Success Stories

Family Literacy: Not Just Play

A baby is smiling and laughing as her mother sings a silly song to her. A toddler is holding onto a chair and trying to walk over to where her Dad is sitting. A two-year-old is throwing a ball to his teacher. All are the everyday activities for children who are just playing, right? Not really. New research continues to change our thoughts about the importance of the earliest years of a child’s life are. All interactions with the significant people in a child’s life teach the child many development skills. Early literacy efforts in families help the child to develop language skills. Physical development is usually easy to observe. Cognitive development concerns parents as they think ahead to school readiness skills. Social development is discussed when enrolling in child care or a preschool. Hand-in-hand with social development is the less mentioned, emotional development. The emotional development of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers has been the focus of recent research.

Emotional development begins early. Research indicates it is critical to the developing brain. The National Scientific Council on the Developing Child’s synthesis of research, Children’s Emotional Development is built into the Architecture of the Developing Brain, Working Paper #2, indicates that early emotional development or the lack of development can impact the individual over his or her lifetime (NSCDC, 2004). Certainly the impact is felt in school readiness abilities and school coping skills. The findings include the realization that “learning to manage emotions is more difficult for some children than learning to count or read and may, in some cases, be an early warning sign of psychological problems (NSCDC, 2004, p. 1).”

Recognizing and understanding one’s feelings along with identifying and comprehending the feelings of others, managing emotions, and empathy are the hallmarks of emotional development and are key to relationships. Science has found that emotion is wired into several areas of the central nervous system. Development allows for connections among the circuits in the brain. “Early emotional experiences literally become embedded in the architecture” of a child’s brain (NSCDC, 2004, p. 2).

How can caregivers insure healthy emotional development? Reflecting back on our scenarios with infants and toddlers, it is in the interactions with significant relationships that create emotional learning. When an infant is hungry, tired, or uncomfortable, her or his cries need to be responded to promptly and positively. As the child grows through toddlerhood and the preschool years, to age five, emotional maturity builds on the earlier connections. Handling their own emotions and learning to understand others and their feelings are some of the most important challenges for the young child. Emotional development and social skills are vital to school readiness and coping abilities. Parents and teachers should be cognizant of supportive learning situations and the environment that children need to encounter. Cognitive learning is interrelated with emotional development. Research reveals that “circuits that are involved the regulation of emotion are highly interactive with those that are associated” with functions of judgment and decision-making (NSCDC, 2004, p. 3). Those functions are, in turn, associated with problem-solving. Emotions support these interrelated abilities, but disrupt attention when not developed. Understanding each child’s different temperament and responding to each child positively is crucial (NSCDC, 2004).

The NSCDC’s Working Paper #4 further contributes that research is showing negative impact on young children from toxins in the environment. Heavy metals (lead, mercury, manganese) upset neurotransmitters which carry signals in the brain for many functions. Of concern is the finding that the functions of feeling and thinking are “most susceptible” (NSCDC, 2006, p. 3).

Relationships and experiences in the first three years shape the child in all areas of development (Zero To Three, 2002). The social and emotional development of a child lays a foundation for life in how he or she copes with school, people, and life situations. “All of the domains of a child’s development—physical, social-emotional, cognitive, language and literacy—are interrelated and interdependent” (Strickland, 2006, p. 1). More than just play, family interactions have the greatest impact on child development.

National Scientific Council on the Developing Child (2004). Children’s Emotional Development is built into the Architecture of the Developing Brain, Working Paper #2. Retrieved May 10, 2006 from http://www. developingchild.net/reports.shtml

National Scientific Council on the Developing Child (2006). Early Exposure to Toxic Substances Damages Brain Architecture, Working Paper #4. Retrieved May 10, 2006 from http://www.developingchild.net/reports.shtml

Strickland, Dorothy S., Riley-Ayers, Shannon (2006). Early Literacy: Policy and Practice in the Preschool Years, NIEER Policy Brief, Issue 10. Retrieved May 10, 2006 from http://nieer.org/docs/index.php?DocID =143

Zero To Three (2002). Healthy Minds: Nurturing Your Child’s Development (with developmental resources). Retrieved May 10, 2006 from http://www.zerotothree.org/ztt_parents.html