How can we raise kids that are not only academically successful but also resilient, happy and healthy amid the challenges of the modern world? That is a question tackled by Dr Shelley Davidow and Dr Michael C Nagel who have written Grounded to offer a ‘tool kit’ of practical advice for parents. Rooted in neuroscience, psychology and education, the book provides a roadmap in a parents’ journey to foster optimal cognitive, emotional and physiological growth for their children from infancy to adolescence, while also focusing on the key message that a parent’s wellbeing is integral to effectively supporting their children. The AJN spoke with co-author Dr Davidow, originally from South Africa who is a senior lecturer in education at the University of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, and an author of more than 50 books including her newly-released novel The Girl With the Violin about a Jewish Australian violinist who wins a scholarship to Berlin in 1989, which she will be discussing at the Sydney Jewish Museum on July 14.
Asked why it is called Grounded, Dr Davidow said, “It is about feeling stable, even if it looks like the earth is shifting.” Discussing the inspiration behind Grounded she commented, “After writing a previous parenting book called Raising Stress-Proof Kids, parents came to me and said, ‘The kids are fine! Where is the book for us? We are stressed and we have to manage that.” This led the authors to create a book that would give parents the tools.
