Infant Development Overview

1. Infant Development Overview Marcia Arpin

2. The Infant (0-18 months) The following information will provide a basic overview of patterns of development in the growing child. In the first year of life, children grow at an astounding rate -- many tripling their birth weights. Milestones such as lifting head, rolling, sitting, creeping, and crawling will all be observed. During this stage, a baby is also developing bonds of love and trust with you. The way you cuddle, hold, and play with baby will set the basis for how she will interact with you and others.

3. Building Relationships (0-18 months) • You must provide many experiences and opportunities for an infant to feel safe and emotionally secure. A relationship will develop as an infant learns to trust you and feels a sense of belonging. • A baby is learning to recognize sounds. • She is also learning to focus her vision. • Language development is more than uttering sounds, or words. Listening, understanding, and knowing the names of people and things are all components of language development. • Infants are learning all skills including memory, language, thinking and reasoning.

4. Building Relationships (0-18 months) • You will meet the individual needs of each child including schedule, routines, and experiences.

5. Building Relationships (0-18 months) As an Educator, you will achieve a partnership with families. Together you will learn to calm and sooth baby. You will each learn how to build a relationship to enhance the infant’s development. You will observe facial cues and learn when it is time to play, eat, sleep and chat.

6. Building Relationships (0-18 months) • Infants must develop Attachment Attachment is an the ability to form an emotional bonds with others. Infants will build relationships with a trusted adult if the baby’s needs are met consistently. Their environment must be nurturing and responsive with daily positive interactions. Infants learn they can count on others and develop self worth. The environment must be nurturing and responsive with daily positive interactions.

7. Building Relationships (0-18 months) • Infants must develop Resilience Resilience is an the ability to recover from stress. Infants will develop this skill by building relationships with important adults. If the baby’s feelings are being understood, the child will develop self control and competence in a variety of skills.

8. Developing a Routine Consistent Routines build security. • Arrival • Diapering • Mealtimes • Sleeping • Getting Dressed • Indoor & Outdoor Play • Departure

9. Developing a Routine • Arrival: Every hello and good-bye set the tone of each day. Stay positive and cheerful. Infants (and their parents) must feel understood. In time and with consistency, your empathy will give families confidence. Tips to build a successful hellos & good-byes: • Teach infant to wave • Create an interest area by the doorway • Create many cozy spaces • Add music • Photos • Picture Books • Telephones • Blankets & Stuffed Toys from home

10. Developing a Routine • Diapering: Is an opportunity to sing, count toes, and play games. Add a mobile or mirror to a changing station. • Mealtimes: Include comfortable seating. Have bottles, food, dishes and spoons available close by. Feed infants as they are hungry. Ensure health and good nutrition. Never prop bottles. Give lots of time. Remember to burp baby.

11. Developing a Routine • Sleeping: Infants must have own crib. Each infant will follow a personal schedule. As an Educator, you must create an environment that is conductive to both sleeping and playing. Be consistent as you develop a routine for sleep. Items from home add security.

12. Developing a Routine • Indoor & Outdoor Activity = infants learn through their senses (see, hear, taste, touch, and smell) and physical activity. • select play materials that match each child’s growing abilities, interests and support their skill development. • Play is an activity or activities done for enjoyment. Play in infants not only is important to their development, but it helps them build a bond with their care giver.

13. Toys for Infants • Balls • Blocks • Mobiles • Mirrors • Cuddly toys • Grasping and mouthing toys • Objects to pull apart and fit together • Objects to fill and dump

14. Toys for Infants • Objects to stack • Objects to roll • Objects to toss • Objects that make noise • Handles, buttons, and knobs • Activity frames • Play Boards

15. Development Playing with an infant is important for cognitive development. Cognitive development refers to memory, solving problems and making decisions. Touching and naming body parts such as the hands and feet can help infants develop cognitively.

16. Language development through play in infants includes singing to the infant while introducing them to a new toy and talking to them while playing. • Collect story books, homemade books, chants, photo albums, nursery rhymes Introduce books with rhythmic language, rhymes and songs as well as books that interlace with nursery rhymes or finger plays. Use board/plastic/cloth books with bright colours and with simple and clear pictures. Books with pictures of familiar objects, animals, food. Books about daily life or family members or photos of babies.

17. Development • Social development is acquiring the skills to interact with others. Play activities in infants that encourage social development are mimicking facial expressions and letting the infant observe his or her facial expressions in a mirror.

18. Development • lift head • kick their legs • roll over • sit • crawl • likes to bounce with support • pull to standing position • walk holding onto furniture • move from lying to sitting position

19. Development • reach for objects • hold toys • bang toys together • throw toys • put toys in their mouth • grasp objects with thumb and fore finger • hold two objects at the same time • drop and pick up objects • can push  pull and throw objects