RIE: More Than An Unusual Parenting Theory

"RIE is centered on the idea that infants and toddlers are whole people worthy of respect. It gets attention for some weird recommendations, like how we should ask babies' permission before changing a diaper or picking them up and how we should avoid distracting toddlers from a tantrum or seating them in a high chair. But underneath all that is something profound. A theory of how to build a relationship based on respect when words fail or are absent. A view of what it means to treat others with respect when we cant count on respect being returned. And a recognition that in any interaction with another person, all we can really control is ourselves -- the boundaries we draw, the energy we carry and the values we express." In the following interview Ezra Klein speaks with Janet Lansbury, an RIE educator and the author of the books 'No Bad Kids' and 'Elevating Child Care.'

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