When you bring a newborn baby home from the hospital, it can seem like an eternity before that child will be walking into a school building with a backpack for kindergarten. But the reality is, the road to the first day of school starts in the critical first three years of a child’s life.

This is a time of exponential brain growth, with neurons laying a foundation for speech, language, movement and social skills—or the ability for your child to get along with other children—to be honed.

Your child can’t do this alone. Parents and caregivers are essential partners on the journey to kindergarten readiness.

The time that you spend with your infant and toddler playing on the floor with toys, building towers with blocks, talking about items as you move them from grocery shelves into your cart, or being silly while exploring new foods is far more than just idle play.

These interactions are helping your child to lay down important neural pathways that are the necessary precursors to kindergarten skills like following directions, sharing toys and transitioning between activities.

Time You Don’t Get Back

A baby is born with all of the brain cells they’ll have for their entire life—but it’s the connections between these cells that make the brain work. It doesn’t take a brain surgeon to make these connections—the best way a child can build them is by having positive interactions and stimulating experiences with a parent or caregiver.

A baby’s cooing, laughing and crying are all invitations for a parent or caregiver to respond to the child’s needs. By singing, reading, talking and playing with your baby or toddler, you are literally helping to lay the foundation of neural connections that lead to important skills like motivation, self-regulation, problem-solving, communication and self-esteem later on. The opposite is also true—young children who receive low levels of caring interaction do not develop as many brain connections, which can have a negative impact later in life.

While the Internet and streaming services are full of engaging programming targeting this age group, research has shown that watching another person on TV is no substitute for interacting with a human in real life. Parents should prioritize real-life interaction over screen time, especially in these early years.

You Are Your Child’s Best Teacher

When a child experiences delays in meeting typical developmental milestones, a parent’s role becomes even more important. This is why the Parent Education-Infant Development program, an early intervention program that is part of the Rappahannock Area Community Services Board, is uniquely designed to put parents at the center of the work that speech, occupational, physical and other therapy practitioners do to help narrow developmental gaps in children ages 0 to 3.

“Our intent is to work alongside the parent so that they’re learning how to do the activities, and so that they can carry them throughout the day and week with their child,” said Alison Standring, Part C System Manager for RACSB. “This way, children benefit from far more therapy than just the few hours per month that they are actually with the therapist.”

Home visits with early intervention all start with the same question.

“The first thing we ask the parents is, ‘What would you like to work on today?’” said Suzanne Haskell, PE-ID Program Coordinator.

This can take some getting used to. After all, when a trained therapeutic specialist walks in, many parents expect them to set the agenda. But by taking this parent-led approach, PE-ID’s providers are helping parents learn to be their child’s best advocate—a skill that will serve them well throughout the parenting journey—while building a treatment regimen that is 100% customized to that family’s needs.

During a therapeutic visit the child, care giver and therapist will work to find and then practice techniques that will build developmental skills.  At the end of the visit, the therapist will review what worked and did not work and then give the family a list of specific activities to work on before the next appointment.  When the therapist arrives for the next session, the team reviews and practices.  Many times, it is easy to see great progress that has happened without the therapist there. This is why Early Intervention works!

And as a child approaches age 3, the PE-ID team helps the family transition to the next step, whether that’s a preschool program or continued therapy with another provider.

With developmental delays, early intervention is key to progress. Parents who have concerns about their child’s developmental progress should reach out to a pediatrician or call PE-ID directly at 540-372-3561. The team will schedule a free assessment, where the developmental skills of the infant or toddler are assessed by staff members from fields including early childhood special education, occupational therapy, speech/language therapy and physical therapy.

A list of questions to help you assess your child’s development, along with more information about the program, can be found at rappahannockareacsb.org/early-intervention.

 

QUALITY TIME

Brain-building ideas for babies, toddlers and parents to enjoy together

Sit down and take books off a shelf, or bowls out of a low cabinet, and put them back in.

Get your hands into some play dough. Demonstrate for young children how to make different shapes and forms.

Kids love watching YouTubers unbox toys. Why not create a real-life unboxing with everyday items around the house?

Play peek-a-boo.

Sing songs.

Make silly faces.

Read books, and show your child how to flip pages from right to left.

Eat together, and notice the taste, smell and feel of new foods.

Take your child out into the community—to the grocery store, the library, the park—and talk about what you see, hear and feel.