Healthy Minds:Nurturing Your Child’s Development from 0 to 2 Months

These handouts arebrought to you by ZEROTO THREE, the nation’sleading resource on thefirst 3 years of life, andthe American Academyof Pediatrics, dedicated tothe health of all children.

Key findingsfrom the report include:

What do we really know about how a young child develops? Whatcan parents do to best support their child’s healthy development andgrowing brain? Some of the answers are in this series of HealthyMinds handouts. Each handout is based on findings from a report*from the National Academy of Sciences that examined the research onchild and brain development to establish what is known about theearly years. The information we offer is age-specific, summarizes keyfindings from the report and suggests how you might be able to usethese key findings to nurture your own child’s healthy development.

● Your relationship with your child is the foundation of his orher healthy development.● Your child’s development depends on both the traits he orshe was born with (nature), and what he or she experiences(nurture). ● All areas of development (social/emotional/intellectual/lan-guage/motor) are linked. Each depends on, and influences,the others.● What children experience, including how their parentsrespond to them, shapes their development as they adapt tothe world.

When 2-month-old Benjamin cries and crieseach evening and kicks his arms and legs wild-ly, his parents try everything they can think ofto comfort him. They rock, walk and swaddlehim, massage his tummy in case he has gasand sing lullabies, all to calm him down.Sometimes it takes 20 minutes; sometimes ittakes 2 hours.

Benjamin’s crying, and his parents’ responseto it, shows how all areas of his developmentare linked, and how his parents help toencourage his development. Benjamin criesbecause he has come to expect that his par-ents will respond. When mom and dad don’tgive up trying to comfort Benjamin no matter

how frustrating it can be, they are nurturinghis social and emotional developmentbecause it makes him feel important and helearns to trust that his parents will care forhim. This gives him the confidence to trustothers, which will help him form healthy rela-tionships as he grows. In addition, beingsoothed by his parents in these early monthswill help him learn to soothe himself as hegets older, a very important skill throughoutlife. Using his voice and body to communicateis part of Benjamin’s early language andmotor development. When his parentsanswer his cries, he learns that his efforts atcommunicating are successful, which encour-ages him to communicate more, first throughgestures and sounds, and later through words.

Relationships are the foundation of a child’shealthy development.

How it looks in everyday family life:

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For more information go to:www.zerotothree.orgwww.aap.org

The following chart describes many of the things your baby is learning between 0 and 2 months and whatyou can do to support your child in all areas of his development. As you read, remember that childrendevelop at their own pace and in their own way. Understanding who your child is, what his strengths areand where he needs more support, is essential for promoting his healthy development. If you have ques-tions regarding your child’s development, ask your pediatrician

What’s going on:

One of the most important tasks ofthe first 2 months is to help new-borns feel comfortable in theirnew world. They are learning toregulate their eating and sleepingpatterns and their emotions,which help them feel content, safeand secure.

Even as newborns, babies canplay in many ways. They canconnect sounds with theirsources, and love when you talkand sing to them. Play helpsbabies learn about the worldaround them. It is also an impor-tant way they connect with you,helping them to develop a strongattachment and promotinghealthy social development.

Newborns use their gestures(body movements), sounds andfacial expressions to communi-cate their feelings and needsfrom day 1. They use differentcries to let you know they arehungry, tired or bored. They askfor a break by looking away,arching their backs, frowning orcrying. They socialize with youby watching your face andexchanging looks.

● Offer your baby lots of differentobjects for him to look at, touchand even grip in his palms. Hecan focus best on things that are 8to 12 inches away.● Play “tracking” games by movingyourself and interesting objectsback and forth. First he will use hiseyes to follow. Eventually he willmove his head from side to side.This helps strengthen his neckmuscles as well as exercise hisvisual abilities.

● Figure out what your baby is try-ing to tell you. Responding makeshim feel important and tells himhe is a good communicator. Thisbuilds a positive sense of self anda desire to communicate more. ● Talk and sing to your baby. Tellhim about everything that’s goingon around him. Pay attention tothe sights and sounds he likes.Find toys and everyday objectswith different colors and texturesand see which he likes best.

What you can do:

● Observe carefully. This willhelp you figure out what yourbaby’s cries are telling you. ● Soothe your baby. When yourespond to your baby’s cries andmeet his needs, you let him knowhe is loved. You can’t spoil ababy. In fact, by responding lov-ingly to his needs, you are help-ing him learn skills now thatallow him eventually to soothehimself. You are also promoting astrong bond and healthy braindevelopment.

*The report, From Neurons to Neighborhoods: The Science of Early Childhood Development, was a 21/2-year effort by a groupof 17 leading professionals with backgrounds in neuroscience, psychology, child development, economics, education, pedi-atrics, psychiatry and public policy. They reviewed what was known about the nature of early child development and theinfluence of early experiences on children’s health and well-being. The study was sponsored by a number of federal agen-cies and private foundations.

● What experiences does yourbaby seem to like best? (Forexample, talking with him; look-ing at toys or other objects; hear-ing the cat “meow.”) ● What kind of toys grab yourbaby’s attention? How does he letyou know what he’s interested in?● What kind of play do you enjoymost with your baby?

● How does your baby communi-cate with you? ● What kinds of interactions doeshe like best? How do you know?● How does he let you knowwhen he has had enough?

Questions to ask yourself:

● What soothes your baby? Howdo you know?● What most distresses him?

Charting Your Child’s Healthy Development: 0 to 2 months

With thanks to © 2003 ZERO TO THREE. This may befreely reproduced without permission for nonprofit, educational purposes.Reproduction for other uses requiresexpress permission of ZERO TO THREE.

