Developing relationships with infants and toddlers in child care appears natural. Most people loves babies, but caring for infants and toddlers can be rewarding but at the same time difficult. Recent studies on the brain suggests that nurturing, supportive, and trusting interactions between infants/toddlers and their caregivers supply the foundation that infants experience their worlds. Relationships are critical in the development of a child’s brain and future relationships. Infants are entirely dependent upon their caregivers from whom they intuitively seek out security and protection. Babies are like sponges throughout the first three years of life, they are experiencing and discovering at a very fast rate. The caregiver plays a significant role in the development during this time. She offers the comfort and closeness that provides the baby the support and nurturing needed in order to process future experiences.
When the needs of an infant are met, trust is formed between the infant and caregiver. A baby’s trust of the caregiver is the foundation for effectively growing from one milestone to the next. Regular positive connections develop trust and assist in promoting beneficial relationships as the child grows older. With regular positive connections a child will begin to develop more confidence not only in himself but in the world around him.
A healthy shared relationship is crucial for the healthy development of an infant. According to the National Infant and Toddler Child Care Initiative, “Positive relationships between caregivers and infants help build healthy brains.” The assumption is that positive relationships accomplish more than just encourage development; they in fact are the building blocks for the brain....
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... create foundations that will help children for life. Developing respectful, continual, balanced, and nurturing relationships with children and their families may not always be an easy task – however it is an essential one.
Works Cited
United States. Child Care Bureau. National Infant & Toddler Child Care Initiative (U.S.) Zero to Three (Organization) (2007). Credentials for the infant/toddler child care workforce: A technical assistance tool for child care and development fund administrators. Washington, DC (2000 M St.: National Infant & Toddler Child Care Initiative, Zero to Three.
National Research Council (2001). Eager to learn: Educating our preschoolers. Committee on Early Childhood Pedagogy. Barbara T. Bowman, M. Suzanne Donovan, & M. Susan Burns, (Eds.). Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
Care, N. R. (2002). Licensing and Public Regulation of Early Childhood Programs. Retrieved May 17, 2010, from uchsc.edu: http://nrc.uchsc.edu/CFOC/HTMLVersion/Appendix_AA.html
There is a problem in Texas impacting children’s futures; many childcare centers and homes are not providing children with quality care. In an article about cost and quality in Texas childcare, child development experts Susan Eitel and Joyce Nuner quote a study stating “that [nationally] only 10% of infants and toddlers are in high quality [childcare] programs” (34). The term ratio describes the number of children one caregiver is watching. This number is one of the major factors in the quality of a childcare program. Organizations such as the National Association for the Education of Young Children know as NAEYC release recommendations regarding ratios and accredit programs based on their compliance. Childcare centers and homes must comply with certain minimum standards enforced by Texas regarding ratios; however, these standards often set the bar lower than recommendations made by these early childhood experts. The current standards in Texas do not ensure that all young children receive quality care; for this reason, the Texas Department of Family Protective Services should strengthen the minimum standards regarding ratios to better regulate the quality of care children receive.
Hedges, Helen. ""You Don't Leave Babies on Their Own": Children's Interests in Early Childhood Education." Early Education. Ed. Janet B. Mottely and Anne R. Randall. New York: Nova Science, 2009. N. pag. Print.
From birth, our everyday experiences and interactions with the people around us help to grow and shape the brain. The child-caregiver relationship is a key element in healthy cognitive development, and has a lasting impact on the child’s life. Through this positive relationship the child learns and cultivates their understanding of people and the world around them. These experiences will help determine the level of motor skills, visual skills, and learning abilities that a child will possess in their future. A responsive caregiver provides the serve-and-return interactions a child needs to develop healthy brain circuitry. A healthy example of serve-and-return is when an infant babbles and gestures to an object, the caregiver responds accordingly by smiling and naming the object. This interaction lays the foundation for creating a link between the object and the word. As children age they learn about cause and effect, spatial relationships, problem solving, number sense, and classification. They learn these skills through the use of symbolic play and imitation.
