Brownlee mixes the metaphors and language of scientific research and emotional appeal in this book, but many of the principles she argues for are sound. The importance of the biochemical environment created in and around the baby by those responsible for them is partly captured here: 
“When the mother is in the womb it is the emotional state of the mother which decides how her baby’s brain develops. An emotional state in humans is not only an electromagnetic event of frequencies, it is a molecular event as well. Hormones, or chemical messengers, are flooded through the body and their role is to regulate functions in the body.” (pp.14-15)
“What scientists have discovered using brain scans on children who are three has really shaken up the world of early childhood. Children who have had almost non-stop stress – from abandonment, threat, violence, neglect or abuse – have huge holes in their higher brain structures. …Scans of violent adults reveal the holes are still there – they don’t repair themselves. It is in the first three years that the growth is laid down, or not.” (p.15)
Ref: (emphasis in blue bold, mine) Pennie Brownlee Dance with me in the Heart; The adults’ guide to great infant-parent partnerships c2008 New Zealand Playcentre Federation.Christchurch
