Well, how much of your baby’s personality or abilities are related to his genetic makeup and how much is related to the stimuli you give him, the emotions you make him feel, or the environment in which you raised him?
In his book titled “You Grow Your Child”, the first edition of which was published in 2011, Prof. Dr. Mehmet Oz and Prof. Dr. We would like to share with you an excerpt from Michael F. Roizen’s book. In our opinion, they conveyed the subject very clearly and beautifully. In their paragraph, where they describe child rearing as rowing against genetics, Öz and Roizen said: “…the latest information on pregnancy and child development says that we can change the way genes express themselves (or influence our traits) starting even when the child is in the womb. In other words, a child is not dependent on the actions of the DNA in him at birth. You can change these by adjusting what you expose your child to. You can turn your genes on and off. So you are responsible for shaping every aspect of your child’s development, from the development of personality and behavior to their future health. It’s really incredible. By changing the way your child’s genes function, you can change his life, too. So where does this end? You got it right, around him.”
In short, it is emphasized that regardless of the genetic characteristics of your baby, the ENVIRONMENT to which it is exposed is the MOST IMPORTANT THING IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF. Dr. Oz and Dr. Roizen explains this with epigenetics, and they say that the toys we choose, the food we prepare, the music we play, and of course the emotions and attitudes we bring to our interactions with our child affect the entire structure of the child. As they explain in their book, “Epigenetics shows us that the working of genes changes with the actions your child takes and the environment in which your child grows up.”
The Importance of the Ready Environment
In fact, it was also said by Jean Piaget, who was one of the main founders of cognitive development in the 1800s, that development is the interaction of heredity (genetics) and environment. Piaget defined intelligence as the ability to adapt to the environment. According to Paiget, the thinking and reasoning that children use in problem solving reflect the interaction between their developmental level and experience. The importance of the environment in the development of the child. It is also very emphasized in all the books and teachings written by Maria Montessori. Dr. Maria Montessori also said that the best thing parents can do for the child to reach his or her potential is to avoid unnecessary interventions and to offer the “Ready Environment” that will support the development of the child. It is meant that the ready environment is to be able to provide materials and activities that support the development of the child in different areas, and an environment that provides the child with the opportunity to move and limited (internalized security and discipline) freedom and meets the needs of the child.