Siegel, D. J., & Bryson, T. P. (2012).The whole-brain child: 12 revolutionary strategies to nurture your child’s developing mind. New York, NY: Bantam Books.

Reviewer:
Kara Hurt

Curricular Areas:
Human Development, Marital/Couple/Family Counseling

Subject Headings:
Family dynamics, Heath/wellness

Review:
In this book Siegel and Bryson (2012) present their brain science approach to helping parents and caregivers understand how children’s brains grow and develop so that they can help support integration between all of a child’s areas of the brain. Siegel and Bryson suggest that through understanding the basic structures of the brain, parents and caregivers such as counselors can help children more effectively respond to difficult experiences and develop foundations for social, emotional, and mental wellness. The book begins with an introduction to the concept of integration, which is connecting the different areas of the brain for better emotional and cognitive functioning. Next, horizontal and vertical integration are explored with many real-to-life examples to help parents and caregivers identify situations in which their children may be struggling with these types of dis-integration. Next, the authors focus on memories and how to help children integrate difficult or traumatic experiences from the past. Then the authors explore children’s ability to develop mindfulness and use it to make more reasoned choices and experience greater control in their lives. The last chapter addresses social connectedness and personal identity. Every chapter also contains practical suggestions and examples for implementing the 12 strategies outlined in the book. Each chapter includes a section with helpful animated scenarios to demonstrate the topic to children. Importantly, the chapters also include a section that addresses integration for adults, which allows parents and caregivers the opportunity to thoughtfully reflect on their own life experiences that have shaped their social, emotional, and mental health.

This book would be directly applicable to the work of all counselors who work with children or parents of children, either in private practice, agencies, or schools. Counselors in community agencies or private practice may consider using this text as a foundation for psychoeducational groups or parent training seminars, beyond referring to the book as a resource for parents. Elementary school counselors may consider creating a curriculum to include aspects of the Whole Brain Child that can be implements at different grade levels. This text seamlessly dovetails with Siegel’s other books on interpersonal neurobiology such as Mindsight and The Developing Mind. Moreover, the philosophy of the whole brain child is congruent with many play therapy approaches such as Child Centered Play Therapy and Child-Parent Relationship Therapy. The text is written in such a way that the authors have created a safe space for parents to reflect on their parenting and other life experiences without judgment or reprimand. The authors also seem to have taken great care to make the interpersonal neurobiology accessible to a variety of adults from parents to professionals. This book is an excellent referral source for all adults but care should be taken to ensure that parents and caregivers are given the opportunity to obtain support and process any difficult emotional experiences that may come up should they choose to engage in personal reflections guided by the book.