This paper is an attempt to highlight the ways through which expected parents can support their children for their development from the time of conception till birth. This paper shares ideas to the parents about stimulation, which children are required for their development. This paper is divided into three categories: First trimester, second…

The standard model of the role of early experience in human development assumes that children's environments in their first years of life are dominant influences on who they become as adults. The standard model favors interventions to improve children's long-term outcomes that start early in life and are intensive in time and attention from…

This review briefly summarizes recent empirical research on touch. The research includes the role of touch in early development, touch deprivation, touch aversion, emotions that can be conveyed by touch, the importance of touch for interpersonal relationships and how friendly touch affects compliance in different situations. MRI data are reviewed…

The past decade has seen an upsurge in public understanding of early brain development. News reports, statements by policymakers, and commercial marketing of products for infants and young children have all contributed to a widespread understanding of the explosive growth of the brain in the early years and that stimulation acts as a catalyst to…

Early childhood educators and researchers often write of the need for a "magical playscape"--a sensory-rich environment that will draw out children's active inquiry and engagement in an outside learning environment. Despite this soundly child-based information, the reality of many playgrounds is a sandbox, a climbing frame, and a bicycle path;…

Two infant stimulation programs - for Down's Syndrome and hearing impaired children - in Montgomery County, Maryland, are described. Referral, initial assessment, development of individualized education program, and use of learning activities with the Down's infants are discussed along with intervention rationale, parent role, and child…

Since the 1960s, researchers, legislators, advocacy groups, and social partners have examined, analysed, and written articles on the effects of early childhood care outside the family context on children's development and capacity for adaptation. Since the availability of non-parental care for children is often considered essential for women…

The Maternal Role Preparation project utilizes an occupational therapy approach to increasing maternal competence in first-time mothers. The four-session program covers topics concerning infants (attachment, sensory systems, developmental abilities) and mothers (the mothering role, physiological changes after childbirth, physical and psychological…

A father relates his family's efforts to provide early stimulation to a son diagnosed with cerebral palsy and visual impairments. As the boy developed, he listened to audiotape recordings of music and nursery rhymes, explored household objects, watched television, played computer games, and was eventually enrolled in a mainstreamed kindergarten.…

Training materials in special section include "Places for Babies: Infants and Toddlers in Groups," by Jim Greenman; "Bonding with Your Babies," by Alice S. Honig; "The Wonder of the Everyday," by Amy Laura Dombro; "The Dual Challenge: Meeting the Needs of Parents and Babies," by Karen Miller; and…