Day to Day the Relationship Way

Donna S. Wittmer received her PhD from Syracuse University. She taught behavioral pediatrics at Upstate Medical Center and also provided early intervention assessment and intervention services on the Onondaga Indian Nation. She was a professor of earlychildhood/early childhood special education at the University of Colorado Denver for 17 years. Donna is a fellow of Zero to Three. Donna coauthored Infant and Toddler Development and Responsive Program Planning (4th ed.), Endless Possibilities (2nd ed.), and The Young Child from Birth to 8 (7th ed.). Her most recent books include From Biting to Hugging—Understanding Social Development in Infants and Toddlers and Crying and Laughing—Understanding the Emotional Development of Infants and Toddlers. She is the author of numerous articles on early childhood education and has presented at many NAEYC and Zero to Three conferences. Alice Sterling Honig, PhD, is professor emerita of child development at Syracuse University, where for 36 years she directed the annual National Quality Infant/Toddler Caregiving Workshop. She received the university’s highest honor, the Chancellor’s Citation for Exceptional Academic Achievement. Dr. Honig has published 600 articles and book chapters, more than two dozen books, and several videos for parents and caregivers. She served as Research in Review editor for NAEYC’s peer-reviewed journal, Young Children, for six years and has lectured widely in the United States and abroad. Dr. Honig was program director of the Children’s Center, a pioneer enrichment project serving infants and young children and their families in Syracuse. As a volunteer she led sessions for the Onondaga County Mental Health Association to help parents with difficult divorce and custody issues. In 2013 she presented the first Dr. Alice Honig award in China to a prominent Beijing pediatrician. In 2015 Dr. Bettye Caldwell endowed an undergraduate Falk College scholarship in Dr. Honig’s name.

"Wittmer and Honig really know babies, and they know that babies need teachers who create,every day, an environment filled with authentic, responsive relationships—with familymembers, babies, and with each other—that provide the secure foundation for exploration andcuriosity, development and learning. This book illustrates how this all happens." — Bonnie Neugebauer, Global Impact Engineer, World Forum Foundation and Founding Editor of Exchange

• Chapter 1: Protection, Affection, and Emotional Connections: The Importance of Relationships for Children and families Chapter 2: The Importance of Relationship-Based Programs Chapter 3: How Infants and Toddlers Learn Chapter 4: The Wonder of Learning to “Be” Chapter 5: The Wonder of Belonging and Becoming Social with Peers Chapter 6: The Wonder of Learning to Communicate Easily and Effectively Chapter 7: The Wonder of Learning to Learn, Thinking and Problem-Solving Chapter 8: The Wonder of Learning to Move Successfully Chapter 9: Receptive, Sensitive, Reflective and Responsive—You as a Relationship-Based Chapter 10: Getting to Know You—Routines, Rituals, and Relationships Chapter 11: Relationship-Based Environments Chapter 12: What Should We Do Today? Providing Responsive Learning OpportunitiesChapter 13: Relationship Realignments: Ideas for What to Do When… Chapter 14: More Relationship Building Strategies with Family Chapter 15: A Relationship-Based Profession References Appendix: Interactions That Support infants’ and toddlers’ Development and Learning AcknowledgmentsAbout the Authors