The outlined steps below have been adapted from one of Zero To Three's parenting resource books:

Bringing Up Baby: Three Steps to Making Good Decisions in
Your Child's First Years
Claire Lerner and Amy Laura Dombro 2005

In this book, parents will learn an easy, 3-step approach for making parenting decisions in the first three years and beyond.

I Learn About What My Body Can Do

• I can make marks on paper with crayons. I can stack and line up books. I can feed myself with my fingers. If my family encourages me, I can use a spoon and can drink from a cup.
• I can crawl, then walk, then run! I love to try to climb stairs but still need a lot of help with this.
• I want to help you get me dressed and undressed. I can push my foot into my shoe and my arm into my sleeve.

I Learn About My Feelings and Who I Am

• I feel important and loved when you listen to, talk to, and play with me; when you love and cuddle me; when you encourage me to explore and join in my discoveries; when you show that you are proud of me.
• I have favorite people, toys, food, and clothing. I can point to and tell you the names of many parts of my body. I begin to use “me” and “mine.”
• I have strong feelings and may express them with gusto. I might say “No!” a lot or give orders, like telling you to “Sit there!” to show you I know what I want and that I have a mind of my own.
• Separations are hard. I may even cry when I see you again after we have been apart because I’ve missed you so much.
• I like to make choices. Doing so helps me feel that I am competent and that I have some control.
• Routines help me know what to expect and to feel safe and secure.
• I can get frustrated and angry pretty easily because there are so many things I want to do that I can’t do yet. I may push, hit, or bite. I need you to help me manage my strong feelings, but it will still take time for me to learn better self-control.
• Even though I understand when you tell me “No!” or “Stop!” I still can’t keep myself from doing things I shouldn’t.
• One minute I might act really independent. The next, I act like a little baby who needs you to do everything for me. Being a "big kid" can be scary sometimes. I need to know that you or someone else I trust will always be there to care for me.

I Learn About People, Objects and How Things Work

• I like to be with other children, but kids my age still don’t know how to share. You can help us learn to take turns.
• I imitate you. I see how you talk with other people and how you do things like cleaning, caring for the dog, cooking dinner, fixing things around the house.
• I am a little scientist. I want to explore during? every waking moment so I can figure out how everything works—from how to get you to read my favorite book to how to make the block fit in the hole or how to make my music box start again.
• I learn that people and things exist even when I can’t see them. (This ability is called “object permanence.”) So I may protest when you leave the room, start calling for you in the middle of the night, look for the ball that has rolled behind the couch.
• Separations can be really hard. Seeing that you always come back will help make separations easier over time.
I Learn to Communicate and Relate
• I use my body, sounds, words and facial expression to let you know what I am thinking and feeling.
• I point to show you what interests me, so you'll look too and tell me about what I see.
• I create long babble sentences. I may be able to say a few words or use consistent sounds for words, like "baba" for bottle. I may push the cracker that I don't want off the high chair and say "nuh."
• I understand a lot more than I can say. I can follow simple directions like "Go get your ball."
• I imitate what you say. So don't be surprised if you hear the words you use coming out of my mouth!

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