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How Infants and Young Children Learn
Commonly Asked Questions
What can I do to provide good learning conditions for my young child?
- Talk with your child. There is no substitute for time spent talking with your child about experiences and ideas of interest. Remember that talking "with" your child is quite different from talking "at" your child. Even young infants, who cannot yet produce speech, benefit from adults' talking with them. Also, it is important to provide children with appropriate language and usage. Although imitating a child's attempts at language has a role, it is important to provide a child with the appropriate use of language as well to support his or her growth in using language.
- Listen to your child. Be patient. Allow time for thoughts to be completed. What children want to say is important to them, and you will learn from what they have to say. This is particularly important with the youngest children, who have limited words to express complex thoughts. For example, shortly after children use their first words, a period occurs where they use groups of two words to convey the meaning adults put into entire sentences. By patiently allowing your child to "get the words out," you can then interpret what the child is trying to say.
- Sing and chant nursery rhymes and childhood songs you remember. "Patty cake" and "This little piggy" still work well. Obviously, rhymes you remember from your childhood are important to you, so pass that love along to your baby. Not only does this build a shared history, but also the pattern inherent in most nursery rhymes encourages the development of language skills.
- Turn ordinary, everyday trips into interesting excursions. A trip to the playground may be a time to notice the differences in the many houses along the way. Which ones are tall and which are small? Notice the new buds on the trees or how the leaves are beginning to turn color or fall to the ground. At the market, show your child the different foods, shapes, textures, and smells. This kind of noticing leads to questions and discussions that involve interesting language and concepts.
- Play language games with your child. Make up silly rhymes and chants. Language play helps children become sensitive to the sounds in the language, something that is key to success in reading.
- Expand your child's language. Use describing words whenever possible. The huge dog. The frightened baby duck. The exhausted old man. This will help your child develop a large and rich vocabulary, which is important for communicating and for all future learning. When children start to speak in two-word sentences, one of the most typical sets is a noun and a descriptor like "yellow bus."
- Help your child solve problems. When something doesn't work right, show your child how to fix it. For example, if your child's tricycle wheel comes off, let him or her help you as you fix it, and explain what you are doing. Be sensitive to what your child can do, and what you need to do to help him or her. Parents who can do so help to support the child's development of new skills as well as concepts about how things work and how to solve problems.
- Answer your child's questions. Young children ask questions. Give short, simple answers whenever you can. Remember that young children think in terms of concrete information, so provide answers that mesh well with how children think. This can also provide an opportunity for you to demonstrate how things work and to add to the ideas and words your child learns every day. By the time a child is four or five years old, she or he is learning at an amazing rate.
- Ask your child questions. Giving your child the opportunity to answer questions can let him or her demonstrate what he or she knows, which is always a good feeling. Try to ask questions you feel your child will be able to answer, because no one likes to fail, but you can also use this as an opportunity to teach your child that it's ok to ask for help in seeking answers or in figuring things out. Also, keep in mind that a child may give you an answer that you did not expect!
- Encourage pretend play. Act out roles with your child, for example, by having a party with dolls or stuffed animals, and talk about the roles each one plays. Pretend play with farm animals, small car sets, and other toys can help your child understand concepts about interacting, sharing, and cooperative play. It can also help to increase your child's vocabulary. Also, encourage your child to use objects in pretend ways (for example, a small plate may be used as a steering wheel to drive a car).
- Share books on a regular basis. When sharing books:
Give your child opportunities to choose the book to be read.
Find a comfortable, well-lit place to read.
Cuddle or sit close. Sharing books should be fun and cozy.
Make sure that you both can see the book.
Read with expression.
Have your child turn the pages.
Now and then, move your fingers from word to word as you read.
Talk about what is being read. You may need to explain something that is new to your child by relating it to something he or she knows about already.
Encourage your child to ask questions and make comments about what is being read. It is important for your child to understand the words (vocabulary) and the ideas or concepts that are presented in stories.
