The early years of a child’s life are crucial for their overall development and well-being. During this time, childcare plays a vital role in shaping their emotional, social, and cognitive development. Nurturing secure adults starts with providing a supportive and stimulating environment during their formative years. From building secure attachments to promoting healthy brain development, childcare in the formative years sets the stage for children to grow into confident, resilient, and secure individuals.
AK Srikanth, CEO, KLAY Preschools and Daycare, says, “It is an established fact that 80% of the brain development of humans occurs before the age of 4. This age group is therefore without a doubt the one where most of the hard wiring of traits occur. A childhood that is filled with positive values such as emotional well-being, social skills, and imbibing logical thinking along with ethical and moral value systems becomes the foundation of an adult who is secure and successful.”
Formative years and the experiences during these years play a crucial role in shaping children’s emotional and psychological development. Research has shown that the first few years of a child’s life are critical for overall development, as this is the period when the brain is rapidly developing. “They are learning to interact with the world around them. The quality of the environment during this critical period can profoundly impact the child’s sense of security and well-being, which, in turn, can influence their relationships, self-esteem and ability to cope with stress later in life. The experiences during this time can shape the architecture of the brain. Positive experiences, such as responsive caregiving, a stimulating environment and opportunities to explore and learn, can promote healthy brain development,” says Sumita Malik, Head Early Years, Shiv Nadar School, Noida.
Research has shown that early childhood experiences also play a critical role in shaping a child’s social and emotional development. Experiences such as secure attachment with a caregiver, opportunities to play and interact with peers and exposure to a variety of emotions and secure social situations can help children develop social and emotional skills such as empathy, self-regulation, build self-esteem and communication. “When children enter a formal school system, they compare, judge and integrate their skills, habits, styles, behaviour and other characteristics with their peers. These social comparisons are vital in enhancing or diminishing a child’s self-esteem. Thus, self-esteem or self-worth is seen as an assessment of our own behaviour, experiences, competencies, emotions, and adjustments of psychological issues,” adds Malik.
Over the last decade, ‘childcare’ as an industry has grown well past a mom-and-pop run setup, to one that is run by professional childcare experts in large and inviting spaces, along with an infrastructure of health and safety norms to govern the overall well-being of a child. It is in such facilities that a child learns to bond socially, develops thinking skills and is instilled with happiness and comfort. “Childcare is no longer just a place to drop off the child while the woman goes to work – it is a holistic development center where the child learns to negotiate life securely. The Theory of Multiple Intelligences proposed by developmental psychologist Dr. Howard Gardner of Harvard University posits that there is more than one way for people to learn, acquire information, and gain knowledge. Dr. Gardner’s eight Intelligences include Linguistic, Logical-Mathematical, Spatial, Bodily-Kinesthetic, Musical, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal and Naturalist,” states Srikanth.
The adults in a child’s life – the parent, the teacher, and the school play a major role in shaping self-esteem. As the school is the place for reflection and observations, children learn social interaction patterns at school because they get an opportunity to interact with same-age peers outside of their home environment.
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