Early Childhood Development by Brain for Thought

Research shows that it’s important to consistently schedule quality time with your children (Jones, 2017).

Quality time means giving them undivided attention doing what they enjoy without any distractions (Alvardo, n.d,).

Research shows that if you spend quality time with your children, they are less likely to have behavioral issues at school or at home. They are less likely to participate in risky behaviors such as alcohol and drug usage. And, they’re more likely to be physically healthy (Rider, 2018).

Moreover, showing your children that you care and love them helps to keep them emotionally and mentally strong.

If you label a child smart, this becomes a part of their identity, and in order to maintain this status, they would never want to go out of their comfort zone and try things that they may not succeed at. In their mind, they are already where they want to be, why would they do anything to risk losing that label? Instead, they restrict their experiences to things they are sure they can do well and refuse to try anything new.

Dr. Carol Dweck, a professor of psychology at Stanford University has been doing this kind of research for years.

To a group of students, she gave problems that were slightly too hard for them. And some of them loved the challenge, they understood that their abilities can be developed and this is what she calls “growth mindset”. Other students hated the challenge and they run from difficulty. They have what she calls the “fixed mindset”, they feel that their intelligence is being judged and that they failed.

“Fixed mindset is the idea that your talents and abilities are just fixed. It's the idea that some people have a lot and some people have less, and that's the way it's always going to be. A growth mindset is the idea that talents and abilities can be further developed through hard work, good strategies, asking for help and input from others. It's not that everyone's the same, but it's that everyone can grow their abilities.”

What she found in her studies is that praising intelligence backfires, it makes kids not want to engage in challenging tasks and it creates the fixed mindset.

If you praise the child’s effort, strategy or process and connect it to the learning they've done or the success they've achieved then you’re encouraging a growth mindset.



Abu Dhabi Early Childhood Authority

Instead of reminding a child that another kid is waiting their turn to play (which is a great way to teach courtesy and awareness of others), when some people talk about sharing it mostly means that the child has to give up something the instant someone else demands it.

When the child is forced to give something up, his/her play gets interrupted and this teaches him/her that sharing feels bad.

If we, as adults, expect people to wait their turn, we should expect the same from kids. The child should keep a toy until she’s done and then engage in sharing, more like turn-taking.

We should teach the child to say “You can have it when I’m done. ”This teaches positive assertiveness. It helps kids stand up for themselves and learn to set boundaries on other kids, which is an amazing life skill.

Often, the child may willingly hand over the toy and it will feel great for them. The child will experience a rush of positive emotions as a result of acting kind. It’s a feeling he/she would want to experience again, even when no one is watching.

This strategy will be hard on the waiting child, especially if they are impulsive, but this is even a bigger reason why they need to be taught to wait as it helps them develop self-regulation and helps with impulse issues.

In this way kids will learn about patience and empathy. Kids like making other kids happy so when they share on their own time, they will learn to be kind and giving.

During early development, folic acid helps form the neural tube. Folic acid is very important because it can help prevent some major birth defects.

Neural tube defects are birth defects of the brain, spine, or spinal cord. They happen in the first month of pregnancy, often before a woman even knows that she is pregnant. The two most common neural tube defects are spina bifida and anencephaly. In spina bifida, the fetal spinal column doesn't close completely. There is usually nerve damage that causes at least some paralysis of the legs. In anencephaly, most of the brain and skull do not develop. Babies with anencephaly are usually either stillborn or die shortly after birth. Another type of defect, Chiari malformation, causes the brain tissue to extend into the spinal canal.

Getting enough folic acid, a type of B vitamin, before and during pregnancy prevents most neural tube defects. If you have the right level of folic acid in your body before you get pregnant, it reduces the risk of the baby developing neural tube defects by up to 70%.

Generational trauma can change the brain circuitry of an unborn baby Scientists have found that mothers who have suffered childhood trauma can pass this memory down to an unborn baby - scans showed altered brain circuitry

Skin-to-skin contact is usually referred to as the practice where a baby is dried & laid directly on their mother’s bare chest after birth, both of them covered in a warm blanket & left for at least an hour or until after the first feed. Skin-to-skin contact can also take place any time a baby needs comforting or calming & to help boost a mother’s milk supply. Skin-to-skin contact is also vital in neonatal units, where it is often known as ‘kangaroo care’, helping parents to bond with their baby, as well as supporting better physical & developmental outcomes for the baby.
Source: UNICEF, UK
Photo credit: unknown

When compared with children who have been victimized by overt physical maltreatment, young children who experienced prolonged periods of neglect exhibit more serious cognitive impairments, attention problems, language deficits, academic difficulties, withdrawn behavior, and problems with peer interaction as they get older. This suggests that sustained disruption of serve and return interactions in early relationships may be more damaging to the developing architecture of the brain than physical trauma, yet it often receives less attention.

-Center on the Developing Child, Harvard University

Scientists studying neuroscience, epigenetics, endocrinology, inflammatory disorders, & other physiological systems have demonstrated that our earliest environments shape the developing brain, influence the expression of our genes, & affect the health of our body’s systems.

The most rapid period of growth for the human brain occurs in the earliest years of life. The structure & functioning of the human brain are determined not only by genetics, but also by interactions with other people and environment, as the brain molds itself in response to the inputs it receives. The brain is also the most plastic during this time; in other words, the brain is the most adaptable to the conditions it experiences during this period of life. Because of this plasticity, young children are especially vulnerable to the conditions in their lives & their interactions with key caregivers during the youngest years. Adversity during this time can have far-reaching consequences, but this time can also provide a window of opportunity to build the basis for lifelong resilience.

Safe, stable, stimulating, loving interactions between an infant and a parent or caregiver promote optimal brain & body development in the first three years of life.

Too many infants & toddlers do not experience the nurturing and responsive environments that positively shape developing brains and bodies, and instead are exposed to early adversity that inhibits optimal growth and development. Having a parent with severe depression, being exposed to violence, moving from house to house without a place to call home, going without enough to eat for days at a time- these instances of early adversity are far too common among young children, & they disproportionately affect children of color & children whose parents have lower levels of education or income. Although children are incredibly resilient, exposure to chronic stressors early in life charts a course for physical, cognitive, & emotional health problems that can be costly for families & society to navigate. Many disparities in health & wellbeing are rooted in the earliest years of development (Prenatal-to-3 policy impact center, 2021).