Introduction

Babies and toddlers need to feel safe and secure in order to be ready to play, explore and learn. We know that it is not always easy to manage a child’s emotions, and providing a secure environment for learning is a major factor in any baby or toddler room. Developing sensitive, responsive and trusted relationships with key practitioners in the baby or toddler room is fundamental to infant mental health.

Practitioners help babies and toddlers learn how to experience, manage and express their emotions and to feel safe to explore the world. Good infant mental health enables young children to feel safe and secure, ready to play, explore and learn. You can support all this by laying the groundwork for children’s ongoing social and emotional development, including resilience and adaptability – these competencies will help them to thrive and achieve lifelong physical and mental health and wellbeing.

Figure 22.1 Figure 1 Playing and exploring

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Two young boys playing by a shallow pond.

Figure 1 Playing and exploring

By the end of this week, you will be able to:

• understand the role that attachment plays in a child’s development
• recognise how a child’s relationships affect their self-regulation, identity and sense of belonging.