Children between the ages of six weeks and 18 months – need a nurturing and loving environment in which they feel comfortable and receive the attention they need. Even at that early age, though, every child has individual personalities and needs. Any daycare curriculum built for them, then, must keep that in mind. Developing children require a lot of different activities and experiences to make the most of their time and benefit from a curriculum. This means that the learning experience has to address each aspect of the development process, and it has to be fun and immediately engaging. Infants at this age are developing quickly, so they need a lesson that helps them grow in both body and mind.
Healthy Body
At this stage in their development, infants are just starting to learn to control their movements and become fully mobile. Daily activities can involve rolling from side to side, learning to crawl, stand and walk. There are several motor skills that they can work on, too, which will help them build their abilities through repetition and experience. This means activities that include trial and error, object interaction and permanence, and cause and effect actions can be very beneficial. Whether this involves stacking and moving objects or just running around, this is a great way to start confidently using their hands, feet, arms, and legs.
Healthy Mind
There are several ways a curriculum can build a healthy mind. In particular, it needs to focus on both communication and creativity. Between the ages of eight months and two years, children begin to communicate with others. It’s both a wonderful and a wonderfully frustrating time. They know they have something to say, but they just can’t express themselves vocally. They can, however, learn baby sign language to communicate with others and make their desires known. There are several ways to encourage creativity in children, whether they use paints, crayons, music, or toys. It’s important to help them to use all their senses throughout this process and discover new things every day.
Healthy Fun
An infant daycare curriculum will be successful when it is fun and engaging. Activities like music and singing are important for brain development, and children naturally enjoy the tones and rhythms. Painting with their hands let’s them feel free and expressive. Building with blocks and knocking them down helps them see how their actions create effects. All of these activities are great teaching aids, and even infants start to explore their world and interact with the things around them. They need to be free to move and free to play (during the appropriate play times, of course) so they can experiment with the objects in a safe and controlled way. It really can be fun for these infants to learn about their environment so they can become more confident as they grow older.
Being Part of the Process
Any curriculum will be more successful when parents are intricately involved with the process. When they share their goals and speak with us about the development of their children, we can work toward the same results.
