Summary

This parenting guide presents seven principles for guiding and teaching children in today's turbulent learning environment. It replaces traditional adult-child formulas, rewards, and punishments with playful interaction, creative intelligence, and insight. With the goal of raising happy, healthy, intelligent young people, the book adopts proven strategies that allow top athletes and others to perform at high levels, called variously "zone," "flow," and "play." Using these concepts, parents and other caregivers will learn how to create and maintain "Optimum Learning Relationships" with children of any age.

Author Biography

A documentary filmmaker for two decades and founder of Touch The Future, a nonprofit learning design center, Michael Mendizza builds bridges of understanding between the visionary educational and research community and adults who are mentoring the future of humanity. Michael has been inspired by and has worked closely with David Bohrm, J. Krishnamurti, Ashley Montagu, and his close friend Joseph Chilton Peace.

Respected internationally for his visionary understanding of child and human development, Joseph Chilton Pearce is the author of Crack in the Cosmic Egg, Magical Child, Magical Child Matures, Bond of Power, Evolution's End, and most recently The Biology of Transcendence. His lifelong passion has been understanding and describing our "amazing capacities and self inflicted limitations." Joe's vision of the Magical Child and our transcendent nature continues to inspire audiences around the world.

Foreword	p. ix
The Intelligence of Play
Introduction
Real Jedi Masters Play	p. 3
In the Zone	p. 4
Optimum Learning Relationships	p. 5
Who's Leading Who and Where Are We Going?	p. 11
Intelligence and the Developing Brain
Intelligence--Who, What & Where?	p. 14
Brains Here, Brains There, Brains Everywhere	p. 15
Images, the Brain, and Its Operating System	p. 17
Origins of Self As Self-Defense
To Me or Not to Me? That Is the Question	p. 18
Self As Self-Defense	p. 20
Shame and the Origins of Self	p. 21
Becoming As Others See Us	p. 22
Developing Capacity
Stage Specific Learning	p. 24
The Model Imperative	p. 24
Evolution--The Lower into the Higher	p. 25
Devolution--The Higher into the Lower	p. 26
Environmental Signals	p. 26
States of Being and Their Meaning
State-Specific Learning	p. 27
Reflexes--Mental, Emotional, Physical Pinball	p. 29
The Magic of Memory	p. 30
The Primacy of States	p. 32
States Are Content	p. 33
Fields of Meaning	p. 34
Sharing Fields	p. 35
The Intelligence of the Heart	p. 36
Insight-Intelligence and Beginner's Mind	p. 39
Play--The Optimum State
The Intelligence of Play	p. 41
Play As Learning	p. 42
Authentic Play--Four perspectives	p. 43
Safe Enough to Play
The Safe Place	p. 47
Basic Trust	p. 50
A Lifetime of Experience in a Glance	p. 52
The Learning Channel We Call Bonding	p. 53
Primary Learning and Conditioning	p. 57
Play, Practice, and Work	p. 58
Play Ages and Stages
Smiles	p. 61
High Chair Play	p. 62
Toddlers	p. 62
Storytelling	p. 63
Monkey See--Monkey Do	p. 63
Child of the Dream	p. 64
Play-Talk	p. 64
Three's a Crowd	p. 65
Rough and Tumble	p. 66
Groupies	p. 68
No Grown-ups Allowed!	p. 68
Do It Yourself!	p. 69
Television and Computer Play	p. 70
The Art of Play	p. 72
Adult Play	p. 73
Abstract Play	p. 74
Transcendent Play, Sacred Play	p. 75
Rewards and Punishments
Conforming to Expected Patterns	p. 75
It Is All About Control	p. 79
Our Contest Culture	p. 80
Approval of Others	p. 82
What Will They Think of Me?	p. 83
Play Deprivation and Violence	p. 85
Focusing on the Score	p. 86
Whacking, Spanking and Corporal Punishment	p. 86
Athletics and the Intelligence of Play
Adulterating Free Play	p. 89
Intrinsic (Inside) vs. Extrinsic (Outside) Motivation	p. 92
Following the Leader	p. 95
Little League	p. 96
Winning and Losing	p. 97
Magical Parents--Magical Athletes	p. 99
Watching with Wonder	p. 102
The Coach	p. 103
Expanding Our Boundaries	p. 104
Transforming Ourselves--Transforming Culture
Our Brave New Industrial Mind	p. 106
Principles for Peak Performance and Optimum Learning
Taking the Lid Off Development, a Candid Dialogue: Joseph Chilton Pearce and Michael Mendizza	p. 113
Introduction to Principles	p. 126
Guidelines	p. 128
Becoming Multi-Dimensional Human Beings	p. 128
Being Attentive to Being (the model imperative)	p. 129
Safe Enough to Play (protecting, belonging, the safe place)	p. 131
Invite the Unexpected (suspending assumptions)	p. 133
Take Your Cues from the Child (the art of listening & observing)	p. 135
Responding Deeply and Completely (the awakening of intelligence)	p. 137
Imagine (more on television & computers)	p. 139
Renewing (reincarnating now)	p. 146
Playful Parenting--The Optimum Learning Relationship	p. 148
Conversations
San Francisco	p. 153
Santa Cruz	p. 173
Nevada City	p. 187
References
Touch the Future Interview Index	p. 203
Recomended Video Programs
Featuring Joseph Chilton Pearce
Reaching Beyond Magical Child, Six One-Hour Programs	p. 204
Mother-Infant Bonding and The Intelligence of the Heart	p. 205
Discovering the Intelligence of Play	p. 206
Golf and The Intelligence of Play	p. 207
The Origins of Love and Violence	p. 208
Babies Know More Than You Think	p. 209
Index	p. 210
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Supplemental Materials

What is included with this book?

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.