Supporting babies and toddlers
Introduction
This course, Supporting development of babies and toddlers, has been developed to provide an introduction for early childhood practitioners and those interested in joining that workforce to some of the key aspects of working with very young children. The course explores how theories inform us about early child development, examines the importance of playful movement and schemas and uses these to understand a baby or toddler’s needs in order to plan engaging activities in accessible and enabling environments, both indoors and outdoors. It looks at the significance of attachment, the role of the key person and the importance of the partnership with parents and the home learning environment.
Learning outcomes
After studying this course, you should be able to:
- consider current research into child and brain growth and how this informs our understanding of development in early childhood
- recognise the role schematic behaviours have in creating an accessible and enabling environment, both indoors and outdoors
- identify how attachment relates to the role of the key person
- recognise and promote the importance of the partnership with parents, including the home learning environment
- demonstrate understanding of how to observe, assess, plan and record the care and learning needs of a child to enable the next steps in the child’s development and learning.
Course content
Week 1: The incredible years
Week 2: Building the brain
Week 3: Playing
Week 4: Making connections
Week 5: Building relationships
Week 6: Putting it into practice