Children begin developing from the time they are babies. And you can do lots to help your child’s development. Rachel Reynolds explains how.

During the early years of their lives, children develop very rapidly. Even newborn babies – often thought of as just expressing their physical needs and responding to basic sensory information – are developing and learning at this young age. During this time, children show signs of major changes in all areas of their development – physically, cognitively, behaviourally, emotionally and socially. This can be seen in the way that they acquire language, progressing from sounds and gurgles, to single words and simple sentences, to long narratives about the world around them. Similarly, babies develop physically – from being unable to support their own heads, they are soon able to roll, crawl and grasp, before beginning to walk, feed themselves and play with more complex toys as toddlers.

As children actively engage with the world around them, they are developing. The information they gather with their senses – sight, sound, smell, touch, taste – is processed by the brain to help them develop an understanding of themselves, their relationships with their parents and the world in which they live.
Every child develops at a different rate. For example, some children talk at an early age and others much later. Children develop differently and may acquire and use other skills, for example, developing abilities in non-verbal communication.

Helping your child develop

The ways in which children develop and how we foster their development are related to social, environmental and cultural factors. When we talk about development, we shouldn’t think about a single path, along which all children will walk in the same way. Instead, it is important to remember that children learn and grow in many ways, depending on whether they have any additional needs, the values held by their families, the cultures they grow up within and the different parts of the world where they live.

Your child will develop in many different ways – and you will have lots of opportunities to help them grow and learn by getting them to engage in certain everyday activities and by providing a stimulating environment. And remember, it’s all about having fun! Children are naturally curious and are fascinated by the world around them. As your child develops, you will become aware of what interests them and you can use this to engage them in enjoyable activities and experiences.

The following suggestions for activities can contribute towards your child’s overall development and can be easily adapted to meet their specific and/or individual needs too.

Some ideas

Taking your child swimming or on walks to the local park will help with their physical development.
As you do everyday activities, count the number of red flowers in the garden or the ducks in the pond, as this is good for cognitive development.

Letting your child help you tidy up around the house or lay the table will help develop and hone their hand-eye co-ordination and give them a feeling of independence.

Reading with your child encourages them to develop language (see the article “Enjoying books together” on page 18).

You can show your child how to help others and co-exist with others, as well as encourage respect for nature and their surroundings, by letting them help you in the garden.

A range of craft and recycled materials stimulates their creative imagination.

Making up stories and rhymes together and encouraging imaginative play with items such as tea sets and dressing-up clothes have a positive impact on cognitive and social development.

Help your child develop and practise their social skills by visiting friends and family.

Talking to your child helps their language development and can be done anytime, for example, when doing everyday activities such as household chores or going shopping.

Babies and children express their emotions very well. Whether they are happy, sad, fearful or angry, they let their feelings be known. As your child grows older, you can help them to think about how they feel, how to express their feelings and what can be done by talking to them about their emotions more generally.

Asking your child to do simple tasks, such as finding their shoes, increases their independence and confidence.

Visiting a playground and playing on the swings and slides will give your child a chance to develop physical and social skills as well as learning to share or take turns with other children.

Your child will develop naturally within your relationship together, however, it is important to remember that children need personal space as well as companionship. Allowing your child free time provides the opportunity for them to take in the world about them and foster their own sense of independence and achievement. Children get a great deal of satisfaction from activities that are self-inspired. As your child gets older, these individual activities really contribute to their imagination and creativity.

Food for thought

Because even your child’s brain development is fundamentally linked with their physical development, it is important to keep in mind the impact of nutrition and health. As children develop, their bodies are growing – with muscles and bones being strengthened, developing connections between the body and the brain, increasing brain function and producing the energy to make all of this happen. What a child eats and drinks plays an important role in providing their body with the nutrients needed to grow and develop. A healthy balanced diet will give your child energy, the ability to concentrate, take part in social activities and increase their ability to relate to the world around them (for more information on diet see the article “Healthy eating for under fives” on page 78).

Movement is also an important part of development. Physical activity enables children to practice using their muscles and develops their strength, balance, mobility and agility. A typically developing child will progress from being able to hold their head up, to roll and push themselves up, move their arms, crawl and walk, to crucial physical stages of development that have been shown to have an impact on their cognitive development. Again this happens very naturally and we can encourage children to enjoy being a physical entity and make the most of moving their bodies and using newfound skills such as holding and manipulating toys.

Developing your child’s understanding

As a child’s memory develops, their language skills improve and they begin to form mental images of how things happen. This helps children begin to understand concepts, that is, ideas about how the world works, such as the idea of up and down, under and over, in and out.

You will be able to see how your child’s understanding about the world develops as you watch them play and as you talk, engage and explain things to them. For example, if they see you put a toy train into a box, you can then ask, “Where is the train?” and they will soon learn what it means for something to be inside the box.

Keep demonstrating and explaining things to your child and they will gradually begin to understand more about themselves and their world and how it works. Remember that your child is a unique individual who will develop at their own pace and who can only benefit from your help and support.

Children are different

Children learn at different speeds and reach the stages of development at various times. While some children may develop a skill quickly, others may take longer to develop the same skill and/or may not be ready to take on the new skill at that time.

When a child has mastered their first area of skill, you will often notice a spurt of development, so children who may not develop a new skill early on often ‘catch up’ fairly quickly.

As a parent, you might feel worried about delayed speech or late walking in your child, compared with other children, however, if they are developing other skills at appropriate rates then these skills are usually acquired by the age of three. However, if your child does seem to be severely delayed then your GP or health visitor will be able to quickly diagnose such a delay. They should support you while keeping a close eye on your child’s long-term development to make sure you have the appropriate help, depending on your child’s abilities and needs.

Just remember that children are very capable. As they develop physically, acquire knowledge and become more responsive to the world around them, they will naturally become skilled learners.