.thewonderweeks.com
Experts say:
This is a very practical and entertaining window into the babys rst year and a half. van de Rijt and Plooij
have observed and found the vulnerable times in an infants development that I independently came to in my
book Touchpoints (Perseus). The authors observations and practical suggestions are wonderful.
T. Berry Brazelton, M.D., professor emeritus, Harvard Medical School
Anyone who deals with infants and young children will want to read The Wonder Weeks. This book will
open parents eyes to aspects of their childrens growth, development, changing behavior, and emotional respon-
siveness that they might otherwise not notice or nd puzzling and distressing.
Catherine Snow, Ph.D., Shattuck Professor of Education,
Harvard Graduate School of Education
van de Rijt and Plooijs work on infant development has enormous value for clinical use and scientic application.
Not only have they explained the periods of puzzling, difcult behavior in infancy which so worry parents, they
have also shown how these behaviors mark developmental leaps and have described the stages in the infants
understanding. Together, this gives parents and professionals soundly based insight into babies developing minds.
Whats more, van de Rijt and Plooij have described the play and communication that work best with babies at
different ages and thus helped parents understand and connect sensitively with their babies. This parent-child con-
nection is the major prerequisite for the development of secure, well-adjusted children. The Wonder Weeks is essential
reading for everyone who works with infantspediatricians, social workers, psychologists, and, of course, parents.
John Richer, Ph.D., Dip. Clin. Psychol., consultant clinical psychologist and Head of Pediatric Psychology,
Department of Pediatrics,
John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, England
van de Rijt and Plooij will help you see the world the way an infant sees it. As the child grows, displays of
emotion (such as crying) tell us the child is summoning reserves of energy and is calling out for help in nding
new ways to perceive the changing world. Because van de Rijt and Plooij have discovered predictable stages in
the widening of the infants perceptions and skills, they can enable you, with their superb examples, to recognize
the onset of these stressful episodes and to join your child in coping with them. So rich, indeed, are the implica-
tions of nding new perceptions and new skills in the midst of stress that whether or not you are a parent, it can
never be too early or too late to prot from this book.
Philip J. Runkel, Ph.D., professor emeritus of psychology and education, University of Oregon
WW_info_chart.pdf page 3 available at www.thewonderweeks.com
WW_info_chart.pdf page 4 available at www.thewonderweeks.com
Around this week, it is most likely that
your babys sunny side will shine through.
Around this week, a stormy
period is most likely to occur.
Your baby may be
more fussy now.
Fussy and irritable behavior at around 29 or 30 weeks is not a telltale sign of another leap.
Your baby has simply discovered that his mommy can walk away and leave him behind.
Funny as it may sound, this is progress. It is a new skill: He is learning about distances.
Your baby is probably going through
a comparatively uncomplicated phase.
Progress forecast for
__________________________________
57 58 59 60 61 weeks old
36 37 38 39 40 41 42 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 weeks old
Get ready wk 34: ___ /___
Read Ch 8: Categories
Get ready wk 42: ___ /___
Read Ch 9: Sequences
50 51 52 53 54 55 56 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 weeks old
Get ready wk 51: ___ /___
Read Ch 10: Programs
Get ready wk 15: ___ /___
Read Ch 6: Events
22 23 24 25 26 27 28 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 weeks old
Get ready wk 23: ___ /___
Read Ch 7: Relationships
8 9 10 11 12 13 14 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 weeks old
Get ready wk 4: ___ /___
Read Ch 3: Sensations
Week 0: ____ /____ 20___
0 = due date, not birth.
Read Ch 1 & 2: Welcome
Get ready wk 11: ___ /___
Read Ch 5: Transitions
Get ready wk 7: ___ /___
Read Ch 4: Patterns
Your Babys 8 Great Fussy Phases
NOTE: You can sign up for the Leap Alarm at www.thewonderweeks.com. You will get an email when your baby is about to make the next leap.