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Healthy Minds:Nurturing Your Child’s Development from 2 to 6 Months

These handouts are brought toyou by ZERO TO THREE, thenation’s leading resource onthe first 3 years of life, and theAmerican Academy ofPediatrics, dedicated to thehealth of all children.

Key findingsfrom the report include:

What do we really know about how a young child develops?What can parents do to best support their child’s healthy devel-opment and growing brain? Some of the answers are in thisseries of Healthy Minds handouts. Each handout is based onfindings from a report* from the National Academy of Sciencesthat examined the research on child and brain development toestablish what is known about the early years. The informationwe offer is age-specific, summarizes key findings from the reportand suggests how you might be able to use these key findings tonurture your own child’s healthy development.

● Your relationship with your child is the foundation ofhis or her healthy development.● Your child’s development depends on both the traitshe or she was born with (nature), and what he or sheexperiences (nurture). ● All areas of development (social/emotional/intellec-tual/language/motor) are linked. Each depends on, andinfluences, the others.● What children experience, including how their par-ents respond to them, shapes their development asthey adapt to the world.

Five-month-old Tara loves playing peek-a-boowith her mom and dad. When they stop, shesqueals and reaches out her arms to let themknow she wants more. So they continue. Soonher parents add another twist to the game asthey start to hide behind the pillow for a fewseconds before they “reappear” to give hertime to anticipate what will happen next.

This simple game is more than just fun. Itshows how all areas of Tara’s developmentare linked and how her parents help toencourage her healthy development. Tara’sinterest in playing with her parents is a signof her social and emotional developmentbecause she has fun with her parents and cansee how much they enjoy being with her. Thismakes her feel loved and secure, and will

help her develop other positive relationshipsas she grows. Her desire to play this gamewith mom and dad leads to the developmentof new intellectual abilities as she learnsto anticipate what comes next, an importantskill for helping her feel more in control of herworld. Knowing what to expect will also helpher to more easily deal with being separatedfrom you as she learns that people exist evenwhen she can’t see them.

Tara’s early language and motor abilitiesemerge as she squeals, makes sounds andmoves her arms to let her parents know thatshe does not want them to stop.When theycontinue, her parents let her know that she isa good communicator, and each time theyreappear, she learns that she can trust them toalways come back

Relationships are the foundation of a child’shealthy development.

How it looks in everyday family life:

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The following chart describes many of the things your baby is learning between 2 and 6 months and whatyou can do to support your child in all areas of her development. As you read, remember that childrendevelop at their own pace and in their own way. Understanding who your child is, what her strengths areand where she needs more support, is essential for promoting her healthy development. If you have ques-tions regarding your child’s development, ask your pediatrician.

What’s going on:

Babies are very interactive at thisage. They use their new languageand communication skills as theysmile and coo back and forth, andenjoy babbling, starting with“ohs” and “ahs” and progressingto P’s, M’s, B’s and D’s. Your babymay babble and then pause, wait-ing for you to respond. They alsolove to imitate, which helps themlearn new skills. For example,mom sticks out her tongue, babyimitates and mom does it again.This also teaches them about theback and forth of conversation.

Babies have greater control overtheir bodies. By 4 to 6 months,they may be able to roll bothways, become better at reachingand grasping and will begin to sitwith assistance. They also beginwanting to explore their food andhelp feed themselves. Touchingand tasting different foods is goodfor learning and for building self-confidence.

Babies this age love to explore.They learn from looking at, hold-ing and putting their mouths ondifferent objects. At about 3months, babies begin to reach forthings and try to hold them. Makesure all objects are safe. A toy oranything else you give hershouldn’t fit entirely in hermouth.

● Place your baby in differentpositions—on her back, stomach,and sitting with support. Eachgives her a different view and achance to move and explore indifferent ways. ● Let your baby play with your fin-gers and explore the bottle orbreast during feedings. As shegrows, let her handle finger foodsand help hold the spoon.

● Introduce one toy at a time soyour baby can focus on, andexplore, each one. Good choicesinclude a small rattle with a han-dle, a rubber ring, a soft doll anda board book with pictures. ● Lay your baby on her back andhold brightly colored toys overher chest within her reach. She’lllove reaching up and pullingthem close. You will start to seewhat most interests her.

What you can do:

● When your baby babbles, bothtalk and babble back, as if youboth understand every word.These early conversations willteach her hundreds of wordsbefore she can actually speakany of them. ● Engage in back-and-forthinteractions with gestures. Forexample, hold out an interestingobject, encourage your baby toreach for it and then signal herto give it back. Keep this goingas long as your baby seems toenjoy it.

*The report, From Neurons to Neighborhoods: The Science of Early Childhood Development, was a 21/2-year effort by a groupof 17 leading professionals with backgrounds in neuroscience, psychology, child development, economics, education, pedi-atrics, psychiatry and public policy. They reviewed what was known about the nature of early child development and theinfluence of early experiences on children’s health and well-being. The study was sponsored by a number of federal agenciesand private foundations.

● How does your baby use herbody to explore? Which positionsdoes she like the best and least?● How would you describe yourbaby’s activity level? Does shelike/need to move around a lot oris she more laid-back?

● What kind of toys or objectsdoes your baby seem most inter-ested in? How do you know?● How do you and your baby mostenjoy playing together? Why?

Questions to ask yourself:

● How does your baby let youknow what she wants and howshe’s feeling?● How do you and your baby enjoycommunicating with each other?What do you say or do that getsthe biggest reaction from her?

Charting Your Child’s Healthy Development: 2 to 6 months

© 2003 ZERO TO THREE. This may befreely reproduced without permission for nonprofit, educational purposes.Reproduction for other uses requiresexpress permission of ZERO TO THREE.

For more information go to:www.zerotothree.orgwww.aap.org

With thanks to

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