Report of research on infant-toddler development
My thoughts and sharings on topics which I am reading up for my doctoral dissertation…feel free to share your thoughts and experiences..
Report of research on infant-toddler development
My sharing on topics which I am reading up for my doctoral dissertation…feel free to share your thoughts and experiences..
Baby Routines as ‘Prime Times’ 3 March 2012
Greenman and Stonehouse (2008) came up with the term ‘Prime Times’ to describe the prime and important times when babies can learn from our interactions with them during routines like feeding, diapering and bath time. It is true that some of us approach diapering, bathing and feeding as just physical tasks to provide for the baby and we may do so mechanically without realising the opportunity for language acquisition and other learning opportunities for the child during such times. Infant toddler expert Gonzalez-Mena& Eyer (2009) lamented the loss of opportunities to interact with a child in the 4000 to 5000 diapering instances in a child’s life if adults onlyfocused on the activity of diapering, regarding it as a chore instead of seeing diapering times as learning and bonding opportunities.
Nyland (2004), another Australian researcher who studied the quality of infant care programmes in Australia suggested that the low level of interactions during routines by educarers could be a result of traditionally low expectations of infant activity and agency during routine times such that caregivers overlooked the need for interactions with infants during routine contexts, focusing instead on their own role in attending to the physical task
rather than the developmental opportunities and needs of the infant (Degotardi& Davis, 2008). These authors suggest that professional development should promote prime times as an important aspect of quality day-care experiences for
infants. Similarly as parents and caregivers, we must not miss the opportunity of playing and singing and talking to our babies when feeding, diapering or bathing them for this will aid in their emotional and cognitive growth.
Socio-emotional development 26 Oct 2011
- what research is saying about what a baby needs
An infant/toddler develops a lasting emotional bond with one or more significant adults in his/her life, usually her caregiver(s). John Bowlby, an English psychiatrist, describes the sense of safety and security a baby feels with caregivers through established relationships with them as attachment. A securely attached baby or toddler would possess the confidence to explore, venture out and learn about the world around him/her knowing that he/she can always return to the protection of his/her caregiver.
The first early attachments to parents and caregivers will set the foundation for a child’s development and learning. Science is showing that there is a connection between parts of the brain that regulate emotion and the parts that involve cognitive development. Secure attachment and emotional development are now recognised as the foundations to learning that cannot be ignored.
Emotional development and secure attachment grows with ongoing loving and responsive relationships with caregivers. Through repeated experiences, an infant will develop a sense of whether he is liked and worthy of love and attention, forming his self identity that will shape his socio-emotional health. Some infant-toddler child development experts also advocate the system of primary caregiving, that is the same caregiver should care for the infant until he or she is at least 3 years old and one should avoid changing caregivers frequently in these first 3 years’ of a child’s life since secure relationships take time to nurture.
There is evidence from research that care in the context of nurturing relationships with adults who are sensitive, responsive, warm and caring is important to healthy social-emotional development for infants and toddlers. The effects of positive relationships between caregiver and child shows in the cognitive, socio-emotional and language development of the child.
Cognitive and Language stimulation 26 Aug 2011
- what research is saying about the interactions that an infant/toddler needs
Recent developments in brain research has given us more information about how babies and toddler learn. It is said that a baby has enough neurons (about 100 billion!) at birth to last his whole life. Each neuron can produce 15,000 synapses and the majority of these synapses are produced in the first 3 years of a baby’s life. Synapses that have been activated in the first years of life tend to become permanent while those that have not been activated are believed to be lost. This is why early experiences in the first 3 years of a child’s life are so important! It forms the foundation for their later learning in school, including academic subjects like mathematics and language.
Jean Piaget, a famous researcher and expert in child development came up with a theory of development and learning which states that children in the first few years go through a stage of learning through their senses called the ‘sensorimotor’ stage of development. In this stage, infants and toddlers learn best through rich experiences using their senses. Caregivers of infants should provide activities and experiences to infants that will allow them to see and touch different textures, colours items, hear different sounds and even smell different odours and taste different food, within safety limits, of course.
An infant and toddler acquires language by assimilating the language of his or her caregiver. Thus, it is important for the caregiver through her daily interactions to dialogue with the baby and try to understand what the baby is communicating. Yes, babies are humans too, they do communicates their desires and needs. Through talking to, singing to the babies and treating them with respect, the caregiver is able to provide learning opportunities and model the language that the baby can acquire.
School Readiness for Babies – before the ABCs 26 Jul 2011
School readiness for babies?! You’ve got to be joking, exclaimed my friend when she heard me mention this. But that’s the title of a book written by Rebecca Parlakian as part of the Zero to Three publications. Zero to Three is an American non-profit organisation aimed at training and supporting all involved in infant-toddler care so as to improve the health and development of children from zero to three. See www.zerotothree.org for good resources in this area.
So what does research say about preparing babies for school? Aren’t they too young to be talking about school? Not really, according to research. As we know, babies’ brains grow at an extremely rapid rate, never to be repeated in their lifetime. The Zero-to-three age is critical for brain development since by age three, the majority of our brain connections (synapses) would have been formed for our lifetime’s use.
