Supporting Infant Development

HPC3O Unit Three: Infants How Parents Can Encourage Infant Development

Physical Development

There are a number of ways that motor development can be encouraged.

1. Play infant exercise games - such as “pat-a-cake” help infants move their arms, legs, and hands in new ways.

2. Provide toys that develop motor skills - A crib gym or a stuffed toy encourages stroking and squeezing. Brightly coloured rolling balls or toys that make sounds when buttons are pressed encourage infants to use fine motor skills.

3. Provide safe areas for exploration - Move objects that might fall with an infant crawling around and cover the sharp corners of tables.

4. Support an infant’s efforts to walk - If you hold the infant’s hands, they practice walking.

Intellectual Development

To provide an environment where infants are stimulated intellectually, parents can:

1. Supply toys that stimulate the senses - There are numerous toys for infants to shake and squeeze. The brain soon makes the connection between the action and the resulting pleasant stimulation.

2. Provide new experiences - Visits to places in the community like the grocery store, shopping mall, play centres and even the laundromat provide new sights, aromas and sounds.

3. Play face-to-face with the infant - A baby responds easier to the familiar one-on-one interaction with a parent or care giver. Babies prefer this to playing with inanimate objects.

4. Play with the baby - Talk to infants about what they see and hear. Put into words all your actions for the baby as you are talking to him/her.

Encourage Language Skills - Parents can talk to babies about anything and it will help toward preparing babies for their first attempts at speech. Naming items in a room, talking about a picture, or singing a familiar song or rhyme add to the child’s exposure to language. Responding to an infant’s babbling and gurgling, as if the baby really were talking, shows the infant communication goes both ways.

Emotional Development

Most parents want their children to be happy, secure, contented, and well-adjusted. These qualities develop when parents take specific actions during infancy and childhood. Some things that parents can do are: 1. Hold the baby - The physical contact is more important than the household chores that are waiting.

2. Use loving words and expressions - This makes baby feel good and secure.

3. Smile often - This shows your approval of baby and makes baby feel loved.

4. Respond to needs - This gives baby a sense of security and trust; it shows baby someone cares.

5. Spend time with the baby - Infants thrive on attention and the contact of those who care about them. The simple games that parents play with infants bring joy to both.

6. Take out your frustrations elsewhere - Families need to share the care giving responsibilities so that one person does not feel overwhelmed and overburdened. If feelings of anger or exhaustion are affecting the care of an infant, help is available from hotlines or social service organizations. Never take frustrations out on a baby. Never yell or resort to rough treatment. Never shake a baby. This can lead to serious injury or death.

7. Protect the child from negative influences - Babies are sensitive to family tensions and disagreements. Do not allow inappropriate behaviour around the infant; if necessary; take the infant to a calmer place.

Explaining Babies’ Emotions: Crying - Babies don’t cry to cause trouble; they cry for a reason. Parents should first check to see that the baby is dry, comfortable, and has been fed. Prolonged crying, especially if there is no known reason may mean the baby has colic, a pain in the abdomen with no definite cause. Sometimes rubbing the baby’s stomach will help, or holding the baby with a warm blanket around him/her. Anger - Punishment will not work because the baby does not understand what is happening. Trying to redirect baby’s attention or fixing whatever is bothering baby may soothe the infant. Fear - Loud noises, sudden actions, and rough handling can cause fear. To manage stranger reactions, let the baby decide when to accept a new person.

Social Development

Infants learn how to relate to others through their day to day activities. It is the parent or care giver who teaches a baby how people should behave to one another. The more positive interaction a baby has with adults, the more sociable the baby will become. Seek out interactions with others so your baby gets used to being around others. In a typical day, a baby will learn that people: • come in different sizes, • can be calm or boisterous, • say certain things like “hi” and “thank you”, • can be happy or sad.

Moral Development

Some early messages of right and wrong begin as early as infancy for children. Teach simple lessons about behaviour that isn’t appropriate (such as dropping food on the floor, biting, or playing in unsafe areas) by saying “no” and gently intervening—this sets a pattern for future lessons. This also lets the child see that the world is a big place and that their every wish may not be met.