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(Unit 3) Topic 1: Social and Emotional Development

2 Clock Hours of Early Childhood Education

Infant Emotional Development 

​Topic 1 Page 6

​From the start, babies eagerly explore their world-and that includes themselves and other people.

When adults respond quickly and appropriately to infants’ cries of distress or signals for play, infants learn that they are important.  They learn that what they do makes a difference. They learn that they can express their emotions, whether pleasant or unpleasant, and that someone understands how they feel. Consistent attention from the same caregiver helps to meet an infant’s need for stability and familiarity. Infants need a continuing relationship with a few caring people. Young children thrive when they share a strong bond with a person who cares for them day after day.

To meet the emotional needs of infants, make sure you:

• Hold, touch, and cuddle them, making frequent eye contact and talking with them (especially during routines such as feeding and diapering)
• Encourage them to develop their physical abilities such as rolling, sitting, and walking
• Respond to and expand on cues coming from the child (“Are you getting hungry? Let me get you a bottle.”)
• Provide time and space for movement and play
• Spend time interacting with them, holding them, rocking them, and sitting on the floor with them in your lap
• Talk to them often in loving tones using descriptive words (make this part of your routine care)
• Interpret their actions to other children to help them get along in the group (“Anthony has the ball and you would like one too. Here’s another ball for you.”)
• Encourage contact between infants; but be careful to protect younger infants from the explorations of older, mobile ones
• Give them hugs and smiles, and laugh with them

Infant and toddler teachers have an awesome responsibility. Research shows that more rapid brain development takes place during these years than at any other time of life. Babies are born learning. Children need the right experiences at the right times for their brains to fully develop. It is now known that the first three years of life are more critical to a child’s development than ever imagined. Talk to infants and toddlers often in loving tones with descriptive words. Make this a part of your routine care. These activities promote attachment and bonding – crucial components for normal growth and development.

Feeding Time as a Social and Learning Experience for Infants

Tremendous growth and development take place during the first year of a child’s life. As a caregiver to infants, two of your most important jobs are to provide nutrients to support growth and provide stimulation to encourage development. Feeding times provide opportunities to do both.  Talk to the infant during the feeding. Talk about anything. Describe what is in the bottle, what is going on in the room, how you are feeling, or how you think the baby feels.  Repeat the infant’s sounds. These sounds are the beginning of the infant’s language.

Infants will make more sounds when you talk back. They have short memories (about five seconds), so it is important to answer them right away. Try different sounds with your voice. Sing, hum, use a different pitch, or make funny noises. Infants respond to different tones, voice levels, or unusual sounds. Recognize the infant’s non-verbal cues used to communicate with you such as smiling, laughing, searching, looking for your eyes, or reaching to touch you.  ​

​Use diaper changing as a time for relaxed, one-on-one interaction with children. ​

Don’t communicate disgust or disapproval. Handle children gently as you go about cleaning them up and diapering them. Talk to the child constantly. There should be lots of eye contact, smiles, and social games. Pleasant and stimulating diaper changing times are especially important for younger infants, whose range of activities is so limited. 

​​​Social/Emotional Development in Infants

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What Most Babies Do at 2 Months:

• Begins to smile at people
• Can briefly calm himself (may bring hands to mouth and suck on hand)
• Tries to look at parent 

This baby is displaying a 2-month social/emotional milestone - smiling at his caregiver.

​What Most Babies Do at 4 Months:

• ​Smiles spontaneously, especially at people
• Likes to play with people and might cry when playing stops
• Copies some movements and facial expressions, like smiling or frowning

This photo shows a baby smiling spontaneously at someone, a 4-month social/emotional milestone. 

​What Most Babies Do at 6 Months:

• ​Knows familiar faces and begins to know if someone is a stranger
• Likes to play with others, especially parents
• Responds to other people’s emotions and often seems happy
• ​Likes to look at self in a mirror

In this video, the baby is responding happily to his mother’s silly game. Responding to other people’s emotions and often seeming happy is a 6-month social/emotional milestone.

​What Most Babies Do at 9 Months:

• ​May be afraid of strangers
• May be clingy with familiar adults
• Has favorite toys

In this video, a baby girl shows she is afraid of the woman she doesn’t know, a 9-month social/emotional milestone.

The little boy in this video cries when his mom leaves,
​a 1-year social/emotional milestone. 

​What Most Babies Do at 12 Months:

• Is shy or nervous with strangers
• Cries when mom or dad leaves
• Has favorite things and people
• Shows fear in some situations
• Hands you a book when he wants to hear a story
• Repeats sounds or actions to get attention
• Puts out arm or leg to help with dressing
• Plays games such as “peek-a-boo” and “pat-a-cake”

• Developing Social-Emotional Skills From Birth to Three, ZERO TO THREE
• Parenting Resource Toddlers and Biting: Finding the Right Response, ZERO TO THREE
• Understanding and Responding to Children Who Bite, NAEYC
• Baby Games – How Infants Develop Social Skills (Video Demo!), Janet Lansbury

(Unit 3) Topic 1: Social and Emotional Development * Navigation Menu