Research says that babies’ early experiences and interactions with adults matter the most, aside from good nutrition and health. The early experiences and interactions can be divided into 2 main domains – cognitive and socio-emotional domains.
Besides ensuring that baby reaches his developmental milestones in terms of his motor and other skills that health professionals keep track of, what can we do to help baby get a headstart to lay the foundation for later learning?
Under the cognitive domain, language and play engagement are important in helping baby develop his cognition. Lots of conversations, exposure to literacy like books and stories, active and engaged play are all activities that will enhance baby’s cognition.
Under the socio-emotional domain, secure stable relationships with caregivers and responsive, sensitive caregiving have been cited by child development experts as important ingredients to support the social and emotional development of babies. This domain has been often neglected by caregivers and infant curriculums but recent research has shown that the socio-emotional health of a baby has a direct effect on his cognitive abilities as well.
By ensuring that his cognitive and socio-emotional development are taken care of, a baby will receive the best foundation upon which learning can take place, in a sense preparing both his brain’s hardware and software for programming, making him ready for school when the time comes.
In my next posting, I shall share more ideas from child development experts and research on how to promote the cognitive and socio-emotional development of a infant/toddler.
How young children learn – Piaget and Vygotsky in lay man terms 16 apr 2011
The Swiss child expert Piaget laid down a theory of child development in the 1950s that has been followed and widely accepted by the early childhood field for a long time. According to Piaget, young children learn in stages according to their maturation. They learn by constructing their own knowledge, making sense of what is happening around them by adding new knowledge gained through new experiences, to their existing conception and understanding of things around them, building on what they already know. The first stage that infants go through is the sensori-motor stage where babies learn using their senses of sight, hearing, touch and taste. That is why babies are curious about seeing different patterns, faces, colours (when they can see these), touching different textures, tasting different food, hearing different sounds.
Vgyotsky, a Russian psychologist who lived in the early 20th century had similar notions of how children learn but he was of the view that children do not learn in isolation or alone but instead, they are social beings and all learning takes place in a social context. According to Vygotksy, a baby will thrive and learn when he experiences interactions with his caregivers and adults around him. A baby is motivated to learn to talk because he wants to communicate with the important adults around him and language acquisition is an important function to cognitive development and higher mental abilities. Vygotsky believed in a child’s potential in learning that can be realised with the help of competent adults who can help him achieve the next level of development through proper guidance. ‘What a child can do with the help of an adult today, she can do alone tomorrow.’
While Piaget believed that in maturation, a child can move on to the next level of development, Vygotsky believed that regardless of age or stage of the child, he or she can reach the next milestone of development with proper guidance and is not inhibited by age – that is, a child can learn and progress if he is ready. This takes into consideration the fact that children develop at different speeds and some have more talents in certain areas compared to others.
Are we just babysitting our kids? 9 apr 2011
The importance of quality care and one-to-one interactions in promoting a child’s development in the first few years’ of a child’s life has been documented extensively by research and cannot be emphasised enough. Who a child will become is very much influenced by how his sense of self, security and world-view is shaped in the beginning years.
Infants and toddlers are learning through their senses all the time, in daily routines like bathing, diapering and feeding time. At that age, care routines and learning activities cannot be seen as separate tasks. The concept of ‘educare’ emphasises the critical importance of an environment for babies where they receive both nurturant physical care and education at the same time through quality interactions and activities. Education and care is therefore integrated, focussing on a baby’s physical, emotional, interpersonal and intellectual abilities. Therefore if the caregiver (be it mummy, grandparent, domestic helper, nanny or childcare teacher) is only ensuring that the physical needs of a baby is well-taken care of, her care is merely custodial in nature and that is not sufficient for a baby to thrive.
The caregiver needs to firstly establish a good relationship with the baby by building a bond of trust, by being respectful and responsive to the needs of the young child through learning to understand the baby/toddler’s cues and cries. Secondly, the caregiver needs to be responsively engaged and involved with the baby/toddler by being emotionally and physically present with the baby and following the baby’s cues and interests in exploring his surroundings. Quality interactions include playing with the baby, rocking, singing, talking and even dancing with the baby/toddler. It includes facilitating a baby/toddler’s development in the areas of his interest, be it attempting to roll a ball and exploring cause-and-effect, examining the texture of a leaf, delighting in the colours of a mobile, discovering water-play or babbling his first words. Characteristics of caregivers like warmth, sensitivity, responsiveness, respectful and nurturing have been cited in research as promoting quality interactions with babies.
This should thus be the wish-list for the caregivers whom we entrust our precious tots to in their daily care. It does seem like a tall order for us caregivers, doesn’t it? After all, we all want the best for our babies and to give them an early head-start in life. The first years are important because they last a lifetime. Are we as caregivers or is the person who is looking after your baby just babysitting?
See my related Mummy Blog on reviews and sharings http://kidsplaygroundsingapore.blogspot.com
