| PARENT PAGE |
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| Ten Tips for Parents of Infants and Toddlers (from The First Years Last forever, I am Your Child) www.iamyourchild.org |
| 1. Be warm, loving, and responsive. When children recieve warm, responsive care, they are more likely to feel safe and secure with the adults who take care of them. 2. Respond to your child's cues and clues. Recognize and respond to the sounds, movements and expressions that your child makes. Talk to your baby all the time. 3. Talk, read and sing to your child. All of these interactions hel your child's brain make the connections it needs for growth and later learning. 4. Establish routines and rituals. Routines give children a sense of security and are reassuring. Routines can also make bedtime or naptime easier. Your child looks forward to that song you sing or book you share before sleep. 5. Encourage safe exploration and play. As infants grow they need to explore their world. Children actually learn through playing. 6. Make TV watching selective. Watch TV with your child and talk about what you are viewing. Don't use TV as a babysitter! 7. Use discipline as an opportunity to teach. In addition to consistant and loving adult supervision, teach your child limits. Never hit or shake your child. 8. Recognize that each child is unique. Children grow at different rates. Their ideas and feelings reflect parents and care givers attitudes towards them. One child may be very outgoing, another child maybe shy and slow to warm up to new situations. 9. Choose quality child care and stay involved. Visit your childcare provider often and seek someone who responds warmly and responsively to your baby's needs in an individual way. Find a seeting that is clean and safe. Make sure there are enough caretakers for the number of children there. Carefully check the providers references. 10. Take care of yourself. Parents need care too. When you are tired or overwhelmed, you may have a harder time meeting the needs of your young children. |