Make reading time enjoyable-a time when you both enjoy being together. Choose a quiet and calm location without distractions such as television or radio. Don't take your child away from another pleasurable activity if the child objects.
Adjust the amount of time you spend reading to the child's attention span. Keep in mind that this may vary from day to day.
Young children are pliable and rapid language learners. If you speak a certain language at home, it is fine to read to your child in that language. In many homes, children are read to in more than one language. Children who come to school having had experiences with language, storybooks, and printed materials at home will be better students no matter what language is spoken. Today's libraries and bookstores carry a variety of books in various languages for young children.
Young children will tend to develop "favorite books," those that they want to read often. Be patient with your child and continue to read the books the child wants, but introduce additional books as well.
- Set a good example as a reader. It is important for your child to see you reading books, magazines, newspapers, and even the mail. Let them know that reading is important to you.
- Let your child observe the many uses you make of reading and writing: Writing the grocery list, clipping coupons from a supermarket flyer, looking up someone's telephone number in the telephone book, reading the menu at a restaurant. If you use a calendar for planning family events, let your child see you making entries. When a child asks about events, bring him or her to the calendar and show the child when an event will happen.
- Provide books as gifts. Make them accessible so that your child can "read" independently from books you have shared. Young children enjoy imitating the adults who read to them, as they "read" to a Teddy Bear or to themselves. You can either purchase these books or find a nearby library with a good collection of children's books.
- Most four-year-old children can learn to read their names with ease. Post your child's name in a prominent place, such as the refrigerator or above his or her towel in the bathroom. This promotes pride as well as many key concepts about print.
- Set limitations for watching television. Begin the habit of selective viewing early. Watch television with your child and talk to him or her about the shows. This is another opportunity to ensure that your child is learning words and ideas. Remember that time spent in front of a television is time that your child is not spending in other more valuable activities.
- Promptly attend to any hearing, vision, or speech concerns that you may have regarding your child. A child who seems to ignore you when you speak or does not pay attention to you may have a serious medical problem, most of which may be easily treated.
- Seek out and take advantage of school and community services that address children with special needs.
- Take care in selecting the childcare setting in which you place your child. As a concerned parent, you have a responsibility to inquire about things that may concern you. Keep in mind that mutual respect and support help insure high quality connections between home and child care provider.
- Check with local agencies for listings of licensed childcare providers. Many communities have resource and referral agencies that can help you to identify the childcare programs that best meet your needs. Again, ask your local librarian to help you locate the addresses and phone numbers for these agencies.
Start looking for childcare early, particularly if you have a special program for your child in mind. Some programs have long waiting lists.
- Gather information. Whether you are looking for a day-care provider or for a caregiver to come into your home, interview the person at length and check references carefully. Before you meet with the person, develop a list of questions. If you are considering day-care centers, visit each one-more than once. Don't rely only on good reports about the center from other people. Centers that work well for other parents may not work well for you. As with any kind of childcare, check the center's references carefully.
No matter what kind of childcare you are considering, look for care providers who:
Are kind and responsive. Good care providers enjoy being with children, are energetic, patient and mature enough to handle crises/conflicts.
Have experience working with young children and like them. Find out how long the providers have worked with preschoolers, why they are in the child-care field and whether they provide activities that are appropriate for your child's age. Observe the providers with other children. Do the children seem happy? How do the providers respond to them?
Recognize the individual needs of children. Look for care providers who are considerate of different children's interests and needs and who can provide your child with enough attention.
Have a child-rearing philosophy that is similar to your own. Find out what kind of discipline the providers use and how they handle problems.
Note: Some of these suggestions were adapted from "The Role of Parents and Grandparents in Children's Cognitive Development: Focus on Language and Literacy," Dorothy S. Strickland, Rutgers University
Additional questions
How does my child's physical and mental progress compare to other children of the same age, and what can I do to help him progress?
What should I do if my child is not developing at the same speed as most other children from the same age group?
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