I wasn’t able to download this title to my Kindle so unfortunately I am able to give feedback on it. It’s a shame as was looking forward to reading and reviewing.

This is a review of an e-book I was sent for free. All opinions are my own.

There are two books in The Language of Play series. The first is targeted at parents of children age 0-7 and the second for those with children age 8-12. I chose to review the latter, as both my boys are older than seven. Joanna is currently writing a third title on parenting of teenagers.

This book is full of suggestions of what to do in 15 minutes, devoting that time to mindfully present play with your child or children. There are plenty of ideas, some of which may be things you already do, but hopefully lots of new material for everyone.

And there are chapters specifically focussing on sibling relationships, friendships, homework, independence, self-esteem, risk, special needs and preparing for the next stage. Also a chapter on ‘How do I get my child to …’ with topics like Engage in Physical Activity or What If questions. These range through What if my child will not do any chores, is being bullied, is the bully, steals.

However some of the props required for certain play activities were items I would rather not see promoted in a book like this. The two in particular for me were cotton wool balls, a single-use product and balloons which can be so dangerous to wildlife.

But I was especially pleased to see stories mentioned. My younger son has a set of Dr Who story cubes, which we enjoy using together for mindful play, even though my Dr Who knowledge is very basic compared to his level.

A very good useful resource book.

I found this book for older children more insightful that the younger kids version. There is a lot of information here, for an age group I think is largely ignored in most parenting books.

It's worth a read if you're looking for practical ideas, often more than one for each issue, on common sticking points as families navigate this tricky bit as children are becoming more independent and aware of their own needs and interests.

This is a mindful and practical parenting roadmap for busy, time-poor parents. Based on a simple and effective formula, it will transform family life in just fifteen minutes of daily play, resulting in less tears and more laughter.

Middle childhood (for those aged 8–12 years old) is often the most overlooked phase of a child’s development but it’s the age where play continue to serve an important role in their emotional growth. It’s also an age where we are most likely to stop playing with our children.

With over twenty years of clinical expertise and neuro-scientific research, psychotherapist and parenting expert Joanna Fortune shares her proven techniques that will enable you to better understand your relationship with your children as they grow and ensure that your parenting is developing with them.

The book is full of helpful advice and I really liked the 15-minute games and activities that you can use. Some of them I had heard of before but there was a range, some of which you could use with siblings too.

I found this book full of interesting and practical tips to help parents build better relationships with their children. I have two children within this age bracket and the book made me think about the way I have dealt with situations in the past and what I could have done better. Joanna Fortune's tone is non-judgemental and it feels like this book can make a positive impact on all those people raising children of this age.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a free e-copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

A great book about parenting, with a focus on child development, giving tips and advice that are easy and practical for parents with children ages 8-12!

Right from the beginning, I trusted the author, Joanna Fortune. As a clinical psychotherapist, specialist, author, and speaker, she is an expert in her field and I could tell from from the start of the book that she had a ton of knowledge on the subject of child development and parenting. She had case studies inserted that I enjoyed reading, and felt that they helped to explain or make certain situations more clear.

As a parent to two daughters within this age range, I enjoyed reading the sections on making friendships (encouraging parents to support friendships, but to stay out of them if possible), sibling relationships (so helpful with two daughters close in age), and how to help children build independence and self-esteem, while still maintaining parental boundaries. There were so many helpful tips and pieces of advice that made sense in this book that I want to tuck away and remember for when these moments come across with my children. After reading this book, I feel like I communicate better with my daughters, am a better listener, and observe more rather than trying to solve their problems for them.

This was a very informative book and I would recommend it to anyone with children in this age range! Thank you to NetGalley and Thread Books for an eGalley of this title.

Very interesting and informative to read. As a parent you get so many help books as a baby. Courses for this that and the next thing. But as they get older that help dwindled. So it’s great to see books like this being written. Great help and lots of things that can be put into practice.

An informative book with support on how to bring back or deepen connections with your 'middle childhood' child. As the parent to two girls aged 9 & 13, I found this book a good way to reflect on how to support my children's development, particularly through areas like friendships and mainy home life relationships with both the children and us as parents, which have been under additional pressure during lock down as we find ourselves in each others constant company.
Parenthood is really hard at times and like many parents I'm sure I spend lots of time questioning my decisions and actions in certain situations, and wondering what the appropriate parenting action would be to help send a well rounded, considerate adult out into the world in the near future.
This book maps out exercises that we could all try out to help strengthen not only our relationships, but our friendships with each other. I found some of the exercises were too young for my daughters - even when considering them for the 9 year old, but as there were a selection of exercise examples to try, it is easy to just select the ones that you think are more suitable for your child or your family. Many of these exercises focus on not only the connection between family members, but also looking how to help with encouraging communication or empathy etc.
I liked the case studies that were peppered throughout the book, some interesting examples of either parent & child or sibling relationships and how they have been supported by the author in her professional role, a little bit like discovering you're not the only one with children that get frustrated (& can take this out on others in the form of aggression) or that you're not the only one to have 'lost it' with their kids.
We have all enjoyed spending valuable time with each other and we introduced this 15 minutes of play as a gentle natural time slot wherever we felt it naturally could occur; as opposed to scheduling it in.
The book is gentle, and non judgemental and the focus is on encouraging emotional as well as natural connections which I really liked.

This is a good informative book that I enjoyed reading as a parent of a 9 year old, it went into detail of how to approach different issues and it made me rethink a lot of things and the ways I had tackled things.

Of simply a self help book but a reminder to self that all is not lost. A reminder that you are Co-parenting, a reminder that you are not just a mother and father partnership. That the little things will have a big impact.
A well thought out and written book to nudge you and guide you to better parenting without any self-flagellation.. a gentle and kind written piece of work to get you back in to the swing of things and to find the time, just a little to spend with your child(ren).

Certainly think it can help parents that feel they can’t find their own way back