Click the ► in the top right of the "Place Order box" for a preview. 

Research clearly shows that the quality of the early relationship the young child has to her parents and other close caregivers predicts the quality of relationships to adults, teachers and authority figures throughout childhood.  This song gives the child words and insight into that powerful bond of mutual attachment to these important early caregivers. 

It captures a developmental "Aha" so beautifully described by Ron Lally as "Being held in the mind of another."  When a child realizes that he can be held in loving thoughts in the mind of his mother or father, he can better endure separations from her or him.  He is better able to soothe himself during the day when things go wrong or he is feeling sad.  The insight that a parent is thinking of me with love includes the awareness that I can do the same.  I can create images of mom at work.  I can anticipate being picked up later and having special times with her.

Finally, adults are the "big people" in a child's world.  I'm always "looking up" to the adults in my world.  Size alone could elicit feeling of power and fear.  This song reminds a child that when she looks up at the adults in her family, the first thing she sees, morning or night is love.  The concrete reality of looking up to the parents in early childhood and seeing love plants the seed of the abstract and symbolic looking up to parents in later childhood and seeing sources of hope and guidance.  With older children, it gives the teacher the opportunity to introduce such concepts as admiration.

Lyrics
When I look up to you
I see someone thinking of me
When I look up to you
I see that you'll always love me

Someone who can show the way
In all you say and do
That's what I see when I look up to you
repeat

I look up
Early in the morning, when we start the day
I look up
In the afternoon, when we work and when we play

I look up
In the evening, when we're home again
I look up
At night, when it's time to tuck me in

When I look up to you
I see someone thinking of me
When I look up to you
I see that you'll always love me

Someone who can show the way
In all you say and do
That's what I see when I look up to you

Tips for Parents

• For older children prompt: "When we say we admire someone what do we mean?
  For younger children, "Show me the smile I have on my face when I tuck you into bed?" Let's think about what that smile says.
• Mom or Dad at Work - Talk about what you do at work.  Have your child pretend to be you doing a typical work behavior for your job.  Then tell them to stop and think about their child and wonder what she's doing at school.  It helps to get across the idea of being held in their parent's mind.
• Give your child a picture of you at your workplace to keep in their pocket or school cubby.  This way she has a concrete cue to use when she wants to be reminded that she is held in the mind of her mother even when she is at work.

Books to Read with Children
The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn

This song is part of our Songs of Belonging series, which consists of the following twelve song titles:
Friends
Hands
My Family
A Tree and Me
I Can Count On You
I Look Up to You 
Me and You
One World
Somebody Loves Me
Someone to Talk To
The Sharing Song
Together Time

This song is available in the following formats: