Starting in Vienna in the 1920s, Anna Freud's first tentative attempts at observing children became a crucial component of the ‘double approach’ which integrated direct child observation with psychoanalytic reconstruction. This enabled the detailed study of unfolding developmental processes and the construction of a theory of normative as well as pathological child development. Her identification of disturbances that were developmental rather than neurotic led to the broadening of child analysis. Interventions aimed at freeing and supporting development rather than giving insight, became known as ‘developmental therapy’. These interventions are used in the parent-toddler groups that embody Anna Freud's endeavour to link psychoanalytic theory, direct observation and clinical practice. Observations of a toddler, who attended a parent-toddler group with his mother, show how intervening early in the child's life and soon after concerns were identified, contributed to preventing maladaptive affective states and ways of relating from becoming entrenched.