MARCH 10, 2024 – SESSION 7
a sense of their own agency in the world, and
LESSON 7 – DEVELOPMENTALLY APPRORIATE
PRACTICE YEARS 0-3 (INFANT TO TODDLER)
The earliest years are all about relationships.
Infants and toddlers crave and develop
attachments to the special people in their lives.
Depending on how parents, early childhood
educators, and others treat them, babies also
develop expectations about people and
themselves.
 Young infants (0-9 months) seek security.
 Mobile infants (8-18 months) are eager to
explore.
 Toddlers (16-36 months) are working on their
identity; they want to know who they are and
who’s in charge.
In child care programs, relationships with families
are critical. Caring teachers and caregivers learn
from the experiences, knowledge, culture and
childrearing beliefs of family members.
Partnerships grow when teachers value the
family as the primary source of information about
the child and as the constant in the baby’s life,
and when families value the knowledge and
personal characteristics of their child’s teachers.
Good communication is essential.
Typical Development for Children Aged 0-3 years
 The major developmental task of infants and
very young children is the formation of an
attachment bond with a caregiver who is
reliable and responsive to the child’s
emotional and physical needs. At this age,
children are learning to trust their caregiver as
well as their own ability to exert influence on
the world.
 Children’s attachment experiences are
thought to be the foundation for their later
social, emotional and cognitive development.
A child’s attachment relationship is shaped by
how consistently and reliably the caregiver
can respond to them when they signal their
needs. A positive attachment experience is
associated with consistent, reliable and
responsive caregiving. Through experiencing
consistent, responsive and predictable care, a
young child learns that, through their own
actions (such as crying or holding out their
arms), they are able to control whether their
needs are met.
 This formative experience gives a young child
of the “trustworthiness” of others – beliefs that
become internalized as a “working model” or
template. This template in turn forms the
basis for the child’s developing self-concept,
self-esteem, and emotional, social and
cognitive development.
 Towards the end of this stage of
development, a child is beginning to see
themselves as a being that is separate from
their caregiver and capable of different
thoughts and feelings, although this
experience can be fleeting and temporary.
Throughout this period of development
children remain acutely aware of the
emotional state of their primary caregiver,
although they will ultimately develop a
separate sense of “self.”
 A basic sense of trust supports a child to
engage in learning and exploration outside of
their primary attachment relationship,
because they are now confident that their
caregiver will be there for them when needed.
When a child’s attachment has been
disturbed or disrupted, it impacts on their
willingness and confidence to explore and
therefore affects their social, cognitive and
physical development over time.
 The first few years of child’s life are
characterized by rapid physical and cognitive
growth and development. From birth, there is
a rapid development in language and
communication, as children learn to
understand what is being said and what is
happening around them. During this period,
they go from having very little control over
their bodies, to crawling, standing, walking
and running.
Developmentally Appropriate Teaching
Practices for Young Children
Children need relationships with caring adults who
engage in many one-on-one, face-to-face
interactions with them to support their oral language
development and lay the foundation for later literacy
learning. Important experiences and teaching
behaviors but are not limited to:
 Talking to babies and toddlers with simple
language, frequent eye contact, and
responsiveness to children’s cues and
language attempts.
 Frequent playing with, talking to, singing to,
and doing finger plays with very young
children.
 Sharing cardboard books with babies and
frequently reading to toddlers on the adult’s
lap or together with one or two other children.
 Providing simple art materials such as
crayons, markers, and large paper for
toddlers to explore and manipulate.