The attachment theory, presented by Mary Ainsworth in 1969 and emerged by John Bowlby suggests that the human infant has a need for a relationship with an adult caregiver, and without a subsequent, development can be negatively impacted (Hammonds 2012). Ainsworth proposes that the type of relationship and “attachment” an infant has with the caregiver, can impact the social development of the infant. As stated by Hammonds (2012), attachment between a mother and a child can have a great impact on the child 's future mental
Following the mandated 3:1 rule for daycares, there is three children per nurse or care partner. This model allows for cost-effective personalized health care for each child, while preventing the occurrence of burn out in caregivers. Caregivers are responsible for feeding, cleaning, changing, and playing with the child. However, their tasks may change based on the age and diagnosis of the child. Each day a speech, occupational, and physical therapist visits the child in order to deliver the required therapy, gauge the child’s developmental progress, and create draft care plans for future care. This setup enables the children to achieve their developmental milestones while acquiring new skills to lead independent lives. Children ages three and over receive preschool education from a teacher who tests the students’ academic progress and presents progress reports to the children’s parents so that they can work with their child on the areas requiring
Infant attachment is the first relationship a child experiences and is crucial to the child’s survival (BOOK). A mother’s response to her child will yield either a secure bond or insecurity with the infant. Parents who respond “more sensitively and responsively to the child’s distress” establish a secure bond faster than “parents of insecure children”. (Attachment and Emotion, page 475) The quality of the attachment has “profound implications for the child’s feelings of security and capacity to form trusting relationships” (Book). Simply stated, a positive early attachment will likely yield positive physical, socio-emotional, and cognitive development for the child. (BOOK)
Healthy Child Care America. (2007, April). Health and Safety E-News for Caregivers and Teachers. Retrieved from Healthy Child Care America: http://www.healthychildcare.org/ENewsApr07.html
An infant’s initial contact with the world and their exploration of life is directly through the parent/ primary caregiver. As the child grows, learns, and develops, a certain attachment relationship forms between them and the principle adult present in this process. Moreover, this attachment holds huge implications concerning the child’s future relationships and social successes. Children trust that their parental figure will be there; as a result, children whom form proper attachments internalize an image of their world as stable, safe, and secure. These children will grow independent while at the same time maintaining a connection with their caregivers. (Day, 2006). However, when a child f...
National Center for O*NET Development . (2010). Preschool and Childcare Director. Retrieved November 12, 2013, from O*NET Online: http://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/11-9031.00
Eliason, C. F., Jenkins, L. (2008). A practical guide to early childhood curriculum (8th edition). New
It discusses how children are born with that needs to connect with individuals around them. Teachers and providers create positive relationship with children from birth through the early years. The foundation for that healthy social and emotional development because it affects her children see the world, express themselves, manages their emotions, in establishing a positive relationship with others. There were several areas of development that included social interactions that focus on the relationship that we share and include relationship with adults and peers. Emotional awareness recognized and understands your feelings and actions of other people, and self-regulation where you have that ability to express your thoughts, feelings, and behavior in a socially appropriate way. There were many tips that were listed when working with infants from talking and reading, having that warm, responsive, and consistent care, maintaining predictable routines, and getting to know each child while following their lead. The importance of supporting children and developing social skills is critical for learning, happiness, and long-term. This development begins during infancy and can be supported through simple social games, emotional role model, and imitating an infant's facial expression and sounds. The importance of social-emotional development and toddlers makes an impact in a child life when these skills are developed starting in infancy. Encouraging positive behaviors and using positive discipline practices that helped to develop the ability to make good choices as well as recognizing the confidence that is built when these behaviors are repeated. This is a process for young children to learn these behaviors always remembering that a patient response will help especially when the behaviors are
...preschool years they will learn to initiate and carry out tasks based on experience or exposure to those tasks. Interactions with parents, teachers, peers, and other adults are important in a child's life. These relationships actually shape the brain and lay the foundation for later developmental outcomes, from academic performance to mental health and interpersonal skills.
U.S Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Retrieved from Early Childhood Learning and Knowledge Center: http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/ecdh/eecd/Domains%20of%20Child%20Development/Social%20and%20Emotional%20Development
Early childhood education plays a key role in a child’s academic development because he or she learns soft skills, job skills, and develop positive traits. Preschool is not like kindergarten, but instead a stepping-stone that prepares young students for the years of schooling they will have later in life. As more schools began to open families wanted to be able to verify that programs would benefit and protect their children. In response, the National Association for the Education of Young Children was made to help families find the best care for their children, by providing the early childhood educators with training and ensuring the quality of children’s daily experiences. (“NAEYC”5).