Parents frequently ask me what they should look for when they are selecting care for their youngsters when they must be away at work. The answer to this question depends on their expectations, requirements, scheduling needs, and budget for care. In this article I have composed a list of parents' most commonly asked questions along with answers from a professional standpoint. I will also provide some basic information about early childhood so that parents can make an educated decision about who they choose to care for their children when they must be away from them.
First, it must be noted that there are two types of care for young children: 1) There is care that is meant to keep children healthy and safe; and 2) There is care that is meant to keep children healthy and safe while simultaneously providing educational opportunities that prepare children for formal educational settings (K-12th grade) and everyday life. Second, parents need to understand that at birth the brain is not fully developed. In fact, a tremendous amount of learning occurs during early childhood (birth to age seven years). Consequently, the type of care parents choose, whether the care is for the health and safety of children or whether the care is to include educational opportunities, the primary caretaker should, at the very least, understand and use "best practices" for developing healthy children.
Child development specialists view and use empirical research to describe best practices. Best practices are shown to be those that address the developmental needs of the "whole child." The "whole child" consists of 5-distinct selves, and each of the selves must learn specific skills in order for children to reach their full potential. These selves include: 1) the cognitive self - the part of the child that thinks, solves problems, makes judgments, and perceives or interprets information. Each of these tasks requires specific skills that are developed during early childhood; 2) the creative self - the part of the child that creates something new out of already existing materials. Today, in America, creativity is grossly undervalued, yet cures for diseases, solving our nation's most complex problems, and every convenience used by mankind are the result of creativity. Children must be given materials that allow them opportunities to create their own masterpieces, without being criticized, if adults want them to grow up and think outside of the box; 3) the emotional self - the part of the child that feels (sad, happy, frustration, anger, etc.). Children learn to control their emotions, or they fail to learn to control their emotions, during early childhood. The primary caretakers of young children have much to do with whether they develop appropriate emotional regulatory skills; 4) the social self - the part of the child that interacts with others. Children learn both appropriate and inappropriate social skills from their primary caretakers during childhood; 5) the physical self - the part of the child that navigates the body through the physical world. Physical skills include crawling, walking, running, writing, coloring, drawing, etc. These skills begin in infancy and build on each other. Therefore, the early physical skills are critical to developing the physical skills of tomorrow. Naturally, young children also have physical & biological needs such as nourishment, medical care, adequate grooming, and a safe and warm environment.
The various skills associated with each of the five selves begin developing during early childhood. These skills are developed through the opportunities that primary caretakers provide to children during the early years of development. Primary caretakers are the models for children and the ways in which primary caretakers respond to the various needs of young children, including their misbehaviors and their mistakes, actually deliver powerful messages to children. These messages can have positive or negative effects on the brain development of children; AND these effects have long-term consequences for children. The information children learn about themselves (e.g., I am competent versus I am incompetent) from their primary caretakers during early childhood development become hard wired into their brains and set the foot print for their entire life span. A common mistake that is made by parents is to believe that their young infant only needs someone to feed them, change their diaper, and keep them safe while parents are away. While these caretaking tasks are important for the physical needs of children, these behaviors alone do not provide appropriate care for the cognitive, creative, emotional, and social needs of developing children.
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