We get inside the mind of a one year old with Professor of psychology and baby expert Alison Gopnik. What can babies teach us, and how are they influencing their future. We also take a moment think about the village we need to survive that first year and beyond. It’s a cliche, but we know it’s true. The community around a child is one of the most fundamental factors for its development.

Presented by: India Rakusen.

A Listen Production for BBC Radio 4.

Whenever an infant heads to nursery, it can feel like an enormous step. Things are changing for everyone. There are all sorts of feelings flying around - relief, sadness, doubt, fear. But what’s going on behind the doors of nurseries and childcare settings in England? India speaks to Joeli Brearley from Pregnant Then Screwed about the current childcare crisis, child development psychotherapist Graham Music about how childcare impacts children, as well as economist Emily Oster on our choices around childcare. India then meets artists Conway and Young who have found a way to make the invisible labour of childcare pay.

Presented by: India Rakusen.

A Listen Production for Radio 4.

Lullabies. Simple, soothing… nonsense. Right? Wrong. Here we’re getting behind the importance of music and singing in a baby's development. India speaks to Dr Nina Polytimou about her research into how music can help with speech and communication and also be a powerful tool for bonding. India then visits a Singing Mamas group to hear how coming together as mothers to sing is a powerful, important, and missing slice of community. Kate Valentine, the founder, describes the impact it has on maternal mental health.

Presented by: India Rakusen.

A Listen Production for Radio 4.

Attachment is an interesting word. It conjures up images of love, security, but also a specific focus and intensity that has encircled modern parenting. India Rakusen speaks to Child Psychotherapist Graham Music about attachment styles and people behind the theory.

We hear from Marvyn Harrison, founder of Dope Black Dads, about his experience of becoming a father and India talks to Dr Charlotte Faircloth about how attachment parenting and other intensive parenting methods are impacting parents today.

Presented by India Rakusen

A Listen production for BBC Radio 4

Seeing a baby make its first moves is a magical time. It marks the beginning of their independence. And it’s something that is often tracked using developmental milestones - but are they actually more problematic than they are useful?

India Rakusen speaks to Professor Karen Adolph who shares her problems with milestones and discusses the cultural expectations of early development. She also hears from Dr Vanessa Cavallera from the World Health Organisation about the work they’re doing to update their 2006 milestone graph and the future of infant development.

Presented by India Rakusen

A Listen production for BBC Radio 4

Baby food is about so much more than mashed carrot. It’s another important foundation for the rest of the child’s life. But it isn’t an equal playing field and it’s another minefield of parenting.

India Rakusen talks to feeding specialist Kim Grenawitzke about the importance of learning to eat, and how to introduce solids. Historian Amy Bentley describes how the rise of commercial baby food affected parenting and babies, and Dr Vicky Sibson from First Steps Nutrition takes us down the baby food aisle.

Presented by India Rakusen

A Listen production for Radio 4 and BBC Sounds

Go on, be honest. Is this the first episode you clicked? It drives people crazy. It’s a firecracker of a topic, and emotions run high around sleep.

Presented by: India Rakusen.

A Listen Production for Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.

As parents start to think about the development of the child within, they might head out to classes. The advice on how a baby ‘should be’ and the pressures on parents to ‘get it right’ can be a lot, but does it all matter? Lucy Jones, journalist and author, guides us through the history of why there is so much pressure on carers.

We also hear more from Rebecca Saxe, a cognitive neuroscientist and Dean of Science at MIT about what babies are learning from play, and from Graham Music about what makes good play.

But, put down your wallet - the best toys for a baby are free, and with you all the time.

Presented by India Rakusen

A Listen production for Radio 4 and BBC Sounds

We’re taking a pause to lose ourselves down the rabbit hole of time. Because something strange happens to time in those first weeks of a baby's arrival. The rest of the world still seems to, mostly, rise with the sun, and sleep with the dark - but the world of a new parent has turned on its head.

So what would happen if we looked at time in a totally different way?

In this episode, India Rakusen explores the relatively new concept (but ancient experience of) Maialogical time with historian Joanna Wolfarth, discusses the impact of the first few months with Perinatal psychiatrist Trudi Seneviratne, and talks to musician and mother Eske Mtungwazi about her experience in the world of neonatal care.

Presented by India Rakusen

A Listen production for Radio 4 and BBC Sounds

How are mother and baby developing? Sure, we’ve counted their toes - but what happens now? So many huge emotional shifts are happening in the “Fourth Trimester”.

We talk about postnatal care with midwife Leah Hazard and the history of lying-in with Dr Sarah Fox. We also discuss postnatal depression, and inpatient support for mums. An area in which England is world leading. India visits a mother and baby unit to talk to Dr Trudi Seneviratne about the psychological support for new mothers.

Presented by India Rakusen

A Listen production for Radio 4 and BBC Sounds