Home » Partners & Parents » Children's Health » Early Development and Early Intervention

Early Development and Early Intervention

© Karen Cabiac

In the education realm we hear a lot about early intervention. Early intervention generally is associated with children with disabilities and making sure that these children are evaluated and given the appropriate treatment. Treatment may range from something as simple as a pair of eyeglasses or a hearing aid to intense physical and/or occupational therapy and the need for multiple mechanical devices to assist a person in everyday living skills.

We are also advancing very rapidly in the area of brain development research. What this means to parents and educators is that we are getting better and better at understanding how to positively enhance our children's learning ability and (hopefully) intelligence. What we once thought of as a "blank slate" waiting for the experiences of life we now know is already in various stages of development before birth. What are we talking about? The brain of the newborn.

Factors from both genetics and environment figure into the developing brain of the infant. Music can be heard while the fetus is still developing in the womb as well as the voices of "mom" and "dad." Although the infant may not be able to associate where these voices are coming from, they are learning to distinguish changes in ranges of pitch, be calmed by soothing sounds, and readying their brain for the learning of language. Without understanding language one cannot comprehend reading.

Although, it is not known exactly what infants see at birth, we do know that they see more than what we had once thought they did. It is important, therefore, for parents and caregivers to interact with the newborn. It is important for children to have interesting objects nearby. This allows them to work at focusing and as the infant develops is something to attempt to grasp, thereby helping the child to gain control of muscles.

There is so much information for infants to take in the first few years of life. Information is not only absorbed through sight and sound but also through taste and touch. Taste, this is why babies and young children put everything in their mouths! This is how they explore the world. By being touched, gently or roughly, children learn what their surroundings are about. A gentle touch can be associated with safety and caring, a rough touch can be associated with fear, anger, and loneliness. Although, even a rough touch might be preferred to nothing at all. Children who grow up without physical nurturing never gain a sense of trust and are never capable of giving companionship to others.

The copyright of the article Early Development and Early Intervention in Children's Health is owned by . Permission to republish Early Development and Early Intervention in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.