Contents

Learning and development up to 12 months

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

I will need help to understand; and learn how to manage my emotions. I want to feel positive about myself and develop my self-confidence. I will learn about my body and work out how to manage my personal needs, all by myself. I want help to make and learn about healthy choices. I want to have lots of friends and learn skills so I can play and work with others harmoniously.

Building Relationships: Help me learn how to form relationships with others

  • Look and give me time to copy the movements you make with your face, like when you poke out your tongue, open and close your mouth or open and shut your eyes
  • Talk, sing or look at books with me and tell me about the pictures. Let me watch your facial expressions and listen to the sounds of your voice
  • Give me lots of cuddles and keep me close to you/partner

 

Managing Self: Help me to be healthy, feel good and learn about myself

  • Spend time with me and let’s look at different toys or items that I like best and talk with me about them
  • Stroke my cheeks or pat my back as you talk to me
  • Let me help, I can hold the packet of wipes or a clean nappy when you’re changing me
  • When my first tooth appears, introduce tooth brushing morning and night, I can have a go at holding the toothbrush
  • We can go out together and get some fresh air whatever the weather

Self-Regulation: Learning and feeling emotions

  • Tickle my feet, play with my fingers, touch my nose/ ears, this makes me happy and excited
  • Let me see your face and hear your voice when I am grumpy, tired or hungry, this helps me to feel reassured and safe

Physical Development

Help me to be happy, healthy and active. I need you to support me to develop my muscles and learn through my senses, so I am strong and able to balance and co-ordinate my body. I need to play indoors and outdoors so I can use all my muscles. Later on, my fine motor control will become more skilled so I can be more precise and develop my hand-eye co-ordination to help with my writing when I get to school.

Big and little skills to develop muscles and body control:

  • Put me on my tummy or back, on a soft mat or blanket. Let me kick my legs and move my head and arms
  • Cover my legs with a crinkly blanket or piece of light, soft material so I can kick it off (move the blanket for me if it starts to move towards my head)
  • Put my favourite things by me so that I can reach out and touch it or try to hold it

Communication and Language

Help me to develop my speaking (my home language or signing is important too) as this is important for all areas of learning and in later life. I will be talking lots and lots and will enjoy interesting conversations, I will love learning new words, learning rhymes and songs and I will really benefit from you reading stories to me regularly, so I learn lots of new words and thrive.

Listening, attention and understanding

  • Play “peek a boo” games with me. Use your hands or a scarf to hide your face
  • Tell me what you’re doing as you’re changing my nappy or getting me dressed
  • Sing a song or rhyme as you rock or hug me
  • Talk about what you are doing so I hear lots of words
  • Show me my favourite objects and name them

Speaking

  • Have a chat with me by copying my sounds and babbling
  • Show me how to make different noises and ways to move my mouth

BBC's Tiny Happy People

Tiny Happy People can provide you with further ideas on how to help your child's brain development so they get the best start in life. 

Visit the following links for each stage

 

BBC TIny Happy People logo

Further information and advice